Etihad Atmosphere - 2022/23

[Manchester33]

Whatever you might think someone with a megaphone leading chants will look like in your head at the Etihad

it would 100% more resemble this

LOL!

a part of me just died a bit inside. That's almost as bad as the 'COME ON SEATTLE' guy.

I'm one of the people running 1894. So we've had the capo/drum debate thrown at us for the best part of a decade. We've tried different things, but it's so far from happening that it's not worth getting worried about.

Let's say that we (1894) wanted to get a drum and megaphone into the stadium (that isn't in our plans right now, I'm speaking hypothetically)... We would face the following hurdles:

- No one capable of, or brave enough to play the drum properly (as the European ultras do - as opposed to Blackburn Rovers style).
- No area of the ground with enough free space to bunch like-minded fans together at the front of a block.
- Security isn't happy with the idea of a fan using a megaphone.
- We don't actually have any songs that would work with that style of singing so we'd have to introduce them slowly.

So even with all the motivation in the world, we, as a fanbase wouldn't be capable of doing that for literally months.

What we are doing, and I think the vast majority of our supporters would buy into, is:

- trying to use songs with a beat that we can keep going for longer (I know it gets pelted on here, but the Edin Dzeko song actually does this quite well).
- bunching 10/15 lads at the back of SSL1 to start off songs (this is similar to a capo, but a different way of doing it).
- we've trialed an installation of metal sheeting on some rows in SSL1 that supporters can stamp on to make a bang. With a few tweaks, this will improve and turn into our equivalent of a drum and help us keep chants on the beat and spread around the ground (without having a person stand at the front whacking a drum).

Ultimately though, the reason these discussions always come up (and that we have this thread) is that the vast, vast majority of fans that go to the Etihad contribute absolutely nothing to the atmosphere. I've sat in CBL3 a couple of times this season and you can clearly hear the South Stand, but no-one joins in (other than me, singing like a goon on my own).

 

[Tim of the Oak]

Firstly, let me apologise.

I was pissed, tired and frustrated by the result, the missed penalty, the ruled out goal, and the lack of support from our fans.

TBH I don’t know why I take the lack of support by our fans personally. There’s nothing I can do about it.

Replying to you post.



I stand in SSL1. People start songs all the time from the back of the stand. In doing so they’re instructing City fans below them what to sing. It doesn’t matter if songs are started from the front of the stand via a capo, or from the back of the stand by a single person or a group of people, the outcome is still the same. Fans, regardless of who they suport, will always sing songs that are started by their fellow fans, orchestrated or not.

From a personal point of view I wouldn’t have a problem following a Capo. Other people would. I accept that. It’s all about choices. At the end of the day all I want to hear and see is City fans supporting the team as much and as best they can.

Last night our support stood in complete silence for most of the game bar the odd chant. Copenhagens support drove their team on. Yes it was constant. Yes at times it didn’t mirror what was happening on the pitch. And other times it did. But to me that doesn’t matter. What matters is getting behind the team and giving them as much support as possible throughout the match.

Thanks JRB. That’s all good mate and there’s no need for the apology but thanks anyway.

I’ve even got into a row responding to the wrong post on here before, when I’d had too many pints!

It’s great you’re so passionate about the atmosphere. . I hope we continue to improve the atmosphere at Prem games and the team would be fit from a marked improvement in CL atmospheres.

I like the capo approach and when you get pointed out on the Curva Notd at Atalanta by the ultras (now modernised unfortunately) to raise your voice then you do so. People who don’t like it went in the other 3 sides of the ground.

 

[GaudinoMotors]

F"cking "Capo" - More no-mark idolising.

 

[LEXSTARproject]

I totally agree with what JRB said our new North Stand needs to be like this. The stadium holds 35,000 people they made it sound like there were 60,000 there. The guy with the microphone on the CAPO stand was amazing, they had drums and everything, and the TIFO were great as well the only things that were shocking were the ref and the pitch

"Copenhagen support tonight was f*cking superb regardless if they had somebody orchestrating at the front of the lower tier.

2 tiers, 5000-10,000 fans singing for 90 minutes. Getting the rest of the stadium singing. Driving the team on for 90 minutes. Whilst City’s support stood in silence, bar the odd chant, for 90 minutes."

 

[Cheadle_hulmeBlue]

Non stop singing with absolutely no regard to what's happening on the pitch.

Not for me.

That happens at a lot of away games and quite a few home games previously - ie sing if we are losing or winning. The volume might increase depending on what’s happening.

Do you only sing if we score or something exciting happens?

 

[trevorriley]

Firstly, let me apologise.

I was pissed, tired and frustrated by the result, the missed penalty, the ruled out goal, and the lack of support from our fans.

TBH I don’t know why I take the lack of support by our fans personally. There’s nothing I can do about it.

Replying to you post.



