My story is similar other than that I was born in the US to a Mancunian expat mother. She hadn't been a big football fan but always made certain to share the family heritage of being Blues with me. Probably because my granddad would have absolutely wanted it that way.For what it's worth I feel like this post is worth addressing, even though some others have already done so.
I'll be upfront and say that I am a foreign fan of City. Born and bred in Australia for all my life, I was a footy mad kid. I played in the local team where I grew up (a town of roughly 30,000). I wasn't a great player but Mum and Dad got me into football as a way to develop teamwork skills and general fitness.
At the time (the nineties) there wasn't a lot of 'football content' to consume. The National League was pretty shambolic at the time and barely got any coverage. We didn't have that local football culture inherent in England (at least not in the town I grew up) whereby supporting a club was a 'way of life'. Maybe in some of the lager cities, Sydney or Melbourne that was different but not where I lived.
One of the few outlets I had for my interest in football was the Premier League highlights show which used to be broadcast on SBS here in Australia at 7:30pm on a Monday night. It would show all the goals and extended highlights of the weekends games in primetime! It was a godsend! SBS was the multicultural broadcaster here in Australia and football was, and still is to a certain extent seen as a game for "Sheila's, Wogs and Poofs" (which is the same as the title of a great book on Australian Football history which is worth checking out). So following football in Australia already put you at odds to mainstream society.
So every Monday night I'd follow the league as it was my football fix. At the time, probably pandering to the global audience, the 'Red' teams got a disproportionate coverage as United and Arsenal were the more successful teams at the time and Liverpool had it's 'history' (e.g Craig Johnston probably being the bigger Australian football export at the time who achieved success with Liverpool attracted some Australian fans). However, when it came to selecting a team to support, I ended up choosing City when they achieved promotion at the turn of the century. Maybe given the contrarian streak in me there was something about picking one of the 'top' teams (at the time) to support which didn't sit right with me. I read up about the history of the Club and the whole gallows humour/'Typical City' vibe really resonated with me. My brother ended up picking Villa to support as the claret and blue were the same colours as the kit the club we played for was (why he didn't end up picking West Ham I'll never know).
And what a time to pick them to support! I had the glory of the Keegan, and Pearce years ahead of me! I distinctly remember a highlight being forcing a replay in the FA Cup against Villa when Micah scored that goal and had that post match interview! Imagine that being a highlight of the season given the success we've born witness to now! I couldn't even watch it live as it wasn't broadcast in Australia and had to reply on a internet text gamecast through ESPN. Actually watching City games were few and far between. The Sky equivalent over here only had the rights to about 4-5 games a week, and you can bet who they decided to televise (City rarely got on unless we were playing one of the 'Top 4' sides).
I lurked on here for many a year before joining up, namely because I was 100% sure that I would be accepted as I wasn't a Manc. Even to this day there are some topics that I don't feel I can comment on (such as ticket prices etc) as I feel my opinion doesn't carry as much weight (which is true to an extent).
It was this trepidation that I wasn't sure whether I should approach some Blues that I saw in a beer garden in Munich when I was on the way to watch the pre-season friendly against Bayern a few years ago (the only City game I've had the fortune of attending - funnily enough the time City played a friendly in Oz I was in the UK for a mates wedding!). But we got to talking, had a few beers, started getting a whole carriage on the broken down tram to the stadium singing the the Ya Ya Toure song and had a great experience. If you're reading @JC2 - hope all is well!
I guess I started following City for my own reasons, and to me they're neither right nor wrong. Others may think differently but the funny thing about supporting a football team is that your experience or of it doesn't invalidate my own and vice versa, so I struggle to understand the animosity that some feel.
Hopefully my shared experience can give you some level of understanding as to why I started supporting City, as you state that you can't fathom why anyone who didn't grow up in the shadow of Maine road would support them, because for the life of me I can't reconcile your desire for maintaining these parochial attitudes.
Not at all does it offend me. I'm a City fan and I don't even come from Stockport.My 28 yr old son was born in Leeds and now lives in Newcastle. A City blue through and through but only because I am. He knows fck all about Manchester as a place. Sorry if that offends some.
I have bumped into City fans all over the world in decades of travelling. I have always found that we share one thing in common and it's the contrarian attitude you have mentioned. I met one walking down a street in a City top in the 90s when United were at their peak. It was in Seattle and I shouted across to him. He looked like a fan of the grunge music and was obviously a local. Anyway I asked him why he supported City and his response was: "Because United are shit." The perfect response in my view.For what it's worth I feel like this post is worth addressing, even though some others have already done so.
I'll be upfront and say that I am a foreign fan of City. Born and bred in Australia for all my life, I was a footy mad kid. I played in the local team where I grew up (a town of roughly 30,000). I wasn't a great player but Mum and Dad got me into football as a way to develop teamwork skills and general fitness.
At the time (the nineties) there wasn't a lot of 'football content' to consume. The National League was pretty shambolic at the time and barely got any coverage. We didn't have that local football culture inherent in England (at least not in the town I grew up) whereby supporting a club was a 'way of life'. Maybe in some of the lager cities, Sydney or Melbourne that was different but not where I lived.
