Safe standing made a return to EPL during the top-flight's opening weekend

Hundreds of thousands of fans have flocked to Premier League grounds for the opening weekend of the season - and a growing number will have taken their place in a safe standing section following a landmark decision in 2022.

The announcement last year that clubs can install rail seats brought to an end a quarter-of-a-century ban on standing at football stadiums, implemented in 1994 following the Hillsborough disaster, and marked a successful conclusion to a near 30-year campaign from supporters across the country.

So far, seven Premier League sides - Brentford, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City, Tottenham and Wolves - have taken advantage, while Aston Villa and Newcastle will gradually introduce it during the 2023-24 campaign.

There are now a total of more than 60,000 rail seats - enough to fill the Emirates Stadium - in the Premier League, an amount fans would not have thought possible even five years ago.

Liverpool will have the highest number in the league by the time the redevelopment of the Anfield Road end is finally finished with 13,300. They are closely followed by Chelsea, whose 12,000 rail seats is 30 per cent of Stamford Bridge's capacity.

Man United are one of the clubs to have extended their safe standing options, with a further 2,100 seats added at Old Trafford ahead of the new season. A small section United fans stood Wembley during the Carabao Cup victory over Newcastle - the first time supporters were able to do so at the national stadium for 35 years.

Clubs such as Everton and Luton do not have rail seats at their current grounds but have pledged to implement it at their new stadiums.

There is no uniform approach to the issue, however, as it is up to fans and local safety advisory groups