I ALWAYS get people chatting about the football in pub toilets. Surprised you've never experienced it but I suppose football is so much bigger in Glasgow than Stoke?
Football, just a working class cult?
- Thread starter shifty_uk
- Start date
- Status
I ALWAYS get people chatting about the football in pub toilets. Surprised you've never experienced it but I suppose football is so much bigger in Glasgow than Stoke?
Soldato
Sure that wasn't code talk for his penis is bigger than yours?
Man of Honour
I agree entirely with the OP - to me it seems more like a religion/cult following in this country, which is pretty ironic as most people turn their nose up to religion!
Nah, no chance. I'm packing serious heat.
Soldato
Last night on question time someone said that after a big football match, domestic violence "sky rockets".
There are some sick people in the world
There are some sick people in the world
Man of Honour
Do you ever make a post that doesn't mention alcohol or pubs?
I spend a lot of time in pubs but funnily enough I only ever have 1 bottle.
This is probably the most sensible post of a non-football supporting person here. Given the sweeping generalisations I actually though the OP was trying to wind everyone up!?
To say that there is a "faux community" in football, or that most football fans have little or no other interests is completely ridiulous and totally laughable. It's far too easy to make uneducated and misgiuded judgments on any social scene or community if:
a) you're not part of it
b) you've never experienced it
c) you have no interest in it
The football team I follow has no money-grabbing players (the gap between the average earning player at the club and the average earning fan is very narrow), it relies solely on the community of the fans and has been awarded community club of the year three or four times in the last five years. It's common to see the players having a drink with the fans after the match and they play a huge role in the local community (charities, schools, etc.).
I follow the team avidly because I believe it's overwhelmingly important to show passion, dedication and loyalty for something - the same for most football fans. It's generally an unquestionable relationship between fan and club. I work in quite an alpha male environment where 90% of the workforce are football fans. Regardless of which team we support, there's never any rivalry, there's no aggression, there's obviously a bit of mickey-taking but it's all in good fun. All of these people have diverse interests, we just happen to have football in common.
Also, in the almost twenty years I've been going I've seen so little violence. Never seen a fan strike an opposing fan. There are a few kids/louts that like to think that the UK still has the football violence of the Seventies, but in general it's a complete myth. These louts are generally shunned by the rest of the fans, and I personally would much rather have a conversation about football with my non-supporting flatmate than with a loyal lout.
What annoyed me was when I went to the pub to see the England Italy rugby game, it was packed when I got there due to some manu football game, then when that ended and the rugby start most of the people left!
So they'd rather watch some internal game, with teams the other side of the country playing than the country of England playing another country? huh?
Makes no sense to me.
So they'd rather watch some internal game, with teams the other side of the country playing than the country of England playing another country? huh?
Makes no sense to me.
You can't compare rugby to football. Football is good therefore people will watch it. Rugby is dreadful.
Soldato
Larkhall - home of the union loving, protestant diehards is, thankfully a singularly extreme case. Asda forced to change it's signage, Lloyds Pharmacy foced to change it's signage and NTL forced to change the colour of it's street fixtures. This is all about Unionism and nothing to do with football.
I attended a gas explosion at a house in Larkhall where the Police had set up a crime scene due to every member of the family being found except for the father. Everyone entering the scene had to give their name to the Policeman at the entrance to the road. There was an orangeman in full regalia of sash and bowler hat demending to know the names of everypne in attendance because 'this is a protestant matter and only protestants will deal with it'. Entreched problem anyone He moved off, I gave my name to the Policeman only for him to utter 'how did you get under the fenian radar?" Entrenched problem anyone?
Anyhoo, back on topic. I am a Celtic supporter and I do conform to the stereotype of being a Catholic. Big deal. If we win, I'm happy and if we lose, I simply shrug and look forward to the next game. I am prone to some of the pressures surrounding football up here and will get caught out by trolls who provoke but never, ever do I feel like beating anyone up over my love of football and Celtic.
For the record, I am an amateur history buff, a keen cyclist and and an indie loving music freak. Football is not my only interest.
