Most tenuous reasons for choosing a football team?

[Harbinger of Hope]

Most tenuous reasons for choosing a football team?

In Italy I support Inter because on the first occasion I watched a Sunday match on Channel 4's Football Italia, they were playing at home, and Paul Ince was in the team, who unlike most of the other players, I was actually aware of. That and they had a really cool kit. Then when they signed Ronaldo I was completely smitten. I seem to remember at that time, EIM got hold of an Inter shirt with Ronaldo 9 on the back in unofficial lettering, which made me massively jealous. Don't tell him I said that though.

[EIM]

Most tenuous reasons for choosing a football team?

That shirt was beautiful, man.

[Harbinger of Hope]

Most tenuous reasons for choosing a football team?

Have you still got it?

[EIM]

Most tenuous reasons for choosing a football team?

Nah. Gave all my football shirts away recently, but that one went missing a long time ago. Got it from Hereward Sports in the George Centre. Remember Grantham, eh? What was THAT all about?

[markcurtains]

Most tenuous reasons for choosing a football team?

I know a lad via the net, born and bred in Croydon, family all Palace fans, supports Sheffield Wednesday due to loving owls as a kid.

[1974ddr]

Most tenuous reasons for choosing a football team?

markcurtains wrote: I know a lad via the net, born and bred in Croydon, family all Palace fans, supports Sheffield Wednesday due to loving owls as a kid.

There's always one. I know a bloke from the 'hotbed of football' (TM)- well, just outside Sunderland, anyway- who's supported Chelsea since the mid-seventies, i.e. just after the glamour years of Hudson and Osgood and co. Lured by the seductive charms of Chopper Harris and Micky Droy, no doubt.

[Sam]

Most tenuous reasons for choosing a football team?

scratchmonkey wrote: Sam, you might have to extrapolate on your reaction there as the original sentiment is one that's a characterization made by Galeano, so I'd be interested to hear your take on it as somebody on the ground, so to speak.

(The only Argentine River fan I know personally is thoroughly middle-class and from Bahía Blanca, so neither here nor there (and I give him stick about not supporting Olimpo in any case).)

Serge Gainsbourg wrote:

Boca Juniors - the working class team of Buenos Aires

Oh for God's sake...

Hmmm, what have I said now?

Sorry gents, forgot about this. It's mostly that that whole construct is something that their marketing department have successfully sold to the world, based on Boca being one of two Argentine clubs anyone outside South America has heard of, and their stadium being in a sketchy as fuck area. River's is in a very nice area, and that combined with them being the first big-spenders in the professional era of Argentine football (since 1931) means they have a reputation as aristocrats which they're mostly pretty happy to play on, and which aids the idea that Boca are somehow a club of the people.

The truth is both clubs are the biggest (if you'll pardon the pun) political footballs in the country as far as sports institutions go. The current president of Argentina is a wealthy man from a wealthy family who's a lifelong supporter of... Boca Juniors (and was their president before he got into 'proper' politics). You're as likely to see folk from lower down the social ladder wearing River shirts as Boca ones, and as likely to see upper class people supporting Boca as you are River. I mean, both of them claim about a third of the country in support - of course they're both going to draw that from all levels of society.

There are, at a rough guess, 50+ clubs in the Greater Buenos Aires area and a great many of them have far better 'lower/working class' credentials than Boca do. Some of them (San Lorenzo most obviously) have compelling reasons to align themselves against the forces of the last dictatorship, many of whose allies still hold influential positions in Argentine society (or did until they started retiring/dying/being put on trial for what they did). But they don't have Boca's marketing department or global fame.

The real point is that Boca's following is so wide that it's wrong to call them a working class team, but even if you do it's complete rubbish to call them the working class team.

Oh and scratchmonkey, I wouldn't take the piss out your mate too much. For one thing it's not frowned on here to support a club from Buenos Aires if you're not from here, and for another, no-one supports Olimpo. The folk at the stadium just go to their matches because there's fuck all else to do in Bahía Blanca*.

*This, I admit, is something I've been told on good authority rather than experienced for myself, not having been to BB.

[colinwasp]

Most tenuous reasons for choosing a football team?

There's a lot of Scandinavian Barnet supporter who decided to follow the club because of Championship Manager, as 'barnet' roughly translates to 'the kid' in Norwegian. There's a strong supporters group in Moss that does their own Player of the Year trophy and everything....