This is going to make some of you mad. Good. It’s for you.
Pro sport fandom tends to fall into three categories, and I do my level best to live and let live when it comes to those I disagree with. Since, however, I’ve made a habit of sharing my thoughts in the public interwebs on a daily basis, I have to deal with those who would tell me I’m “wrong” for being the type of fan I am. Give me a break.
I’d love to put specific tweets and Facebook posts here to demonstrate, but I’d rather not shower undue publicity on the likes of these folks. After all, aren’t most of us trying to be more accepting of different viewpoints? I’m not looking to shame anyone in particular for thinking the way that they think, but merely imploring everyone to reconsider publicly criticizing another point of view. You’ll be amazed at how this can improve all of your conversations. Moving on.
Opinions are like…well, you know. We all have them. They aren’t easily changeable, either. If they are based on a hard-wired set of values, like fandom, for instance, they’re definitely not going to change. So I don’t try to change them. All I can do is outline the different points of view to the best of my ability.
The first type of fan I’ll talk about is the one I know best. The Local. That’s me. I haven’t moved very much, but the team that has my heart in whichever sport (and whichever level) is the one closest to me. If I move, I’ll change. I prefer to be part of the community where I live. Besides, I’m an individualist. Teams are made up of people, and people rarely stay at a pro sports team as long as I’m going to live there. The “team” will never do enough to earn my continued allegiance if I move away. #SorryNotSorry.
There is one exception to this, for me at least. I attended the high school and university that I attended, and that will never change. Those places are indelible parts of my history, and my heart. The experiences I associate with them make them almost like friends. Therefore, if I move to another city, I may get interested in the local schools’ athletics, but I’ll never root against my beloved Sun Devils, because I’m one of them. No professional team, try as they might, can ever make me a part of its organization quite as intimately as that.
The second type of fan is more or less loyal to the teams he or she knows and loves for some other reason. Often the person lived many years in the vicinity of the team before moving, or loves someone who did. People are born into and marry into all sorts of allegiances. I’m a-okay with this, and I actually identify with it to an extent.
Before there was Major League Baseball here in Phoenix, I followed the San Diego Padres. My dad grew up in San Diego, and I lived there for a short time as a child. I would also root for the Chargers, when they weren’t playing my Cardinals. That’s the difference, though. Some fans, no matter where they live, will support that sentimental team, even against the home team.
The third type is more specific to soccer, but it’s therefore very relevant to my conversations. I’m talking about supporting a team in a foreign country with which one has no geographic or familiar connection, while also eschewing support of a local or domestic team. At this point, some of you are going to say, “I do so have a connection to Manchester United!” Relax, then. I’m not talking about you.
There are fans, however, who support a team many thousands of miles away, and this is their one and only sporting love. Again, I don’t get it, but I’m not going to say there’s anything wrong with it. Unfortunately, not everyone is so accepting.
Many of us Americans who support a local soccer team deal with criticism from other Americans for doing so, simply because “their” foreign team is probably better on the pitch, or has existed longer.
Yeah, so?
Again, I can’t change your opinion on this, so don’t try to change mine. You can’t assume that your reasons for being a fan are the same as mine, and then say your team is the more logical choice. It’s comparing apples and oranges.
This has really devolved into a rant, and I’m sorry for that. I seriously am only talking about a small number of people, but hopefully some of you reading this will identify with what I’m saying, and join me in resisting the urge to tell others that when it comes to sports, “You’re doing it wrong.”