For Part 2 of the Chinese Football Chronicles, click here.
An immediate observation made at Chinese Football games is the consistent employment of a Capo figure in blocks of fans and Ultras within the stadium. At all Chinese Super League matches I’ve attended in the People’s Republic, a Capo has been present at every single one.
If you are unfamiliar Continue reading
After necking a disappointing Victoria Bitter, I chose to wander around the Docklands area a final time before kick-off. As I passed the station’s main entrance, a gaggle of loud mouths descended the stairs to my left. These were Adelaide United Continue reading
High Times in the Low Countries.
FBTG on tour in the Land of Royal Orange checking out the Dutch Continue reading
More than nominally “left-wing” fans, supporters of BSG Chemie Leipzig proactively fight rising commercialism in Football by voluntarily undertaking a lot of basic jobs around the club. This relieves the club of some overhead costs, and as a consequence, the club is in less need to sell advertising space to diversify its revenue streams. Fan integration is a key part of Chemie Leipzig, and the close relationship between management and supporters should be thought-provoking and inspirational to anyone concerned about fan welfare being compromised by business interests in Football.
Every Football mad Brit already knows it. The German Football experience is second to none in terms of value for money, spectacle and pure enjoyment. Fed up to the back teeth with high ticket prices and draconian body searches every Saturday in the UK, a lot of your Continue reading
This piece of graffiti was seen in Southern Thailand in 2017. Does that Lion appear familiar to you in any way? While being a striking design in its own right, this Lion holding the Thai flag acts as a subtle nod toward the recent success that Thailand has had in the Premier League.
The current Continue reading
Located in the central German federal state of Niedersachsen or “Lower Saxony”, Hannover doesn’t overindulge its visitors in culture the way other larger German cities such as Munich, Leipzig, Berlin, Hamburg and Dresden do. Yet the Ultras of Hannover Sportverein von 1896 have recently been very proactive in response to the actions of the club’s owner, Martin Kind, who has been outspoken in his opposition to the “Ultra Culture” that exists within German Football. Subsequently in 2014 the Ultras of Hannover 96 openly stated their plans to boycott club matches in protest of Kind’s comments, returning to the terraces a year later.
Celtic FC, the “Rebel’s Choice”, has emerged as one of Britain’s most internationally popular Football clubs in recent years thanks entirely to its proactive and colourful fan culture. Celtic’s association with punk club FC Sankt Pauli and frequent displays of pro-Palestinian flags during Continue reading
From Boothferry To Germany 