UK house prices are 106 times higher than they were when England won the World Cup in 1966 – growing three times faster than wages,
According to research from online mortgage broker, Trussle, house price growth has actually eclipsed wage growth by 3 to 1 since the greatest day in English sporting history. This means that the average price of a home in the UK is now a staggering 106 times higher than when we lifted the trophy in 66.
With less than a fortnight to go until we have another crack at it, hoping to end over 50 years of hurt, Trussle dug into the archives to turf up stats on the dramatic increases in both house prices and footballer’s wages over the last 52 years.
Since 1966, the average UK house price has risen from £2,006 to £211,000. At the same time, wages have risen at around a third of the rate, moving from £798 to £26,500 – meaning it is effectively three times harder to get on the property ladder than it was in the summer of ‘66, when the UK still used shillings and the Beatles’ Yellow Submarine was top of the charts.
If you’re a hopeful first-time buyer who happens to be a top-flight footballer however, the picture looks very different. On average Premier League footballers earn a staggering 1,136 times more than top-flight stars did back when Bobby Moore, George Best and Pele were making history.
Looking at how the current England squad compares to the heroes of ’66, right back Kyle Walker earns approximately 867 times more than George Cohen did when he was going toe-to-toe with Franz Beckenbauer and Uwe Seeler. Walker earns £130,000 per week at Manchester City, while Cohen was earning £80 a week at Fulham in the sixties. Cohen had to sell his medal in 1998 due to his poor financial situation, while world cup final hat-trick hero Sir Geoff Hurst had to go on benefits following his retirement from playing.
It is estimated that the average wage of the current England squad is just below £80,000 per week. For context this is more than 3 times the annual UK average wage.
Ishaan Malhi, CEO and founder of Trussle, said: “A lot of has changed since England won the World Cup. We’ve put a man on the moon, invented the internet and we’ve seen technology transform almost every aspect of our lives.
We’ve also seen the UK housing market change dramatically. Prices have soared in the last 52 years, wages have struggled to keep pace and for young people, the chances of getting on the property ladder today will feel a lot slimmer than they did in 1966.”
