The football industry is a considerable business with large sums of money moving around. Football is also the most played sport in the world, with a fan culture, which is probably even bigger. This thesis explored the role of fans in the pandemic from the perspective of the English Championship level. In addition, the thesis intended to study who the fans are, what their relationship and significance is to the clubs, and what kind of losses the lack of fans has done directly and indirectly to clubs that have had to play without fans for almost nine months. The purpose of the thesis was also to increase the interest in the football industry in Finland.

Qualitative methods were used in the research-type thesis. At the beginning of the thesis process, information was gathered on the topic in order to gain a comprehensive understanding and to be able to conduct semi-structured interviews, ie thematic interviews. Three Championship clubs were selected for the interview, and they were able to decide themselves how to conduct the interview. Each participant in the interview showed a high motivation to answer, so the number of interviewees turned out to be comprehensive enough to make the thesis possible. The responses to the thematic interviews were analyzed by using a thematic design. The themes formed for the thematic design differed from the themes of the interview, which shows the depth of the level reached in the study.

The results showed that the income brought by the fans is higher than what the clubs have even known. On the other hand, the lack of fans may have been a great opportunity for players making their breakthroughs, as fans on the spot may put too much pressure on new entrants. The impact of the lack of fans also transcends the boundaries of football clubs, as local businesses, for example, have suffered indirect losses as a result. However, football clubs have reacted to everything, and the interviews showed an increasing emphasis on innovation, digitalisation and a diverse society in the future.

The conclusions of the thesis showed that football is now at a turning point and clubs are ready to do their best to prevent financial problems and find new ways to maintain a fan culture. The problems in the operation of football clubs were the lack of transparency in the business, which could be improved by balancing the financial situation of the clubs. The pandemic has created a new normal for us. As a result, now is the time to change the old ways of doing things.