Safe Standing at Football

[T Butcher fan]

Not sure if this issue has been discussed previously, but I’d like to know where you chaps stand (pun intended on the issue of re-introducing standing at football.

I’ve been a regular at Stamford Bridge for about 20 years, and have gone from turning up with my mates 5 minutes before kick off, to having to plan each match about 6 months in advance. I only sit with a couple of other mates who can afford it now, the rest can only turn up on very rare occasions and frankly, I’ve had enough of the bullshit little world that the Premiership exists in.

Despite the promises that were made after the Taylor report, the price of sitting at football has sky-rocketed in the last 10 years. Many genuine supporters have been priced out and the spectacle of football has become poorer. Those that still remain, watch their hard earned money put to work each week by a majority of talentless footballers, yet all of them millionaires.

Anyone who has regularly attended football matches in the Premiership over the last few years will have noticed how poor the atmosphere is nowadays. You can even hear the players talking in the occasional match! The reasons for this are many. As I mentioned, many die-hard supporters have been priced out altogether and their voices are sorely missed. Secondly, anyone standing and singing in these seated areas is immediately set upon by over-zealous stewards and told to sit down or face ejection from the ground. Thirdly, the camaraderie that supporters used to enjoy has gone. When you look around you, you’re surrounded by tourists and businessmen who’ve been given hospitality tickets by clients. The last place that this camaraderie can be found is at away games, but now away supporters are being punished with reduced allocations the next year if they don’t sit quietly and applaud when instructed.

It’s utter shit – the people who run the game are trying to kill off supporters and replace them with consumers.

So, what’s your opinion?

Also, if you can still stand while watching the team you support, let us know what the pro’s and con’s are.



Some further reading:

http://football.guardian.co.uk/blueprint/story/0,16454,1606707,00.html
http://www.standupsitdown.co.uk/

 

[steevio_uk]

With you all the way mate.
Voted a big fat YES.

I miss the South Bank :cry:

One point I will make is why is it deemed safe for thousands of pissed fans to stand and dance unobstructed at a music concert, yet not at a barrier, stewarded stadium?

There should be allocated safe standing areas. If you want to sit during a game then don't fucking buy tickets in the terraced areas!

 

[Milanista]

Standing already happens at the San Siro. The upper floors, often where the 'loud' fans are are all standing, even if there are seats. But overall I think standing sections would be great in some parts of stadiums!

 

[Clockender]

Right, this is serious stuff!

I used to love standing on the old Clock End in the early 90's, the atmosphere, the camaradarie and the goal celebrations!! When all-seater came in I was gutted tbh something went missing from my football watching.

Over the years sitting down is something that I have gotten used to, I am not very tall so when standing I used to miss vital moments but this was tempered by the fact that I felt that I belonged with like minded people, my brothers if you like. The actual facilities etc were dire, crumbling terraces and a couple of bogs to piss in but it didn't matter.

I am all for standing areas to be brought back in, it would help the atmos and would create areas whereby affordable tickets could be made available. However I would still choose to sit down I think. The view is better and I can take my seat 1 min to kick off.

I have voted for "I would prefer to stand" cos its the closest option to what I believe in. I am happy for others to stand and I will even join in the songs but I will continue to sit at football.

Good luck to everyone out there who wants to stand up at football in England in the top divisions!

 

[Tim7]

I sit at Charlton most weeks and have great seats right behind the dugout along the side.

Went to Colchester away, (what a shithole ground), and we had to stand behind the goal. The view is not as good, but the atmosphere is better. Didn't feel quite as safe as sitting.

So therefore I would continue to sit

 

[T Butcher fan]

Went to Colchester away, (what a shithole ground)

lol - try sitting in the Jimmy Seed stand!

I do like what they've done to the Valley, but the Jimmy Seed is probably the worst away end in the Premiership. 1 bog between 3,000 people!

 

[Tim7]

:lol: I wouldn't know, I've never sat there

And don't get us started on Stamford Bridge mate, £40 a ticket...

 

[steevio_uk]

but the atmosphere is better.

All that matters to me mate... every time.

 

[T Butcher fan]

And don't get us started on Stamford Bridge mate, £40 a ticket...

I know - imagine shelling that out 2 or 3 times a month! Plus because we charge extortionate prices, every club we play away suddenly up their prices for us!

We get reamed wherever we go. Another reason for safe standing areas.

 

[Clockender]

Standing already happens at the San Siro. The upper floors, often where the 'loud' fans are are all standing, even if there are seats. But overall I think standing sections would be great in some parts of stadiums!

Standing in the seats isn't the same as on a proper terrace! We used to stand in the all-seated ClockEnd and it was good but not the same as when it was terraced. Ah those were the days....

 

[brunnoce]

i voted a big YES too..
brazil is maybe one of the last big leagues to still have standed low priced areas in its stadiums, i attend to those areas in every game , we call it GERAL.
thats definatly were u find the most passionate fans(thats why i aways go to those areas, not really beacuse of the ticket price, as the siting place is only about 5 dolars more expensive) .
but things are starting to change here, specially now with the 2014 WC beeing here. fifa is trieng to exterminate our standing crowd(like myself). i can alrady predict that in the next 1 or 2 years the standing areas will be closed for good in our stadiums. thats definatly making me very sad.

i say fuck fifa.
let us have our own tradition, whichever contry u are, have its own thing...
i get the feeling fifa is forgeting that football is about tradition, not only and purely a huge showbussness like the american major leagues.

heres a pic of our GERAL:

that grey concrete low area, is the one called geral, where i attend to every cruzeiro macth. the plan fifa is making is to build seats in that place and start doing the american way of ticketing, which is the closest to the action , the more u pay, and here in brazil its the oposite traditionaly, the closest , the cheaper, just an exemple the most expensive seats in our stadium are those grey chairs u guys can see in the upper deck in this pic....lets see how thats gonna work for the WC.

 

[steevio_uk]

1993

West Ham v Cambridge, last game of the season.

Took £6 out, got a portion of chips, a can of coke and had the right money to get into the game.

 

[lo zio]

seeing the crowd standing has his own fashion that's for sure.
but talking about security is not a great choice.
when people is standing, it gets much more difficult for the stewards to work and it gets much more difficult to recognize people .

as milanista said, here in italy people in the ends usually stand on their foot (despite having seats).
this makes our security cameras almost useless, coz the ultras can easily "hide themselves", staying behind proper fans.

 

[matherto]

I prefer seating to be honest. Pure and simple.

 

[Dermot]

I prefer standing up on the seats.

 

[Ret KiT]

I prefer standing up on the seats.

well in some countries they have to watch the game behind cages plus they rip the seats and throw it , so there you have it no seats.

 

[TikTikTikTikTik]

I dont go to games, or atleast hardly go to any, but as a fairly passive supporter I prefer seating. I couldnt be bothered to stand for about 2 hours and not being very tall I would miss too much.

However, I do think they should reintroduce parts of the ground as standing area's. If i remember correctly Schalke's new stadium (built for the 06WC) gives this possibility. Im not sure for which games it works but I assume that for the normal league matches the end stands are converted to standing area's and in the CL (were I assume UEFA demand all seated stadiums) the stand gets converted to seated area's. They reintroduced it in Germany and i havent heard of any problems.

Arena auf Schalke

The light yellow is standing. It says on the site that for normal matches the capacity is 60.000 odd thousand with 3/4 seated and 1/4 standing and for international matches the capacity is 53.000. No mention of seating or standing so i assume its only seating.

 

[steevio_uk]

http://www.footballfanscensus.com/standingdebate/