My ‘turn-key-and-hope’ car is giving me problems in the morning. I have choices, many choices. I could continue this dawn misery; I could get a lift to work with someone else; I could replace my car for a newer model; or I could listen to the press ads, TV ads, cinema ads, radio ads, 48 sheet poster ads, adshels, pr articles, Jeremy Clarkson test drives, Which? opinions, DM pieces, online ads, WOMs, blogs, social network sites, viral sites, emails… and… consider another brand!
In fact with almost everything in life, if something isn’t good enough, or it’s faulty, it’s out of date, out of fashion, too big, too small, or if it is just time for a change, we have the choice of other brands to consider.
So then, why is this not the case in football? Let’s get the jokes out the way first:
1. I am a Swindon Town season ticket holder.
2. At odds to popular belief, the match-day stadium announcer doesn’t read out the crowd changes to the teams before kick-off.
3. And yes, 100 goals conceded in one Premier League season is a monumental record Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal will never beat.
‘Supporters’ of football clubs – those that have made a choice to attend the games of a particular club, do so because of a local affinity or allegiance. Every one of those supporters wants his team to beat the opposition every game, every week. The fact that they don’t, and in my club’s case, rarely do, demonstrates that there is more than just club/brand loyalty at play here. Even for long-serving season ticket-holders, there are times when you have to say to yourself, “I really can’t do this any more.” The crunch comes after another soulless defeat or, even worse, a soulless, goalless draw where your heroes look like they just don’t give a damn.
These feelings are never more prevalent when at a pointless cup competition, which can be a thrilling away trip in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy. Many times I have found myself sitting in an 80 per cent empty stadium, trying to generate heat from a nuclear-heated, yet barely edible cheeseburger and wondering if I was going to get home before midnight. Half of me wants to congratulate myself for being a ‘loyal fan’ and for turning out on a frozen November evening, while the more sensible half is saying, “I must be a fool to be here.”
Worse still, when a football club is losing every week and the opposing fans give a cheerful reminder at how poor you are, what do us loyal supporters do? grumble; shout at the referee, ask for the board of directors to consider their positions; and then pay at the turnstiles next week to watch more of the same.
So why not change brand? Why carry on forever optimistic that the brand will get better?, optimistic that the brand will win something someday, optimistic that the visible branding on the forehead will eventually change from ‘loser’ to ‘winner’.
It’s almost a sin to talk, let alone actually switching allegiance of brand – football’s greatest crime and something I would never condone in anyone over the age of 16. I am sure many fans have considered quitting their club, not taking on another team, instead taking a back seat for a while. You can be sure that with a change of fortune or the big cup tie, these fans will flock back and regale everyone with tales of when they went to “that cup semi in ’87”, neglecting to mention the 20-year gap of non-attendance.
Being a football supporter and pinning your heart and loyalty to the club’s cause is not much different to an army joined together in vocal support for its generals; and no amount of better play, luck, insult or jibe from the other side is going to sway its allegiance.
So then, have I, or could I ever consider dropping my football brand for another?
No. No amount of distance, despair or indifference would make me commit such a heinous act*.
* Please don’t tell my fellow wolfies in the children’s enclosure at Molineux that after my granddad moved away from Birmingham and therefore took away my match day lift, I had no choice but to find another club. C’mon give me a break, I was only 6.
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