I attended a gas explosion at a house in Larkhall where the Police had set up a crime scene due to every member of the family being found except for the father. Everyone entering the scene had to give their name to the Policeman at the entrance to the road. There was an orangeman in full regalia of sash and bowler hat demending to know the names of everypne in attendance because 'this is a protestant matter and only protestants will deal with it'. Entreched problem anyone He moved off, I gave my name to the Policeman only for him to utter 'how did you get under the fenian radar?" Entrenched problem anyone?
Anyhoo, back on topic. I am a Celtic supporter and I do conform to the stereotype of being a Catholic. Big deal. If we win, I'm happy and if we lose, I simply shrug and look forward to the next game. I am prone to some of the pressures surrounding football up here and will get caught out by trolls who provoke but never, ever do I feel like beating anyone up over my love of football and Celtic.
For the record, I am an amateur history buff, a keen cyclist and and an indie loving music freak. Football is not my only interest.
I mean, you must be joking right? Rugby union is brilliant. I know it can get a bit complex for your average football supporter, so maybe that's your problem?
Man of Honour
Of course it does, would you expect people to flock to the pub to see England play another country at squash just because it's England?
Football's the national and most popular sport. It's played everywhere. Rugby's not even played in most schools, instead generally at only private fee paying places. You can tell that by most of their names, middle class double barrelled stuff.
Soldato
Rugby is played everywhere that has room. It's definitely not restricted to private schools, it just requires more than football.Football's the national and most popular sport. It's played everywhere. Rugby's not even played in most schools, instead generally at only private fee paying places. You can tell that by most of their names, middle class double barrelled stuff.
In terms of school playing there is no difference in requirements really.
However football is non-contact so is more accessible in schools especially primary.
You also can't have a kick-around of rugby really, so if people go down to the park to play a ball game it will invariably be football.
Soldato
With regards to the class thing, not so much generally football but hooligans I think someone touched on it earlier in the thread. We have a lot of current and "retired" hooligans drink in my pub, and they've given me quite an insight over the years, the most revealing was quite recently:
Someone else was chatting to this guy about why he does it/what's in it for him, and he said that in day to day life he's just a grunt, just follows orders, will never amount to anything, but come match/fight days he's somebody, he has something he can bring to the party, it makes him feel important.
Doesn't really excuse it, and you'd think with that level of insight into himself he could probably do something more worthwhile day to day, but I thought it was interesting never the less
Someone else was chatting to this guy about why he does it/what's in it for him, and he said that in day to day life he's just a grunt, just follows orders, will never amount to anything, but come match/fight days he's somebody, he has something he can bring to the party, it makes him feel important.
Doesn't really excuse it, and you'd think with that level of insight into himself he could probably do something more worthwhile day to day, but I thought it was interesting never the less
Man of Honour
I find it amazing that this so called 'workingmans sport for thick buggers' can be seen in every corner of the Earth.
I like when Bruce Parry goes into the deepest jungles of Papua New Guinea or the Amazon that he will find kids kicking a ball with Arsenal & Man Utd shirts on.
This PROVES beyond doubt that football is part of evolution, in our genes and the one sport that unites the world every 4 years.
I truly believe that any male not into football must be a bit girly.
I like when Bruce Parry goes into the deepest jungles of Papua New Guinea or the Amazon that he will find kids kicking a ball with Arsenal & Man Utd shirts on.
This PROVES beyond doubt that football is part of evolution, in our genes and the one sport that unites the world every 4 years.
I truly believe that any male not into football must be a bit girly.
Soldato
I agree it's a universal thing, not sure about the arsenal/man utd shirts though, I think it's just the simplest game imagineable really, for multiple people at any rate. There's countless roots for it's evolution.
I think kids worldwide want to play football, that doesn't mean everyone does though.
I quite like playing it, though I'm not great, I can enjoy watching it, but it tends not to hold my interest for a whole game, and I have next to not loyalty when it comes to teams.
Soldato
Lol.
Living in Glasgow I see similar retarded posts/comments on facebook. Thankfully few of my friends do it (and at least those that get comments/discussion provide brief amusement).
- Status