Supporters of your football club are angry. And if they are not, it is only a matter of time. Take a glance through every men’s league in the UK and you will struggle to pinpoint a handful of fans who are perfectly content with their lot as 2024 approaches. Football, once a tribal passion worth smiling about, triggers such angst and venom that fresh medication brands may be required. “BASTARD!” they bawl; at the award of a throw-in. Referees live in constant fear of being lamped.
Cliche suggests social media is the root of all evil. Maybe it is. However, there is a level of accountability football club owners and employees have to face because of the internet which is undeniably a good thing. Where this becomes problematic is when the personal abuse dished out to the head of recruitment, the masseur or the chairman’s wife extends to within a stand. This happens, continually, because fans live on the edge between being delighted with what their team is serving up and being utterly FURIOUS at what is occurring. Ask yourself, when was the last time you saw a wonderful goal applauded by even a smattering of opposition supporters? It used to happen. Now, the player who cracks home a 25-yard volley is instantly berated as a “WANKER!” This is surely a miserable existence.
