Foreign Fans

Well here goes I have been suporting CITY since 1968 I starting following them because at the time they were the best team in England and been only 10 years old at the time I was at a very impressional [spelling]age.As I got older I went through a golden age for CITY and went to my first match at Maine Rd in 1975 to see City beat Spuds 5-0 and I continued going once a month right through the seventies getting the boat to Liverpool on Friday .I made my younger brother support them and my nephew and all their families follow CITY now as for my own my eldest son went to his first CITY GAME AT 14 months old at PLOUGH LANE IN1990 IT WAS A 1-1 DRAW and my other son was 17 months old went he went to THE VALLEY ALSO 1-1 DRAW .I have made lots of very good friends over the years going to games and have been at several of my friends weddings over the years It has been a rollercoaster ride folling CITY but I have always been welcomed very warmly in Manchester any time I was there and never felt like an outsider
 
Im from Dublin Ireland.

When I was 9 or 10 my folks brought back two hats from a trip to the UK - Man City and QPR. My brother got the man city hat and i preferred it to mine so always tried to nick it. Most kids at the time supported Arsenal, Liverpool or Man United who all had Irish players at the time (late 70's).

I didn't follow football at all then until my early 20's, when I got into it due to the Irish involvment in World cups and through playing Fantasy Football and Championship Manager. I didn't support any team really for a few years - my brother was City and I nominally supported them due to the Hat incident and also to back him up, but I guess I "said" I supported them for a few years before I really felt that I could genuinely call myself a supporter. United were starting to dominate the English game then and I liked being up for the underdog. I also thought that City reflected my personality - self deprecating humour, popular, tonnes of potential but never did fuck all! I think I "really" started supporting City when we won 5-3 at Stoke but got relegated anyway - to the 3rd fucking division. I thought to myself "If I abandon City now I'm only a ****" so that was it for me. Been on the rollercoaster ever since and can't believe where we are now - and what we potentially can become - biggest team in the world!
 
In answer to the original question, I wasn't born in Manchester but my family lived a fairly nomadic life. The longest period of my childhood in any one place was in Mossley and, during that period (the 1970s) I picked City.

I've lived in London since 1988, but it was already in the blood. It would be easier to change my sex than it would be to stop being a Blue.
 
A few things to note:

If city are serious about coming a world wide brand then they need to aquire fans from all parts of the world. This is surely in their plans. As seen in recent months connecting with the community of Manchester has been another plan, and things like their tevez marketing campaigns have been exceptional. From news articles, videos, kits in corner stores in thailand and the rest... all this is great exposure to our club.

WE are going to experence a new wave of fans and i can guarentee some will be critised by some fans. The elitism factor will grow and i'm already seeing now on the forums is that a small minority of fans attitude towards who should support city and who doesnt frustrates me, 'how long have you been a city fan?' etc. We really do need to embrace them and make them feel welcome or from the best fans in england, we will become to most arrogant.

Personally i had no ties to Manchester City when i decided to start following them in 98. I live in Sydney, Australia in which at the time you would support one of top sides, unless you had ties through family. I wanted to support a real club with a real day to day struggle. I wanted to rival one of the big boys (that being united) and i wanted to join a club which had passionate and welcoming fans... I came to the right club.
 
There was a brief, but impressive, football boon here in the States in the mid 70's. I saw Pele play with the Cosmos in the shithole of a stadium on Randalls island, then on to yankee stadium, then on to Giants Stadium/ At that time the only coverage on TV (remember this was WAAAAY before cable/satelite TV) was an hour highlights on a feature match on Saturday evenings on public TV. I was searching for a team to support. Didnt want a London club, a bit too obvious, thought about Liverpool but they were winning everything in sight. Humm how about this city called manchester. Saw City and loved the sky Blue kit. they had a decent team so i chose them. Then a fellow called denis tueart came to play in new York. The fans LOVED him. The rest is history.

Years later i got a job in the airlines business so i had the chance to travel to England twice a year to watch the Blues. Made friends with a local from rochdale and we are mates to this day. Havent been to England in 5 years becuase my life took another turn-towards thailand. Married a lovely thai lady who is now a rabid Blue. When we can, i will take her to see a couple of City matches. She is a TRUE BLUE.

As an aside it was tough as hell to try and follow English football in those days for you young whippersnappers. It has been well worth it......cannot think of a better club to have picked.
 
I have told my story on here before but I'll give a quick recap. I grew up in Abilene Texas and my dad would record highlight shows and games on a channel called Fox Sports World at his work and bring it home for me to watch. It was all in Spanish too for the first couple years. For some reasonthey showed a lot of city games and I just fell in love with them. I'm an underdog fan and automatically hated manure and the other three because that's who EVERY other team likes. Nowadays you can find spurs fans and fulham fans (basically because half the U.S. National team plays for them. But I am a bigger man city fan than anything else I have been a fan of in my life. I am 4 things in this life now, I am a hard worker, I am a good boyfriend, I am a Christian, and I am a blue till I die!
 
why would they support city though? anyone who signed up to the blues b4 thaksin must need there heads checking. i have to say i don't like going to places like london and hearing southern accents in the city crowd as that's what i associate with u**ted. this is a local club for local people(local connections e.g father was manc, had to move for work etc.) don't want to offend any blues who don't live in manchester but if u dont live within say 30 miles of city i dont understand why you would do it to yourself. expat mancs r still mancs, southerners will always be southerners and therefore should follow a southern team.[/quote]

This line of thinking has always puzzled me - why is it o.k. for a foreign player with no physical or emotional connection with the club to be considered as a blue or 'one of our own' but someone from the same country / city (who will quite happily make a financial contribution to the club through tickets merchandise etc) shouldnt be a blue.

To follow your line of thinking to its logical conclusion would mean that only people who lived within 30 miles of manchester or had a direct connection to the club could play for them
 
The O P sounds like a small minded person with one eye brow a hump on his back with just 2 front teeth and wanders around with a dog on a piece of string pushing a broken shopping trolly whistling a george formby tune. Get with the times. Football is a world game watched and played by millions, if you want to keep it local dump all them foreign players on the team and just play locals then i'm sure nobody will be supporting your team outside your little village . Royston vasey athletic :-)
 
Im from Dublin. I started supporting Manchester City after i seen Niall Quinn playing for them. As an Irishman i thought Quinny was the shit playing for Ireland and i followed him to City. Wasn't long before i was hooked. My Dad and my two older bro's are pool fans and they thought i would follow suit but i said to myself that i wanted to find my own team as it just didn't feel right to support pool. I was 9 years old. So over the years there was alot of stick flying my way from all the pool and scum fans over here, but that just made me love city even more. And with all this money we have now and all hype around us i kinda miss the so called "bad days" as they were to me not "bad days" but great days of my childhood and me growing up. To be honest i wouldn't be half the man i am now if it wasn't for our club and the many great memories i have growing up with them.

CTID
 

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