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[Ozle]

Is it me, or are there hardly any directed chants at US sports?

All of the songs are about thier own team.

If you go to a football match in england, half of the fun is singing songs about the other team!

[greatexpectations]

that has more to do with the sport itself than the countries i think. you will see that all the time for soccer over here as well. just this past tuesday the USMNT fans were chanting 'you aren't going to brazil!' at guatemala. though not as strong as in soccer, you will also see it some in hockey, especially at the college level.

past those sports, if you see something i think it is usually directed at players and not other teams/cities. baseball and football crowds do tend to come across as just noise as opposed to any sort of organized song/chant.

[theory]

It's not really a tradition at all in most American sports to chant.  There's just noise and the occasional D-FENCE sign.

[Ozle]

It's not really a tradition at all in most American sports to chant.  There's just noise and the occasional D-FENCE sign.

Yeah, I wonder why that is.
Just chanting Defence isn't very exciting!

There's no greater feeling of being at a Spurs (Tottenham Hotspurs) game and someone starts a 'Stand up if you Hate Arsenal' song, and the entire stadium stands up, usually the away fans as well (unless of course we are playing Arsenal)

A bit of banter between fans just makes the atmosphere so much better I feel.

Although I have never been to a US sports game outside the UK (Went to the NFL at Wembley last few years)

[greatexpectations]

i am sure there are cultural differences that factor in, but i would bet that the difference it is at least partially influenced by the stop and go nature of the dominantly popular american sports.

[Ozle]

I would have thought the stop and go aspect would have lent themselves to chants though, what do you all do during the 'stop' aspects?

Surely enough time to get a chant going there!

one of you should try it!

[Young Nick]

I think that part of the problem is the people at the games. At least where I am from, the professional sports teams have relatively expensive tickets. There aren't as many rowdy people under 30 at these games as there might be at a college or high-school game. I have seen some vicious chants at those. I have even been part of the "losing team" when it has been chanted.

[Ozle]

I think that part of the problem is the people at the games. At least where I am from, the professional sports teams have relatively expensive tickets. There aren't as many rowdy people under 30 at these games as there might be at a college or high-school game. I have seen some vicious chants at those. I have even been part of the "losing team" when it has been chanted.

Hmm, whats the expense these days for a top flight game?
As they have just released tickets prices here, the lowest ticket price for a team here in the Premiership (Top league football) is about £25, however, thats for a crappy team in the North of England, average price in London for the CHEAPEST seat is about £45, with a season ticket at Arsenal costing well over £1000! (Thats just for a seat at the 19 home games, no special box or anything)

[ipofanes]

Here in Germany, with the Ultra movement the inclination is more to praise your own team no matter who you are playing. Some of the banter back in the 1980s went a bit over the top (like chanting "ten more to go" when opponent player is getting medical assistance) but my feeling is the tendency is towards political correctness. (How the UEFA was to forbid this choreography prior to the Bayern vs Roma match http://polpix.sueddeutsche.com/bild/1.1000884.1349890982/560x315/fc-bayern-fans-uefa.jpg is beyond me.

[DG]

The British football chants are both a positive and a negative. They can be very funny and create a great unique atmosphere. However the foul mouthed vitriolic antagonistic chanting keeps many people away from the stadia and shows many of the darker sides of what should be a family entertainment.

[HiveMindEmulator]

There are a few times in US sports where there are chants directed at other teams, particularly in Boston, where the population tends to be younger and drunker. The most famous was in the NBA Eastern Conference finals some time in the 80s. Boston was losing to the Philadelphia, and the fans started chanting "Beat LA", encouraging Philadelphia to in the finals against LA, who were Boston's major rivals. I think it's not uncommon at Red Sox games to do some anti-Yankees chants, just for the heck of it.

There is also of course a lot of stuff more localized to bleacher seats that doesn't involve the entire crowd. I know at SF Giants games, in the outfield, there is always a call-and-response chant "What's the matter with _____?" "He's a bum!" about the nearest outfielder. This is also usually accompanied by general heckling.

