ESSENDON fans might be the most loyal in the competition — and it appears the club is repaying the faith when membership is concerned.

The Bombers boast the cheapest membership of any club in the AFL this season, with an 11-game membership a whopping $235 cheaper than the most expensive: West Coast’s 11-game reserved seat package.

For families, the news is even better. Two adults and two children can attend 11 Essendon home games for $475.

But in the west, an Eagles family of four must fork out $1334 for the same experience.

Round 18

THE COST OF FOOTBALL

As the discrepancy between a West Coast and Essendon membership highlights, there’s no equalisation policy when it comes to the footy fan.

Prices vary from ground to ground, so the team you support invariably dictates how much you’ll pay for general admission, food and drinks.

At Etihad Stadium in Melbourne — the home ground for Carlton, Essendon, North Melbourne, St Kilda and the Western Bulldogs — the cost of a general admission ticket for an adult ranges from $30-$40.

But on the Lions’ turf at the Gabba, a one-off entry will set you back anywhere between $25.50 and $61, depending on where you’re seated and how luxurious you’re feeling.

The base price at the refurbished Adelaide Oval, however, is more experience, with a general admission ticket at starting at $35.68.

But it’s our friends in the West who are asked to fork out the most. A general admission ticket for an adult at Subiaco Oval will set you back between $36.50 and $86.

Bomber fans will pay less for their membership this season. Photo: Michael Dodge/Getty Images Source: Supplied

THE VALUE OF A MEMBERSHIP

If you do the math and attend all of your team’s home games, a club membership provides the best value for money.

But even then, the playing field isn’t entirely even.

For example, the teams that call the MCG home — Hawthorn, Melbourne, Richmond and Collingwood — all have varying prices for their 11-game home memberships.

At Hawthorn, for instance, the base price for a general admission membership is $190 for an adult. At Melbourne, it’s $209.

But reserved seating is a different matter.

If you’re a Demons fan, you can purchase an 11-game reserved seat membership for $279. But you’ll be expected to pay more if you follow the Hawks, with their reserved seat membership starting at $314 for adults.

Of the teams to play at Etihad Stadium, Essendon offers the cheapest home membership for adults at $170. And at that price, it’s the cheapest 11-game membership in the AFL, which may not be surprising given the trauma Bombers fans have recently endured.

Carlton fans must fork out $210 for the same type of membership, while Saints and Bulldogs members can expect to pay $205.

North Melbourne’s cheapest package is $150, but unlike the other clubs, this membership is flexible. Instead of having one ticket allocated for each home game, North fans are given 10 general admission tickets to use as they please. Bring nine friends along with you to a game or use the tickets each week, as you would with other memberships.

The base price for an adult Hawthorn membership is $190 in 2016. Source: News Corp Australia

AT HOME OR AWAY

Heading interstate, the prices continue to be lopsided. An 11-game unreserved membership at the Swans costs $225 for adults. While the same membership will set Gold Coast supporters back $200.

But the biggest disparity is in the city of churches. Adelaide’s general admission membership starts at $250 for adults, whereas Port’s is cheaper at $175.

The Crows membership does, however, give members access to 18 SANFL matches.

At $250, the Adelaide membership is still substantially cheaper than the “restricted view” 11-game membership at Fremantle, which is a whopping $310. You get a seat, but a view of the entire ground? Not guaranteed.

West Coast tops the table for the most expensive adult membership at $475.

It’s interesting to note that neither team from the West has an 11-game general admission membership option.

However, that doesn’t seem to have deterred Eagles fans — all reserved seating memberships are sold out for 2016. You can join the waiting list. But that will cost you, too.

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FOOTY, PIE, FOOTY, PIE

And then there’s the cost of food and drinks — two elements that form part and parcel of the football experience.

As the AFL attempted to win back fans last season, food and drink prices were slashed throughout Victora.

Free popcorn was distributed to children on Sundays at Etihad Stadium, chips were $1.60 cheaper than they’d been in 2014 and MCG patrons were forking out less for beers.

But those lowered prices appear to have been short lived, with the cost of chips, pies and soft drinks all rising at the home of football this year.

Yet Victorians will fare much better than their South Australian counterparts.

At the MCG, a meat pie will cost you $4.10, but at Adelaide Oval you’ll be expected to fork out $5.30.

Beers are also more expensive, although only marginally.

US vs. THEM

When you boil down the numbers, going to the footy is an expensive spectacle, but no more expensive than a ticket to a concert or a night out.

But how does it compare to other sporting codes?

In Melbourne’s diluted sporting environment — where every code is trying to get a slice of the pie, or at least a slice of your pay packet — the AFL remains competitive with the NRL and A-League.

Indeed, an adult can expect to pay almost the same amount per game at the three “Melbourne” teams, the Demons in the AFL, the Storm in the NRL and the Victory in the A-Leauge.

But for families, the price of going to an AFL match is substantially more expensive per game.

For a family of two adults and two children, the cost of going to see the Demons is $61.73 per game. A family of Victory supporters will only pay $45.38 per game, with the Storm the cheapest at $43.64 per game.

MEMBERSHIP COMPARISON: AFL, A LEAGUE & NRL Source: Supplied

BEST VALUE AFL CLUB

11-game general admission membership adult — Essendon $170

11-game general admission membership family — Brisbane $390

11-game reserved seat membership adult — Essendon $245

11-game reserved seat membership family — Essendon $595

MOST EXPENSIVE AFL CLUB

11-game general admission membership adult — Adelaide $250

11-game general admission membership family — Adelaide $560

11-game reserved seat membership adult — West Coast $475

11-game reserved seat membership family — West Coast $1334