I have just spent the past hour watching videos on Youtube from the Belgian Pro League, which kicked off two weeks ago with Brussels heavyweight Anderlecht as defending champion.
Aside from the obvious point of not having anything better to do, Belgian club football is something I’ve followed for years and for Australian fans of a certain vintage that makes perfect sense.
It may be viewed as somewhat of a European backwater now, but back when the likes of Frank Farina, Aurelio Vidmar and Paul Okon were making names for themselves, the Belgian league was a regular Saturday afternoon staple on SBS.
I fell in love then with the exotic team names and compact stadia on the screen but it wasn’t until I met a friend in Belgium in 2006 that I began to follow the fortunes of one particular club.
That club was Racing Club Genk – famously captained to their second Belgian title in 2002 by none other than Socceroos midfielder Josip Skoko – and I began following them simply because they were the closest top-flight club to where my friend Gert and his family live.
Sadly I’ve never actually been to a club game in Belgium, with the closest I’ve come the time Gert and I took a trip out to Genk’s stadium during the off-season.
But year in, year out I’ve followed Genk’s fortunes from afar and it got me wondering about why we all follow the clubs we do.
Like most Australians who grew up on a diet of European football, I follow the fortunes of multiple European clubs.
The most obvious example is Borussia Dortmund, a side I have watched in the flesh on several occasions.
More than anyone else it was my high-school German teacher who encouraged my love of German football, with her simple yet revelatory instruction that if I studied hard, I might one day be able to study in Germany.
Sadly for her I mostly studied the contents of German football magazines, but when I was 14 a fortuitous class trip abroad resulted in my first Bundesliga game – and naturally I was hooked.
I went back to Germany to ‘study’ in my late teens, at a time when the legendary Ned Zelic and Paul Agostino plied their trade for 1860 München.
In fact, the first time I stood on the Südtribüne it was to watch Dortmund against 1860 in a match the ever-excitable Zelic still remembers like it was yesterday, and I was there again the next season when Agostino scored twice in a 3-2 win for the visitors.
Like the rest of us, I’ve always had a soft spot for Australians playing in Europe, but it was an Italian who started my life-long love affair with one of Europe’s more notorious clubs.
He may not have been a native Roman, but former Lazio star Giuseppe Signori was like no footballer I’d ever seen.
Small, lightning fast and entirely left-footed, Signori was an excitement machine who went on to become one of Serie A’s all-time top scorers.
Sadly, he’s now embroiled in one of Italian football’s deplorable betting scandals, but for a time he was without doubt one of the superstars of the European game.
There were rumours Sydney FC had the chance to sign him in 2005 and for those unaware of what they missed out on, sit back and enjoy.
Signori left Lazio in 1997 and played almost as many games for Bologna, but I’ve never stopped following the Biancocelesti and it’s a life-long dream of mine to one day get over to Rome and see them play.
With that in mind, I’m interested to know why we all follow the European clubs we support. What attracted you to them in the first place and have you ever had the chance to see them play?
There are so many unique stories out there, so drop a line and let us know why you follow your European club of choice.
Kasey
Guest
Normally I would agree with a nice statement like that Faith; but I’ve seen pictures of my father standing next to his similarly aged Dutch cousins, and perhaps it’s the better lifestyle here , maybe we have fewer pollutantsin the atmosphere, but he looks a score younger than all of them!
Gwils
Guest
Marc Overmars and Jaap Stam both played with Tilburg very early in their career, and of course Sami Hyypia was recruited by Livepool from Tilburg. Don't ever forget: Het leven is goed in 't brabantse land.
Kasey
Guest
I occasionally (when I remember) look for the results of Willem II Tilburg ( the club closest to my Dad’s hometown. They have a really cool looking kit, alternating red, white and blue stripes and are named after a dutch King, but have mostly been a yo-yo club in my adulthood. I would love to visit the Netherlands and meet some of the extended Family, maybe take in a game:) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willem_II_(football_club)
Faith den Elzen
Guest
Hey Kasey My stepdad is Dutch too,but like you I`m a Socceroos fan first and my European teams are Man United and Celtic
Dogboy
Guest
Juventus Due to heritage, Italy fan from childhood. But selected my team in 1993, when Juve sported the front trio of Vialli, Ravanelli and Roberto Baggio. Devastatingly good goals were scored. Then Del Piero came next year, and he will be Juve 'il capitano' for the rest of my life, no matter who comes next.
Axelv
Guest
Shane Smeltz with a broken nose in the A-League Final.
Mantis
Roar Guru
Come On You R'SSSSSS! Good season ahead I feel
stevjam roxx
Guest
Evertonian. Partly due to moving to the UK in '05 when Timmy C was at the beginning of his toffee journey, and partly to annoy all my liverpool supporting mates :) have been lucky enough to see the blue juggernaut in the flesh but unfortunately never on home turf beside the mersey! I am thinking about a game in the '13-'14 Prem season already...