[Ozle]

The British football chants are both a positive and a negative. They can be very funny and create a great unique atmosphere. However the foul mouthed vitriolic antagonistic chanting keeps many people away from the stadia and shows many of the darker sides of what should be a family entertainment.

I think that may of been the case a while back, especially in the 80's, but its really being cracked down on hard now, and its nowhere near as bad as some of the stuff that goes on in Europe, with the flares and the racism chanting and stuff.

They really have tried to make them family friendly stadia these days because they know that's where their money is coming from.

[greatexpectations]

They really have tried to make them family friendly stadia these days because they know that's where their money is coming from.

while i am sure money is an influence, i would guess that family friendly venues are part of the general movement in england away from supporters standing after hillsborough.

[Ozle]

They really have tried to make them family friendly stadia these days because they know that's where their money is coming from.

while i am sure money is an influence, i would guess that family friendly venues are part of the general movement in england away from supporters standing after Hillsborough.

Hillsborough had nothing to do with the fact that people were standing, as the guy who led the review afterwards pointed out (It was at a separate government insistence afterwards) . That was too many people trying to get into the stadium at once and the police opening the gates to let them in.

Its really been the advent of the Premier league, and the money coming in, and the clubs knowing that if they can get the family then its more $$$

[greatexpectations]

Hillsborough had nothing to do with the fact that people were standing, as the guy who led the review afterwards pointed out (It was at a separate government insistence afterwards) . That was too many people trying to get into the stadium at once and the police opening the gates to let them in.

Its really been the advent of the Premier league, and the money coming in, and the clubs knowing that if they can get the family then its more $$$

well right. i was under the impression that the push towards full seating was a result of hooliganism in the 80's and hillsborough. and that subsequently the full seating rules encouraged/enabled more families to show up, which then led to them realize the money they could make and so on.

[Ozle]

Hillsborough had nothing to do with the fact that people were standing, as the guy who led the review afterwards pointed out (It was at a separate government insistence afterwards) . That was too many people trying to get into the stadium at once and the police opening the gates to let them in.

Its really been the advent of the Premier league, and the money coming in, and the clubs knowing that if they can get the family then its more $$$

well right. i was under the impression that the push towards full seating was a result of hooliganism in the 80's and hillsborough. and that subsequently the full seating rules encouraged/enabled more families to show up, which then led to them realize the money they could make and so on.

Well, the government war on hooliganism started waaay before Hillsborough (which was not an act of of hooliganism). Margaret Thatchers government started passing laws to stamp it all out. They used Hillsborough to push through several changes that were nothing to do with the tragedy.

I have only really started seeing proper family groups at football for the last 5 or 6 years (although im not a prolific visitor myself!), and im sure thats down to commercialism and branding and all the games being shown on TV since the Premier League started.

[greatexpectations]

Well, the government war on hooliganism started waaay before Hillsborough (which was not an act of of hooliganism). Margaret Thatchers government started passing laws to stamp it all out. They used Hillsborough to push through several changes that were nothing to do with the tragedy.

right.

I have only really started seeing proper family groups at football for the last 5 or 6 years (although im not a prolific visitor myself!), and im sure thats down to commercialism and branding and all the games being shown on TV since the Premier League started.

as it happens, that is almost the reverse of how soccer is going here in the states. the number of families and groups is staying about the same, but you are seeing a dramatic increase in the number of vocal supporters.

and to get the thread kind of back on topic, i wonder if that trend towards family/group attendance will impact chants and such down the road.

[Ozle]

Well, it has the positive effect that people don't look kindly on some of the nastier ones....and there is a bit of self regulating going on.

Although sitting by the away fans will never be a peaceful friendly experience!

But you can have anti-other teams chants without  being vicious
"It's all gone quiet over there"
"You only sing when your winning"
"We can see you sneaking out"
and so on
And "Weeeeeee......splosh" (Combined with a diving motion) for players that fall over easy