One of the few outlets I had for my interest in football was the Premier League highlights show which used to be broadcast on SBS here in Australia at 7:30pm on a Monday night. It would show all the goals and extended highlights of the weekends games in primetime! It was a godsend! SBS was the multicultural broadcaster here in Australia and football was, and still is to a certain extent seen as a game for "Sheila's, Wogs and Poofs" (which is the same as the title of a great book on Australian Football history which is worth checking out). So following football in Australia already put you at odds to mainstream society.
So every Monday night I'd follow the league as it was my football fix. At the time, probably pandering to the global audience, the 'Red' teams got a disproportionate coverage as United and Arsenal were the more successful teams at the time and Liverpool had it's 'history' (e.g Craig Johnston probably being the bigger Australian football export at the time who achieved success with Liverpool attracted some Australian fans). However, when it came to selecting a team to support, I ended up choosing City when they achieved promotion at the turn of the century. Maybe given the contrarian streak in me there was something about picking one of the 'top' teams (at the time) to support which didn't sit right with me. I read up about the history of the Club and the whole gallows humour/'Typical City' vibe really resonated with me. My brother ended up picking Villa to support as the claret and blue were the same colours as the kit the club we played for was (why he didn't end up picking West Ham I'll never know).
And what a time to pick them to support! I had the glory of the Keegan, and Pearce years ahead of me! I distinctly remember a highlight being forcing a replay in the FA Cup against Villa when Micah scored that goal and had that post match interview! Imagine that being a highlight of the season given the success we've born witness to now! I couldn't even watch it live as it wasn't broadcast in Australia and had to reply on a internet text gamecast through ESPN. Actually watching City games were few and far between. The Sky equivalent over here only had the rights to about 4-5 games a week, and you can bet who they decided to televise (City rarely got on unless we were playing one of the 'Top 4' sides).
I lurked on here for many a year before joining up, namely because I was 100% sure that I would be accepted as I wasn't a Manc. Even to this day there are some topics that I don't feel I can comment on (such as ticket prices etc) as I feel my opinion doesn't carry as much weight (which is true to an extent).
It was this trepidation that I wasn't sure whether I should approach some Blues that I saw in a beer garden in Munich when I was on the way to watch the pre-season friendly against Bayern a few years ago (the only City game I've had the fortune of attending - funnily enough the time City played a friendly in Oz I was in the UK for a mates wedding!). But we got to talking, had a few beers, started getting a whole carriage on the broken down tram to the stadium singing the the Ya Ya Toure song and had a great experience. If you're reading @JC2 - hope all is well!
I guess I started following City for my own reasons, and to me they're neither right nor wrong. Others may think differently but the funny thing about supporting a football team is that your experience or of it doesn't invalidate my own and vice versa, so I struggle to understand the animosity that some feel.
Hopefully my shared experience can give you some level of understanding as to why I started supporting City, as you state that you can't fathom why anyone who didn't grow up in the shadow of Maine road would support them, because for the life of me I can't reconcile your desire for maintaining these parochial attitudes.
Great post. This really resonates with me too as I started supporting City for very similar reasons, with the difference that I grew up in Manchester. With neither of my parents being interested in football, mum not from Manchester and dad not from Britain, and no uncles or whoever whispering alternative teams in my ear, I had a free hit of what team I could support. United would have been the easy choice at the time (I was 6 when the Premier League started), but it just didn't seem right. So I understand this completely @billymumphrey . Welcome.So every Monday night I'd follow the league as it was my football fix. At the time, probably pandering to the global audience, the 'Red' teams got a disproportionate coverage as United and Arsenal were the more successful teams at the time and Liverpool had it's 'history' (e.g Craig Johnston probably being the bigger Australian football export at the time who achieved success with Liverpool attracted some Australian fans). However, when it came to selecting a team to support, I ended up choosing City when they achieved promotion at the turn of the century. Maybe given the contrarian streak in me there was something about picking one of the 'top' teams (at the time) to support which didn't sit right with me. I read up about the history of the Club and the whole gallows humour/'Typical City' vibe really resonated with me. My brother ended up picking Villa to support as the claret and blue were the same colours as the kit the club we played for was (why he didn't end up picking West Ham I'll never know).
Hopefully my shared experience can give you some level of understanding as to why I started supporting City, as you state that you can't fathom why anyone who didn't grow up in the shadow of Maine road would support them, because for the life of me I can't reconcile your desire for maintaining these parochial attitudes.
Same for me, except all my extended family were rags and now 1 sister is married to a rag and the other to a scouser!Great post. This really resonates with me too as I started supporting City for very similar reasons, with the difference that I grew up in Manchester. With neither of my parents being interested in football, mum not from Manchester and dad not from Britain, and no uncles or whoever whispering alternative teams in my ear, I had a free hit of what team I could support. United would have been the easy choice at the time (I was 6 when the Premier League started), but it just didn't seem right. So I understand this completely @billymumphrey . Welcome.
I still support Plymouth, Swindon, Yeovil, all places I'v lived and I like football. tbh how dare ANYONE look down on another City fan for not being from Manchester. But we're all entitled to our own opinion. Thats mine.My 28 yr old son was born in Leeds and now lives in Newcastle. A City blue through and through but only because I am. He knows fck all about Manchester as a place. Sorry if that offends some.