Germany is currently hosting the UEFA Euro 2024, it has been on since June 14 and is set to end on July 14. If you’re planning to attend, however, new data from UK provider Three suggests that you should probably leave your phone at home if you don’t want it to be smashed up.
Based on a survey of British football fans, 29% of respondents said that they have damaged their phone during a match and 59% of those admitted they’d broken their phones during a match multiple times. The company said that you’re most likely to get a cracked screen (51%), dents and scratches (42%), or liquid damage (20%).
Three said that the most likely incidents to cause damage include jumping up and down (48%), friends knocking the phone our of your hand (28%), or it being knocked off a table (20%). The company said that 30% of people who broke their phones ended up paying more than £90 to get the damage fixed.
While taking your phone to football matches can be risky, there is somewhere even more dangerous to your phone – the pub. For those outside the UK who are not familiar with pubs, it’s a place where you go to sit around drinking beer and perhaps having a bit of food to eat. There is usually a Sky Sports-equipped TV playing a football match so can also act as a magnet during football tournaments.
Three said that the pub was the riskiest place to take your phone as 38% of all damages happen here, that’s 9% more than at a football stadium. With all that said, staying at home may not protect you either as 20% of people reported damaging their phone in their humble abode.
The data provided by Three highlights the importance of keeping phones in a case with a screen protector to keep them in the best condition and to help us avoid having to pay for repairs or replacements.
Source: Three