bluearmyfactionIn the Victorian era Aston was where the Birmingham men moved when they made it
That's happened to many different suburbs of Birmingham. hell, it even happened to Acocks Green after the railway arrived in the 1850's!
Much of it's to do with the fact that teams like Blues are seen as having a higher percentage of die hard fans, or more of their fans that support the club through their family. Given it's a traditionally working class sport, it just means that a higher percentage of our fans support the club due to their working class roots.
That's how I see it.
Arsenal are very much the opposite of a working class club.
The marble halls of Highbury, entitled fan base without a sense of humour.
RasputinbluearmyfactionIn the Victorian era Aston was where the Birmingham men moved when they made it
That's happened to many different suburbs of Birmingham. hell, it even happened to Acocks Green after the railway arrived in the 1850's!
There are\were Some nice roads in AG, so you can see how nice it was
before all the surrounding estates cropped up
Travelling down Stoney Lane in Yardley I've always noticed how nice the houses\roads are around there (Vicarage Rd, church lane Blakesly Rd etc ) until you reach Stetchford police station and then it changes. Presumably stoney lane was a leafy area on the outskirts many years ago and the Meadway, Lea Hall were fields
Yes we used to be posh in Yardley many years ago especially area around the Church all open fields.
It's changed a bit now though.
Dr DeviousYes we used to be posh in Yardley many years ago especially area around the Church all open fields.
It's changed a bit now though.
Well, most of the south and west of Birmingham was in Worcestershire or Staffordshire 150 years ago...
When the club was formed in 1875 Birmingham was a very much smaller place.
Dr DeviousYes we used to be posh in Yardley many years ago especially area around the Church all open fields.
It's changed a bit now though.
Yardley village by the church was really nice, went down hill went the post office closed. All the surrounding roads were nice but not so much now.
e17blueParts of Southampton weren't much better when we went earlier this season
Yep, I was surprised at this. The centre was a concrete jungle surrounded by huge dual carriageways that you had to cross. Kudos to Birmingham for changing the city centre layout
Bristol City need to come off that list.
Back in the day they were rough and ready just like Blues ( same for Bristol Rovers)
Like Plymouth, Bristol may be located in a nicer part of the country but they certainly aren't Middle Class.
Bristol Rovers \ City on derby day definitely isn't Norwich\Ipswich
Bordesley not Small HeathBristol City need to come off that list.
Back in the day they were rough and ready just like Blues ( same for Bristol Rovers)
Like Plymouth, Bristol may be located in a nicer part of the country but they certainly aren't Middle Class.
Bristol Rovers \ City on derby day definitely isn't Norwich\Ipswich
Partially agree on that.
Back when I lived in Bristol most of my local mates were Gas Heads, good lads and a lot like a smaller version of Blues.
City did attract the hooray Henry types from Somerset and other south west counties but they had a strong local presence of working class fans.
Also, didn’t Bristol City smash up the Black Horse in Northfield a few years ago.
TheHeathBordesley not Small HeathBristol City need to come off that list.
Back in the day they were rough and ready just like Blues ( same for Bristol Rovers)
Like Plymouth, Bristol may be located in a nicer part of the country but they certainly aren't Middle Class.
Bristol Rovers \ City on derby day definitely isn't Norwich\Ipswich
Partially agree on that.
Back when I lived in Bristol most of my local mates were Gas Heads, good lads and a lot like a smaller version of Blues.
City did attract the hooray Henry types from Somerset and other south west counties but they had a strong local presence of working class fans.
Also, didn’t Bristol City smash up the Black Horse in Northfield a few years ago.
Late 80s/early 90s there was a bit of a hooligan thing going on with Blues/Bristol c, some battles went on, especially the day they beat us 0-4. Ashton gate wasn't a picnic back then
My Blue HeavenThere was an article a while ago about fans of each clubs average wage and wealth. We were considerably better off than the vile
I'd like to see this and keep it on file.
I remember it - thought it was at least 10 years ago
DanI must have seemed poshNewbsMacAttackA sense of entitlement. Wealth. Geography. Meeting fans of the clubs/residents of areas.
Those are my top four.
Non working class clubs from the top two tiers:
Vile
Fulham
Brighton
Palace
Arsenal
Brentford
Bournemouth
Ipswich
Norwich
Bournemouth
Leicester
Watford
Bristol City
Plymouth
QPR
I could offer stereotypical approaches but I can't really expand as i'm actually unsure
Do our middle/upper class fans take offence when we are described as working class?
By the traditional definition i'm working class aspiring to be middle class. That's the point of the crab and the bucket though isnt it?
When I can class myself as being in the middle, i won't take offence to us being described as working class. It's more to do with our roots.
Having walked around the centre of Plymouth before the game in December I was shocked at how rough it was. Everybody smoking, hardly anybody with teeth - I think areas of the South-West are now meant to be some of the most deprived
Within 5 minutes of getting off the train I saw a young lady try and punch a pigeon and then watched a crackhead couple having a scrap with each other.
Loved it, great place.
Typical seaside town. eff all to do bar heroin and cheap cider.
It’s great
PeakyblueBut which clubs are not 'working class' and what sets them apart?
I guess all clubs will have fans from the working class (whatever that means nowadays) so is it a sense of entitlement? Wealth? Tika-taka? Geography? What's the consensus?
I think the two main factors are the levels of wealth and passion.
It's a given that clubs who are successful on the pitch attract non-local fans who are probably on average more wealthy and less passionate than the average local fan.
Clubs like Blues haven't ever really seen any sustained success, so our fanbase is very pure and local; most of us are lower-middle- or working-class people from lower-middle- or working-class areas. We care about Blues more than non-local fans care about their clubs because it's in our blood, and we grew up with the Blues tag as part of our identities. The kind of drinking culture that results in "displays of passion" at games is also something fairly exclusive to lower-middle- or working-class people.
Then there's Fulham, Brentford, Brighton, etc. The core of these fanbases are (relatively) local but also intrinsically wealthy. I think that being wealthier, or more specifically being from a wealthier background, makes you less likely to be passionate about football. Firstly, because there often isn't a family or identity component, but also, it's a cultural thing. Hipsters who wear Engineered Garments and read Mundial Magazine aren't getting slammed at the local boozer before games, or singing and shouting, getting on their feet, whatever. These are quiet fans. They clap when an opposing player does a rabona. They manage non-league clubs for 40 seasons on Football Manager. They eat pies outside the ground as a bit of banter. If they do sing, it's from a hymn sheet titled "We're by far the greatest team the world has ever seen".
If we make it back to the Prem and start competing in the top half of the table, these are the types we'll be attracting unfortunately. That's just the curse of success in football though.