The Tumultuous Life of a Football Fan ('Sporting Chic' in The Sunday Guardian, October 3 2010)

The tumultuous life of a football fan is just that. Tumultuous. Our lives are timed calendar-style precision – we’re happiest when the summer hiatus from the English Premier League, Spanish La Liga or Italian Serie A ends. And in August and September, when football leagues world over reconvene and bring back the frenzy.

Don’t get me wrong, June and July aren’t attempts to wean us away from our television sets and football teams. Every 2 years we’re blessed with football during those months (thank you World Cup and the European Championship). 

But when we’re not, all that gets fanatics through the trying period of zero goals and no gloating rights are the transfer window months of July and August. A bizarre, interim time that brings an air of expectation and excitement. 

Once a league kicks off for the year, most die-hard fans say goodbye to their weekends. We’re dismal in May when season title winners are crowned, losers are mocked and then, with fair warning, football goes away!

The start of a new season with newly traded players is a long awaited, much anticipated and traffic stopping event (ever tried to grab a cab after an Arsenal game at the Emirates Stadium? The traffic would put the CWG to shame).

It’s not just our weekends that disappear into a haze of cheering, jeering and gloating. Courtesy of the UEFA Champions League and time difference hell (European Standard Time), we’re stuck with sleepless nights midweek every fortnight. That guy in the next cubicle, passed out on his keyboard? Chances are he was up till the wee hours watching the game.

It’s debatable whether a fan’s excitement is over the return of football or the rivalries being revived. New season is a time for supporters of winning clubs to gloat; fans of a runners up club to hope and pray that their teams are fortified with new, stronger buys; and fans of newly promoted clubs to hope their team can last a season without being bumped back down to lower division leagues.

Nothing defines a football fan like team loyalty. Personally, I channel William Wallace’s Braveheart speech before every big Arsenal game. Think Cesc Fabregas and the Arsenal team in highland kit (and kilts?) charging forward at the Chelsea defense this Sunday at Stamford Bridge.

A quick introduction to the life of an Arsenal fan - we’re one of the most successful clubs in the world. We’re all - and only - about the beautiful style of football Arsenal plays. We’re purists. We’re not about the money, we’re not about the big stars – we believe in identifying and breeding talent and teamwork. We respect and worship our manager, Arsene Wenger. But we would prefer that you call him ‘the Professor.’ And I would prefer that you called the Gunners (as Arsenal is called) – the Invincible Gunners. 

In 2004, Arsenal pulled off a record breaking undefeated run to win the English Premier League. It’s a record that remains unmatched by any team and will likely go done in the history books: 49 games. Un-beaten. Despite a trophy drought since that exceptional run, Arsenal can pride themselves on revamping the team and selecting a dynamic group of young players, who work hard and gel well. There’s a reason why most neutral fans or fans of ‘the sport’ prefer to watch Arsenal play. It’s just the way we play.

Just like the rest of the rest of the world, India is a vast sea of customary United fans. Everywhere you look it’s a ManU supporter or a United bar. Manchester United is by far the world’s best-marketed sports property. Unfortunately, this explains why I can count Delhi’s Arsenal fans on my fingers and toes. Kudos to the growing band of Spurs fan – I know it’s blasphemy to celebrate growing support for our bitter North London rivals; but it’s a sign that things are finally changing.

Now, if I could just get Scotty to beam us down some Gunners and a long deserved, world class, quality goalkeeper...