I stand in SSL1. People start songs all the time from the back of the stand. In doing so they’re instructing City fans below them what to sing. It doesn’t matter if songs are started from the front of the stand via a capo, or from the back of the stand by a single person or a group of people, the outcome is still the same. Fans, regardless of who they suport, will always sing songs that are started by their fellow fans, orchestrated or not.

From a personal point of view I wouldn’t have a problem following a Capo. Other people would. I accept that. It’s all about choices. At the end of the day all I want to hear and see is City fans supporting the team as much and as best they can.

Last night our support stood in complete silence for most of the game bar the odd chant. Copenhagens support drove their team on. Yes it was constant. Yes at times it didn’t mirror what was happening on the pitch. And other times it did. But to me that doesn’t matter. What matters is getting behind the team and giving them as much support as possible throughout the match.

What you have JRB that not enough fans have is the willingness to change, you analyse the atmosphere and think "if the changes we have to make work then its better than stood there hands in pockets".

Fact is majority of the fans who criticize a drum or capo or a song that doesnt relate to the game dont sing or stand in the popular singing areas. So ok this is their opinion, but it isnt helping the situation at all.

We need to try to be in touch with like minded fans that want to sing, but BM isnt particularly high volume people that are singers, it is fans that suggest.

When we played Copenhagen at home, three fans behind me started from the first minute shouting "can u not sing without a drum" or "this repeated singing is giving me headache". But they didnt sing once ! And this was 115 / 116 areas.

Far to often we criticise the European away fans for how they generate atmosphere and drown our support out, about time we took a different approach.

 

[pride in battle]

LOL!

a part of me just died a bit inside. That's almost as bad as the 'COME ON SEATTLE' guy.

I'm one of the people running 1894. So we've had the capo/drum debate thrown at us for the best part of a decade. We've tried different things, but it's so far from happening that it's not worth getting worried about.

Let's say that we (1894) wanted to get a drum and megaphone into the stadium (that isn't in our plans right now, I'm speaking hypothetically)... We would face the following hurdles:

- No one capable of, or brave enough to play the drum properly (as the European ultras do - as opposed to Blackburn Rovers style).
- No area of the ground with enough free space to bunch like-minded fans together at the front of a block.
- Security isn't happy with the idea of a fan using a megaphone.
- We don't actually have any songs that would work with that style of singing so we'd have to introduce them slowly.

So even with all the motivation in the world, we, as a fanbase wouldn't be capable of doing that for literally months.

What we are doing, and I think the vast majority of our supporters would buy into, is:

- trying to use songs with a beat that we can keep going for longer (I know it gets pelted on here, but the Edin Dzeko song actually does this quite well).
- bunching 10/15 lads at the back of SSL1 to start off songs (this is similar to a capo, but a different way of doing it).
- we've trialed an installation of metal sheeting on some rows in SSL1 that supporters can stamp on to make a bang. With a few tweaks, this will improve and turn into our equivalent of a drum and help us keep chants on the beat and spread around the ground (without having a person stand at the front whacking a drum).

Ultimately though, the reason these discussions always come up (and that we have this thread) is that the vast, vast majority of fans that go to the Etihad contribute absolutely nothing to the atmosphere. I've sat in CBL3 a couple of times this season and you can clearly hear the South Stand, but no-one joins in (other than me, singing like a goon on my own).

The metal sheet near me in SS1 is great, I just thought he was just banging on the hoardings, so actually having something in place specifically for banging on is perfect, well done :)

 

[Del_Bosque]

Boggles my mind that people cant see the link between monotonous “crapo” led chants and the complete dearth of any spontanious songs from our fans.

The drum and megaphone and fucking tifos ffs, just drown out any natural atmosphere thats reacting to whats going on the pitch.

It should ebb and flow with the game, when the opposition makes an error it should step up noticeably and get into their heads pushing more errors.

As for that shite last night being intimidating do me a favour we kept the ball for 90 minutes with 10 men, might be loud for the TV but didn’t affect the players at all. The drums like a metronome it probably helped our passing rythym.

Groups of people getting songs going like the 1984 bloke suggested is miles ahead of that performative shite.

 

[PPT]

If we ever have to resort to a ' CAPO' on a tannoy and a drum and a load of pre-planned, orchestrated singing then I for one will jack my season ticket in. I know everyone has the own the opinion and rightly so. But for me its fucking dreadful! And what's all this if you don't like it then fuck off to other three sides of the ground all about? People have sat in their seats since the day the stadium opened. So, now they all have to fuck off somewhere else because there is a gobshite on a microphone and a dickhead with a big drum who wants to say 'look at me!'. No thanks boys. Not for mine.

 

[Eds]

There are so many songs specifically about City that we used to sing but not anymore. or rarely. Most now either mention the rags or an ex player. The worst of it is all the coke heads are very vocal on the train before and after the match, on the platform waiting for a train or on the concourse before the game and at half time. What’s happened to the likes of the following:
We are City, super City…
We will follow the City…
Everywhere we go…
You’re my pigeon…
Etc etc