Minister for Information for the Democratic People's Republic of Football
Guest
If that happens FU , I'll be very confused again lol!! Unlikely to happen any time soon but never say never...
Kasey
Guest
Nathan I’m curious to ask an American Soccer fan how then how Chivas USA fits into that " if its American it has no question of validity". It appears to be a third rail issue on BigSoccer and the opinion of LA Galaxy fans is just a little biased as you would expect. To Explain: CD Guardalajara are the biggest (best supported) team in Mexico and their nickname is ‘Chivas’ (the goats) MLS has a team in Los Angeles called Chivas USA, with almost exactly the same crest as their Mexican big brothers. One rich Mexican bloke owns both entities. CUSA share their home venue 'Home Depot Center' with the Galaxy, but tarp off the upper tier these days as they only draw approx 14k to Galaxy’s 22k averages.
HardcorePrawn
Guest
"COBBLERS!" "No, it's true" Sorry, couldn't resist.
Siege of Perth
Guest
Liverpool FC. My football love started with the Socceroos run in Germany and it slowly built over the next four years until South Africa. At that point I decided I needed to pick a team. My mate was already a big Liverpool fan (thanks to Harry back in the early 2000's I think) and I decided it would be much more fun to support a team with someone instead of alone (not many friends who like soccer). After I started following them quite closely was easy to fall in love with the club, while they might not have been so succesfull for a while now, they clearly have the greatest supporters in the world. A 40,000 Anfield could out singing an 80,000 Old Trafford. Just look at the supporters at Istanbul, down 3-0 at half time and it was the Liverpool fans singing loudly and proudly You'll Never Walk Alone to support their boys. Shankley sumed it up best which Liverpool fans follow and shows how great the supporters are, "If you cant support us when we lose or draw, dont support us when we win". Havent been a fan for long, 2 years now but I cant imagine supporting anyone else, except for the West Coast Eagles of course! :D
Nephilim
Roar Rookie
Mirko Slomka their ex youth coach has done wonders for them. They play a full strength Man U on Saturday 11th August, hopefully it will be televised.
Nephilim
Roar Rookie
Would not have a clue who Billy Bragg the blogger is? Fair point, I'm sure there is more than one or two of them floating around.
Nephilim
Roar Rookie
Ha ha, yep that's them. Good ol' Lemme, heart of gold really.
Dinoweb
Guest
At about the age of 10, my mum bought me a jumper with a Liverpool emblem on it. I initially had no idea who they were, but since I started to watch Match of the Day not long after, I guess it was only natural that I therefore supported Liverpool. We will never walk alone! Then, in 1983, the club I was playing for had a raffle of sorts. I can't remember the exact details of how it was run, but every player in our U18 team drew an English first division (now the Premier League) team out of a hat, and their results determined who won some sort of prize. I drew Luton Town and have had the misfortune of being a fan ever since. Come on you Hatters! Fortunately (or unfortunately) my two teams rarely meet any more, so no divided loyalties there. I have never seen Liverpool live, but I was lucky enough to be in England when Luton made the FA Cup semi against Chelsea in 1994, and got to go to the old Wembly. I must say though, that since the advent of the A-League, my interest in both teams has decreased. While I still follow the results every week, my passion now is for the mighty Brisbane Roar, and European football is now a far distant second in my thoughts. Go the Roar!
Dingo
Guest
I'm not a big follower of the round ball game, unless The Socceroos are involved. But whenever I do take a peek at the results I always look for Sheffield Wednesday. I just like the name.
neos osmos
Guest
’if he was a soccer player he would have dived’ Unless he was Bert Trautmann who carried on playing an FA Cup Final with a broken neck
Kasey
Guest
Oi: its just been my experience in my travels to the USA and interactions with their fans especially on BigSoccer.com http://www.city-data.com/forum/soccer/970525-jim-rome-shows-you-why-soccer-1.html Jim Rome makes Rebecca Wilson look intelligent. Unfortunately being on ESPN he has even greater reach than RL's Bec via the News (very) Limited papers. "There is also a political debate when it comes to soccer. Many conservatives in America believe that soccer is a socialist sport from Europe, and they won't dare watch it!" - but one post on that thread that drew replies of agreement. Of course the standard argument is a familiar one to Aussies. The "we only want to watch the best" argument. Read more: http://www.city-data.com/forum/soccer/970525-jim-rome-shows-you-why-soccer.html#ixzz23BgSM7p6
Kasey
Guest
Thanks for the reminder: so in reality the club name is closer to Rassing Henk(say with a Gold member accent) Being part Dutch, I can do the throat developed G sound, but obviously if in the case of Soccer AM you just pronounce it as Genk it sounds kind of funny, hence their interest in it, Probably off to Deportivo Wanka(Peru) next:).