June 2 – A survey by Champions League sponsor Mastercard has seen British football fans voted the most passionate in Europe. ‘The 12th Man’ study saw 32% vote for British fans, ahead of 16% for Spanish fans and 12% for Italian fans.
One in 10 UK football fans said that they would cancel their honeymoon to watch their team play in the UEFA Champions League final, while 25% admitted to taking unsolicited leave from work and 20% said that they would miss a close friend’s birthday to attend an important game.
Perhaps most importantly 11% of Brits admit that they could not date a supporter of their football team’s rivals – calling it an ‘absolute deal-breaker’ for a prospective relationships. Well obviously, one wonders what is wrong with the other 89%.
A magnaminious 15% of them would be willing to give the relationship a try, but expect there may be relationship problems. A more optimistic 25% described dating a supporter of a rival team ‘annoying but manageable’ – a somewhat typical British compromise and perhaps reflective of the ‘grin and bear it’ social philosophy.
British fans start early with 36% saying they became fans of their side before they were 10 years old. Within that, 10% stated that they had no choice in who they supported – declaring they were fans from birth due to family connection. It is a common phrase in Britain that “you are born with your club” (the one closest to your place of birth whatever the division) which is your one true love in life. The research presumably rules out Manchester United’s legions of fans across the country, most of whom likely happened as a result of weak parenting.
When it comes to paying for their support, the British tend to be cheap (or don’t have any money left are paying for Arsenal away tickets). Asked what the most they had spent on a match, the British fan average was £343 – significantly lower than Turkish (£608), Russian (£553), French (£475), and Spanish (£465) fans.
In keeping with their island status, only 31% of Brits have been to support their team abroad, compared to Spanish fans (61%) and Italian fans (56%).
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