People who attend games now are not what most of us recognise to be City fans from the 70s, 80s and 90s eating a lukewarm pie and drinking a Bovril at the back of the Kippax.
There is a growing percentage that are fans of football in general, with no dyed-in-the-wool allegiance to any team grown through years of family roots, living locally, battling at school, bantering at work, etc.
The bigger the game, the better.
They do not see any issue wearing rival colours or even celebrating an away goal while sitting in the home section. They are celebrating a goal, pure and simple. They will video the fans celebrating to record their memory, even though it will only be shown to the folks back in Texas, China, Singapore, or wherever.
Maybe they have an affinity to a certain player, be it Haaland, KDB, Salah, or whoever. The celebrity culture has migrated to footballers in the way that people aligned themselves to film stars in years gone by.
"There's a new film on an the Odeon" "What is it?" "I don't know, it's the new one with Paul Newman" "Great, I like him, I'll go at the weekend"
People are attending matches because there's a star player, or ideally two or three star players, and they are looking to see him/them.
"While we're in London next month, Man City are in town" "Man City's the one with Haaland?" "Yeah" "Cool, can we get tickets?" "Advertised here for just £100 each from Matches-R-Us, and they're in the City fans so we'll get the great atmosphere"
They will buy a match scarf (both team colours, the date, etc.) even though it is only good for one game, as a souvenir, not to show their support for one team or another.
They will buy a shirt for the same reason. If half-and-half shirts were on sale they'd buy one of those.
They'll take them home and put them on display in their house or wherever and when friends come round to watch a match on TV with beers and a BBQ, show them off and put their video on the TV.
(To be honest, if I went to a La Liga match while on holiday in Spain, I'd probably look for a souvenir - it wouldn't mean I'd be supporting one team over another. I would however, show respect and not celebrate a goal as if I were a die-hard fan. There is a line.)
It's going to happen more and more, and as the games goes increasingly global, the need for people who can tell you the eleven for the Newcastle 68, who played the assist for Tueart's overhead, the three hat-trick scorers against Huddersfield, what's the significance of Gillingham, Bradford and Rovers, describe the agony of the Pearce season, recite the commentary of the 93:20 moment, and can list all the managers from 1975 to 2025 (permanent and caretaker), well they don't spend any money over and above their ST and maybe a cup of tea.
They don't spend something close to £500 for a single match on a ticket 'package', a tour, a shirt, a carrier bag of any old tat with a City badge on it, a 'concourse meal' and a pint or two AND a half-and-half scarf from the guy running the hats and scarves stall on Ashton New Road.
Prime seats only for prime payers. Unfortunately that's the way it is.
Not long until Premier League goes on tour with matches in Vegas, NY or LA.
