posted Mar 20, 2007

We cant bring back standing until the authorities come out and say who was actually at fault at hillsborough. The has not been a satisfactory conclusion to any enquiry into why it happened.
That aside I stood on the kop for years in the late sixties and early seventies and I can honestly say that I never saw more than 80% of a match. Even worse I Only ever saw about 30% of the goals scored at the kop end. No to standing.

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posted Mar 20, 2007

It really sadens me to see whats happening to english football and its once glorious atmoshpere. Where did all the great supporters go? Liverpool with its singing crowd now remains the only place that conservates what is known in germany as the english atmosphere - a term we used to use with great respect. When ticket prices went up in germany a few years ago and some clubs started reducing the standing areas, the standing fans started chanting songs like "you're just here to gorge yourselves" to the VIP "supporter" areas or "You destroy the clubs character" adressing the management. The clubs realized that they need to take care of the simple mans desires in order to keep football a mass-audience attraction with its special atmosphere as opposed to most other sports.

One thing that certainly helps over here is a law that a sports club is a sports club and not a normal company one can buy and rule over - the president is elected by the clubs members. Therefore, we don't have the abramovichs, berlusconis and glazers around here trying to turn clubs into toys or profit engines banning supporters who won't spend 50€ on food and merchandise each game and scaring of the event-crowds.

German football may not be competitive to the english, spanish or italian league financially, but at least it remains in the hand of the ordinary fan. When the league discussed the latest tv contract, the public pressure ensured that we would not spread match days to more than 3 kick-off times or adopt to asian tv prime-time to gain international revenue. National pay-tv had also long tried to pull football out of free-tv's hands (currently, free-tv shows 10 minute summaries of each game about 1 hour after the games) in order to increase prices and make football the catch-product for the rest of the crap they sell.

What I'm trying to say in way to many words here is: English football has sold its soul and it is time for the fans to take back what once belonged to them. Romantic? Sure! Unrealistic? Maybe! Worth a try? Definitely.

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posted Mar 20, 2007

ALL THIS TALKING ON 606 MEANS NOTHING WE NEED TO ORGANISE OURSELVES INTO A PRESSURE GROUP...

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posted Mar 20, 2007

marathon9

get on standupsitdown.co.uk and visit their forum

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posted Mar 20, 2007

CHEERS IRONMARVIN

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posted Mar 20, 2007

I think standing should be allowed i certain areas. The authorities can test these to see if the are safe. This would bring the atmosphere back to the stadiums. I am fed up at being told to sit down, its football and people are used to standing up. Seating should still be kept for the people that want to sit.

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posted May 15, 2007

Ref: glosterguy35
Don`t be a mug mate If people want to stand they should be allowed to...........you post `96 fans don`t have an idea about what real atmosphere`s were like back in the 70`s and 80`s. ther was nothing like it.

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posted May 30, 2007

OK, Lets look at it this way...why can you stand up in division 1 in England, but not in the championship?..
Why can you go to a new rugby ground such as Warrington, and stand on terracing?..
Why can you go and watch a concert at Man Citys ground ie Oasis and the week after be made to sit down?..
The reason is the middle classes have got into the working class game of football and used their contacts and influence to steal it from under our noses...ie the carve up of tickets for the FA cup final.
I'm one of the tens of thousands that hasn't renewed my ST at Man City next season (ok, forget about the rubbish football we were playing!!) If you ask any fan over say 30 why are they losing their interest in the game, the atmosphere has gone..the kick off times are forever changed at short notice..you can't just turn up and see a game with some mates as you are all sat in different places.
XMas and Easter my family from all over the country would meet up and go and watch a game, pay on the gate, stand together, go for a pint together etc...you try doing this now, its a logistical nightmare.. Now if I want to take a son, nephew,niece etc with their friends I can't do it.
One idea is unreserved seating..but if I'm right, you cannot have this in the Prem either, is this right?..can someone tell me?..
Cheers.

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posted May 30, 2007

I am not that old but i remember my first football match and it was Republic of Ireland Vs Brazil 1987 in the south terrace of lansdowne road. The buzz I got from standing there amongst men and feeling like I was part of it sealed the deal.

Over the last 8 years I had been a regular at celtic park and the only days the buzz was high was on European nights and Old Firm day and as for a Wigan Vs Charlton game at JJb. I thought I had gone to purgatory I was so bored.

I truly believe the way to get the games back to the fans is via safe and well maintained terracing. We now have the network in place to better manage ticket allocation and also the turnstiles have been modernised to cope.

My suggestion would be for the premiership max of 20,000 place terracing for home fans and an allocated space of a 5,000 capacity for away fans.

By the way welcometogermany06 great piece.

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posted Jun 12, 2007

Spoke to the Minister today who claimed Safe terracing could not be considered on the basis of a debrief in Stuttgart there.
As the Germans allegedly had hooliganism problems in their domestic fixtures? Does anyone know anything about this?!
Or would it be a sop.....

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