The EFL's ‘Measuring the Impact of EFL Clubs in the Community’ report highlights key areas Cambridge United is demonstrating its impact...
Figures show that 80% of the population (47.6 million people) in England and Wales live within 15 miles of an EFL Club, a reminder of how important football clubs are to their communities and therefore have huge potential to impact the lives of their local residents.
In 2024, 532,176 people lived within 15 miles of Cambridge United and 314,378 lived within 10 miles. The demographic of people living within these areas is vast, which drives the football club to be as inclusive as possible, making sure access to community opportunities and matchdays is a priority.
In February 2025, the English Football League (EFL) published the third instalment of the ‘Measuring the Impact of EFL Clubs in the Community’ research project. It presents an analysis of data to demonstrate the breadth, depth, and social value of the support Cambridge Untied provides to its community.
The data was captured between November 2023 and September 2024 and our report demonstrated the following areas of analysis:
- The economic impacts that the operations of Cambridge United generated between June 2022 and May 2024, both directly and through the matchday activities of its supporters
- The multiple types of resources that Cambridge United generated and invested for community benefit between 2022 and 2024
- The community engagement projects, programmes, and wider activities that the Club and Foundation delivered during those seasons
- The benefits and changes that communities have benefitted from through the work
- The social value of these changes: quantifying - in monetary terms - the benefits that Cambridge United has delivered for different individuals, communities and society at large.
The report highlights a number of key areas of impact demonstrated by the Football Club and Foundation, including:
- Directly provided or supported 193 jobs, 137 of which were in the local community
- Established and maintained 103 partnerships across the season
- Deployed 62 volunteers who delivered 58,402 hours of support
- Engaged 15,857 participants through club and community activities
- Generated a total social value of £1,324,952.25 across its full range of projects and programmes.
From the total social value generated, we have been able to review areas of impact, based on the data captured through our community programmes in the season 2023-24, which have each been split between targeted projects and participation. ‘Participation Projects’ include benefits for individuals engaging in regular, structured sport and physical activity programmes, and ‘Targeted Projects’ include activities, not sports or physical activity based, but focusing on supporting a particular theme or group of people.
- The value related to physical health was £8,636.88 of value for targeted projects, in comparison to participation projects which delivered £94,000.
- The value generated in relation to mental health for targeted projects was £17,207.31, in comparison to participation projects which was an incredible £1,090,804.29.
- The value relating to community and social outcomes was £9,818.78, with £8,933 coming from targeted programmes and £885.65 coming from participation projects.
- Throughout the season, £104,485.86 of social value was produced that can be directly attributed to education, training, and employment outcomes. Targeted projects delivered £2,013.64 of this value, whilst participation programmes contributed £102,472.22.
The most significant outcome that contributed towards mental health-related social value in 2023/24 was Subjective Wellbeing. This outcome is based on measures of how different aspects of people’s lives contribute to their feelings of happiness and general wellbeing, and, more specifically, the actual or equivalent economic value that people typically place on different activities and experiences.
These figures show the significant value and importance of Cambridge United and its Foundation to its community, demonstrating its impact on creating a more active, more connected, and more equal city.