Are they worth the effort?
Well we have trips to Gateshead and York City to inspire us this pre-season, and I tend to think a day on the piss is probably going to be the highlight.
Yesterday England travelled to Dublin ... and boy was that a waste of money for the fans who travelled.
Paul Scholes described it as "a waste of an afternoon" and he wasn't the only one.
The FA pleaded with supporters to "behave", and they did ... but a bit of banter would have livened up a dead game.
England's first trip to the Republic of Ireland in 20 years passed off without incident on the pitch and in the stands as the two neighbours played out a goalless draw at the Aviva Stadium.
England's 3,000 supporters inside the stadium respected the call for good behaviour, and they refrained from singing any anti-IRA chants.
England boss Roy Hodgson said on the eve of the game that he was expecting an "electric" atmosphere, but there was barely a flicker of excitement from the stands during the match due to the poor quality football on display.
England started in an attacking 4-3-3 formation, but offered little up front with Wayne Rooney and Raheem Sterling particularly disappointing.
Ireland, who are 47 places below England in the FIFA rankings, had the better chances.
Daryl Murphy wasted two good opportunities to score in the first half and Joe Hart did well to save Jon Walters' fierce shot after the break.
England managed just three attempts on target all match.
Did anything come out of it?
Worth the money?
NO!