Chelsea Culture

Chelsea football club has a problem with antisemitism.

That may seem obvious given the reports from the away game at Vidi, but it is really uncomfortable to say as a fan of the club that knows that for a tiny but vocal majority this is true.

As a Chelsea fan, I have heard chants that make me cringe in disgust, chants referencing the horrific crimes of the Holocaust that have no place in football or any other aspect of life.

Now let’s be clear these are made by a tiny minority of fans and they are never made at Stamford Bridge or any other UK football stadium for that matter.

This is not a culturally endemic state of affairs or the norm, rather an anachronistic throwback to a handful of fans that have not accepted the modern reality that racism of any form is not tolerated in football like it was in the 70’s and 80’s.

The club and football authorities have made it clear that this is unacceptable and stamped out the behaviour in the public eye.

However the problem is still there and from time to time rears it’s ugly head.

Chelsea Antisemitism Problem – The Club

The club has a Jewish owner and I am sure the club is horrified to be dealing with another alleged incident in the space of a few days.

The problem the club has is that despite huge efforts (it is not often this blog will applaud the club but they have gone all out on this) there is little you can do to stamp out the actions of people in private or thousands of miles from home.

Just as you cannot stop what people do on a tube in Paris, you cannot easily prevent what people do in a pub or thousands of miles from home.

The club can only keep doing what it is doing and hope that the idiots see enough sense to stop shaming the club.

The main problem they have though is that these fans are not casual fans, they are the loudest most loyal fans the club have.

Whilst the media may argue that fans that embarrass the club are not loyal. These are people that travel tens of thousands of miles every season to follow the team.

Fans that traveled all the way to Budapest to watch a reserve team play out a dead rubber, fans that sing the loudest and create the atmosphere that the corporates love as a promotional tool but have disdain for. A tiny subset of which are responsible for the headlines today.

Chelsea Antisemitism Problem – The Fans

Whilst I was saddened by the reports about what happened in Vidi I was not incredibly shocked as I have heard these kinds of chants a handful of times.

We have even blogged about it before – https://famouscfc.com/alvaro-morata-song-yid

For those who might ask if I reported them the answer is no, these acts do not typically take place in football stadiums they take place away from the public eye and it is not as simple as asking nicely or telling a none existent authority figure.

The club has a shameful past when it comes to racism (booing our own players in the 80’s) that it has worked so hard to eradicate, it is sad that some have not seen sense.

Antisemitism is an ongoing issue of debate as Chelsea fans have historically had a complicated relationship with antisemitism, due in part to the determined use of the word “yid” by Tottenham fans who have a historic connection with the Jewish community.

In the modern day, the use of the word persists despite the overwhelming majority of Spurs fans not sharing that historical background.

This has given the cover that using the word “Yid” is ok at football in songs about Tottenham as they use it as a badge of honour themselves. Many fans calling themselves the “Yid army” and

This emboldens idiots to go beyond what they could argue was a grey area (seems clear to me) and argue that these horrific chants are not antisemitic but anti-Tottenham and part of the banter of football.

They are not.

I hope the club can use this publicity to make it clear once and for all this is not acceptable and that we can move past it and focus on what really matters which is football. I say once again this is not what Chelsea fandom is about to me and only a handful of people are once again shaming the club.

Today marks the anniversary of the death of one of the most influential men in the modern history of Chelsea Football Club.

He was more than just a businessman with a toy, he was a lifelong fan.

Matthew Harding was a Chelsea fan who just happened to be a millionaire with the means to invest money into the club and join the board. He helped fund the investment in the club that led to the regeneration of the ground and the team.

To the frustration of owner Ken Bates, Harding was adored by Chelsea fans who in part saw him as one of their own, someone who loved the team inside out.

This and boardroom wranglings made Harding hated by Bates who whilst appreciated by Chelsea fans for saving the club had never been loved by them due to his eccentric and often confrontational relationship with them.

Harding was a man of the people who watched games with the fans, whereas Ken Bates was seen as high and mighty and lived in the boardroom. The contrast between the two men could not have been clearer.

The boardroom wranglings may have largely been forgotten, but the man has not.

Today marks the 22nd anniversary of Harding’s death in a helicopter crash after a League Cup game against Bolton. The club has changed markedly since that fateful night Chelsea FC would not be what it is now without him and the fans know it.

The warmth and love for Harding from fans have not diminished over time, he may be the only Chelsea fan who has his name sung at every game home and away.

After his death the North Stand the development of which he helped fund to be named in his honour in an emotional ceremony against Tottenham just days after he died.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HVO9ELmtEs

Chelsea fans all over the world remember fondly the fan Matthew Harding.

Matthew Harding’s Blue & WHite Army!

 

For the first time in years, there is excitement over England’s football team, meaning that the bars and pubs are full during matches.

There has been outcry in the media over reports that beer prices are higher in bars and pubs during England games.

There are reports that one pub chain is adding 50p to a pint whereas other pubs and bars are following suit across the country. It may not sound like much but for an industry in trouble, it does seem like needless profiteering.

One of the biggest bar chains JD Wetherspoons have come out saying they will not increase their prices for England games. Stating categorically that they would be against charging a premium during England games.

This makes them hypocrites as match going Chelsea fans will probably know that this is common practice at their Fulham Broadway Lloyds No 1 pub on beer and food before and after Chelsea games at Stamford Bridge.

This deliberate price gouging is designed to take advantage of the one moment that the whole country will be watching the game and feel the urge to do so with their social group.

JD Wetherspoons apply this theory every Chelsea game, when they are normally full to capacity.

There is a special match day food menu (higher prices), beer prices go up and special offers are removed. It has long been a bug bear of Chelsea fans but even more galling to hear JD Wetherspoons arguing that this price gouging would not be very good for their business or customers.

“We wouldn’t put prices up, I don’t think customers would be very impressed.

You have to show loyalty to customers who have shown loyalty to you,”

Shame that JD Wetherspoons the owners of the Lloyd’s brand do not feel the same way when Chelsea are playing. I guess its ok to rip off Chelsea fans but not England fans?

Or they are just hypocrites when the media is watching!