Adopting The Beautiful Game – Part 2: Making My Choice

In my attempt to adopt an English Premier League team, I reached out to fans of EPL teams in the Nashville area.

In speaking with fans in the area, I found out how each of them had decided on the team they support. For some, it had to do with family, whether they were an American with family in England or an expat from England who had supported their team through their formative years. Some fans told me about adopting their team because that team had a player they liked when they began watching soccer. One group of fans told me about enjoying the heart, soul, and grittiness of the team they supported. Most told me that a person doesn’t pick a team, a team will pick you and you will know that’s “your” team. Megan, a Tottenham Hotspur fan, described selecting the Spurs as “going to the pound and seeing a mangy dog that might not be the best-looking dog, but you are unable to forget it and end up taking it home.”

In this season’s EPL, I eliminated: Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Crystal Palace, Leicester City, Manchester City, Newcastle United, Norwich City, Southampton, Stoke City, Sunderland, Swansea City, Watford, and West Bromwich Albion. Best of luck to them all, but all either have the chance of relegation and/or are outside a good tourist area, so they didn’t quite make the cut.

Now, our finalists:

Arsenal – “The Gunners”

• Location: North London in the expansive Emirates Stadium
• Fanbase: Large, particularly in America. Outside Man United, arguably the biggest in the US. Locally, one of the largest Nashville area supporter groups.
• Colors/Kits: Red and white home kits are gorgeous, but blue and gold away and peculiar black third kits hurt a bit.
• Celebrity fans: Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Harry, Jay-Z, Piers Morgan, Kevin Costner, Michael Moore
• Bandwagon potential: SUPER high. Particularly with large US fanbase
• Great history. Record number of FA cups, including the past two.
• Due to huge stateside fanbase, one of most commonly shown teams on American TV

Chelsea –“The Blues”

• Location: East London at renovated classic Stamford Bridge
• Fanbase: Large, particularly after their 2000’s resurgence. Large, fervent local supporter group.
• Colors/Kits: Royal blue and white. Gorgeous and easy on the eyes.
• Celebrity fans: Michael Caine, Jeremy Clarkson, Will Ferrell, Gordon Ramsey
• Bandwagon potential: SUPER high. Recent success has led to big time bandwagon fanbase.
• Good history, particularly recently. Defending Premier League champions, but have gotten off to a slow start this year.
• Due to huge stateside fanbase, one of most commonly shown teams on American TV

Everton – “The People’s Club”

• Location: Liverpool in historic Goodison Park
• Fanbase: Smaller than some, but very passionate about their club. Local supporter club is smaller, but similarly passionate.
• American goalkeeper Tim Howard currently plays for Everton
• Colors/Kits: Royal blue and white. Very good color scheme.
• Celebrity fans: Sylvester Stallone, John McEnroe, Paul McCartney, John Lennon
• Bandwagon potential: Much lower than other “finalists”
• Long history, but no Premier League titles thus far.
• Since their US fanbase is smaller, Everton is not featured on TV unless they play larger clubs.

Liverpool – “The Reds”

• Location: Liverpool at the venerable Anfield
• Fanbase: Large, arguably most passionate fanbase. Decent-sized American fanbase, and a large local supporter group.
• Colors/Kits: Red and white. Combination of logo with colors work together tremendously
• Celebrity fans: Daniel Craig, Samuel L. Jackson, Liam Neeson, Mike Myers
• Bandwagon potential: Moderately high.
• Great history with 18 First Division crowns, but tortured recent history with no Premier League titles.
• Because their larger American fanbase, they are shown on TV more often than most clubs.

Manchester United – “The Red Devils”

• Location: Manchester at Old Trafford, one of the world’s most famous soccer venues
• Fanbase: Massive, especially in America. When soccer really became more prevalent in America, United was on a tear through the Premier League. Huge local fanbase that meets in Franklin.
• Colors/Kits: Red, white, and black. Simple, classic look.
• Celebrity fans: Justin Timberlake, Usain Bolt, Rory McIlroy, Drake
• Bandwagon potential: Very, very high. Amount of success and adopted US fans have made Man United one of the most hated clubs in the world.
• Tremendous recent history, with stars like Wayne Rooney bringing home tons of Premier League championships.
• One of the most commonly shown teams in America. Very easy to follow on TV

Tottenham Hotspur – “Spurs”

• Location: North London in White Hart Lane, considered by some the Wrigley Field of English football, but with a new stadium in the coming years.
• Fanbase: Smaller than some clubs, but very ardent fans. One of the growing teams in America. The local support base is likewise passionate.
• Colors/Kits: Navy and white with a simple, classy logo. Currently using a spectacular two-tone blue color scheme.
• Celebrity fans: Phil Collins, Adele, Jude Law, Jason Sudekis (who played Spurs “coach” Ted Lasso for NBCSN ads)
• Bandwagon potential: Moderate. Much lower than some other more recently successful clubs.
• Good history, but without a top-level title since the 1960-61 season
• While not on the “primary” networks every week, the Spurs are regularly on secondary networks.

West Ham United – “The Hammers”

• Location: East London, preparing to move from their home since 1904, Boleyn Ground, to the 2012 Olympic Stadium in London.
• Fanbase: Smaller than many others, but very intense. Smaller supporter base stateside, but very fervent. The Nashville Hammers are one of the growing supporter bases locally.
• Colors/Kits: Claret and light blue. More unique than some, but beautiful color scheme and logo.
• Celebrity fans: Russell Brand, Barack Obama, Katy Perry, Keira Knightly
• Bandwagon potential: Very low. Regarded as one of the potential up and coming teams.
• Long history, but no titles and the top division in their 115-year history.
• Small fanbase means the Hammers aren’t on a primary network regularly unless they play a larger team.

What I Learned In My Search

When I set out to pick a soccer team to cheer for, I was unsure of how it would turn out. I had given soccer a chance numerous times but it just couldn’t stick for me. I would continue to try to pick up the sport, but the game did not jump off the screen at me. With all the success and growth of soccer, I felt that I was almost getting left behind. With the growth of Tennessee Soccer Club and Nashville FC, soccer may very well be the number two sport in metro Nashville.

When I reached out to people, I learned the stories as to how different people picked their specific team. Everyone’s story was a little different, but all had their own perfectly legitimate reasons as to why. The most common reason I heard, though, was that their team seemed to jump off their screen and was clearly the team they were going to support.

If you don’t have a team you support, go out and find one! While everyone has their own way to pick a team, I will say that the way I chose (going to local supporters clubs) might be the best. Even if you don’t have a team that jumps out at you, you’ll meet a lot of great people in the process.

And as for me and who I adopted, all the finalists and their fans gave me good reasons, but I ended up with a London team. Come on you Spurs.

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