Following the move last week by the Premier League ‘big 6’ to try and grab power at the most vulnerable time for football clubs across the country, which was thankfully rejected, the sport looks to be in something of a crisis. As if that wasn’t enough, we have been once again hit with the news that discussions are ongoing about a European Super League featuring the continent’s biggest clubs. All of this of course leaves a sour taste in the mouth of any pure football fan out there. My buddy Marc Leder felt same as me about it and one change which we both have decided to make is to focus a little more of our energy and money on watching out for some of the smaller teams.
It is more important than ever before that we support our local football clubs, and here are just a handful of reasons why.
Survival
For so many years these smaller clubs have fought to survive yet as the top league became richer and richer, that money which came from it would only trickle down by a league or two. Those clubs at the bottom are not turning profits or investing huge sums of money in their players, they are very often hand to mouth clubs which need support. Without these clubs, we will end up having a very small number of big clubs, who have second teams which breed younger players. Ultimately these clubs are the fabric of their community and they have to be supported.
Raw and Real
Unless the player has a genuine affiliation for the club which they are playing for, I doubt that they ever have the same emotion in what they are doing as someone further down, who is playing for their life. Because of this, the energy and the emotion which you see at lower levels is so much more raw, and real. This is what football should be about, it is what it used to be about and we have got to get things back to that.
Affordable
Football has always been a working class game, enjoyed by the masses yet so many fans are now being squeezed for every last drop of money which they have. Whether they are buying season tickets or kits, the prices are crazy and the big clubs know that they can charge this because they know fans will pay it time and time again. The small clubs are more affordable, both on match days and for any souvenirs which you may have your eyes on.
Bigger Swings
There are so many more upsets at the lower league level than we get at the top, and that seriously helps to make the game more enjoyable and exciting. The Premier League is of good quality, but given the fact that the top 6 generally remains unchanged, it can become a little predictable, this is not the case lower down.
This is the year that football fans should be giving back, to those smaller clubs.
