Tourists at Villa Park

[richard moore]

Yes, top post Frank and you do more than anyone to keep all those connections going which is fantastic. Chelsea is a fine example of what I never want to see down the Villa. I have often said that going to Stamford Bridge is more like experiencing a day out to Madame Tussauds than a football match in terms of it being such a 'tourist experience'.

[rob_bridge]

There have always been negative comments on here about Manure/Arse/Scousers having lots of tourists and reckoned it was a bit pot/kettle/black

Hmm, it's a bit different, mind.

Those Man U shirt wearing, television watching hordes in Asia who never get near the UK, let alone a football match, are not just buying into the Premier League, they are buying in to success.

I like seeing large groups of similar people at Villa Park, but it's a bit different in that, unless they've got incredibly long memories and are of a certain age, nobody could ever accuse them of being glory hunters, plus, they're actually at the ground, experiencing a game.

I have a bit of a thing about gloryhunters, I'll admit. I found it irritating to see tens of thousands of Chelsea shirt wearing gloryhunters when we did that pre season tour against them in HK the other year, for example.

Mind you, the glory hunter I actually know who winds me up the most is a Kidderminster bord and bred Man United fan, who has never shown any interest in actually going to Old Trafford, or a Man U game anywhere, for that matter, yet waxes lyrical (mostly on Facebook, of course) about his "beloved" Old Trafford.

I'd find it hard to describe any place i hadn't actually been to as "beloved".

I'd like to Unbelieveable - but it's not.

[rob_bridge]

I was season ticket holder (LH) in later 90's when my mate from Holland visted and Villa were at home.

Passed on said season ticket to another friend and asked him where did he want to sit - there was only ever one place he was going to choose. He is lucky enough to have been to dozens of football grounds all around the world.

Basic reasoning was there was no stand like the Old Trinity anywhere in the world. (Wimbledon duly did us 2-1 I think. Typical).

For what it's worth I think they did a half decent job on the replacement especially compared to most redeveloped grounds.

[pauliewalnuts]

At Stamford Bridge, for example, you see huge numbers of foreign visitors with their brand new shirts and bags of club merchandise, and there are always at least 20 coaches from Holland and Belgium parked outside the ground. We're never going to attract that sort of interest, especially from the glory-hunting types of fans.
The foreign support we do have is, for the most part, loyal and committed. I've written more than once in H&V about my connection with the German Villans, who come to home and away games regularly and will continue to do so, whichever league we end up in. Archie from the Latin Lions is a regular contributor to this website and his members are passionate Villa supporters. A group of us, including John Gregory, Rob Bishop and Alan Perrins, are attending their annual reunion in Padua later in the season and the restaurant will be filled with claret and blue and much noise. Those of you with a strong constititution have taken part in and perhaps survived the notorious visits of Edvard and his Faroese Lions. Our fans from Sweden, Norway, Belgium and Ireland come to Villa Park several times a season.
We're not a global brand, which may or may not be a good thing, but what it does mean is that our foreign supporters have deliberately chosen us rather than just jumping on the latest bandwagon. They care about Villa and suffer when we suffer. They love coming to Villa Park and we should welcome them and appreciate their loyalty.

Excellent stuff, Frank.

[rob_bridge]

At Stamford Bridge, for example, you see huge numbers of foreign visitors with their brand new shirts and bags of club merchandise, and there are always at least 20 coaches from Holland and Belgium parked outside the ground. We're never going to attract that sort of interest, especially from the glory-hunting types of fans.
The foreign support we do have is, for the most part, loyal and committed. I've written more than once in H&V about my connection with the German Villans, who come to home and away games regularly and will continue to do so, whichever league we end up in. Archie from the Latin Lions is a regular contributor to this website and his members are passionate Villa supporters. A group of us, including John Gregory, Rob Bishop and Alan Perrins, are attending their annual reunion in Padua later in the season and the restaurant will be filled with claret and blue and much noise. Those of you with a strong constititution have taken part in and perhaps survived the notorious visits of Edvard and his Faroese Lions. Our fans from Sweden, Norway, Belgium and Ireland come to Villa Park several times a season.
We're not a global brand, which may or may not be a good thing, but what it does mean is that our foreign supporters have deliberately chosen us rather than just jumping on the latest bandwagon. They care about Villa and suffer when we suffer. They love coming to Villa Park and we should welcome them and appreciate their loyalty.

Excellent stuff, Frank.

Amen to that - Villa aren't an easy team to support. It would be bloody boring if we were

[Ads]

A mate of a mate is from Northern Ireland and follows us home and away.

I think Frank is right, the foreign fans we do have, are pretty decent in that they actually turn up (not that N. Ireland is foreign, but if you have to take a plane to get to the game, then fair play!).

We have always seemed to have had a lot of Scandinavian and Irish support. Every time I am in Dublin I see more Villa shirts than Yanited or Liverpool.

[pauliewalnuts]

A mate of a mate is from Northern Ireland and follows us home and away.

I think Frank is right, the foreign fans we do have, are pretty decent in that they actually turn up (not that N. Ireland is foreign, but if you have to take a plane to get to the game, then fair play!).

We have always seemed to have had a lot of Scandinavian and Irish support. Every time I am in Dublin I see more Villa shirts than Yanited or Liverpool.

My Mrs was telling me that whenever she went to Ireland with her ex in the mid 90s, there were Villa fans all over the place. Probably due to the McGrath / Townsend / Staunton / Hughton thing.

[Irish villain]

A mate of a mate is from Northern Ireland and follows us home and away.

I think Frank is right, the foreign fans we do have, are pretty decent in that they actually turn up (not that N. Ireland is foreign, but if you have to take a plane to get to the game, then fair play!).

We have always seemed to have had a lot of Scandinavian and Irish support. Every time I am in Dublin I see more Villa shirts than Yanited or Liverpool.

My Mrs was telling me that whenever she went to Ireland with her ex in the mid 90s, there were Villa fans all over the place. Probably due to the McGrath / Townsend / Staunton / Hughton thing.

I have lived in the midlands, in Maynooth and now in South Dublin and I have always seen villa tops and ended up making friends that I can go and watch villa with. When I used to go Murrays, home of the Irish Lions, it was always packed out and  any time I fly to Birmingham for a game the flight is packed with villa fans.

[eamonn]

Yep, we have a decent fan-base in Ireland. Often hear them on the weekly phone-ins...not always with the best arguments but I'm comparing them to us clever lot on here.

[FatSam]

Curious. Nondescript was about the last.word I'd use to describe the old Trinity, even taking into account its emotional connotations for us.

By football ground standards it was magnificent architecture but as Simon Inglis said, in a wider context it had no more merit than a late Victorian town hall.

I might be missing the point, but frankly I don't understand this argument. There are good and bad late Victorian town halls, and some of the better ones are worthy of being retained and even adapted to suit changing requirements. There are also good and bad late Victorian (or interwar) factory buildings. The old Trinity Rd stand was a football stand, built in the early 20th Century, and so can only really be judged in that context. The stand was a reflection of the grandeur of the institution (at the time it was built), and a celebration of the event of the match. It was commonly acknowledged to be, along with Ibrox, the best example of a football stand of that era.

I think you are also underestimating the average football tourist, who I believe would be more interested in the main stand and cottage at Craven Cottage for example, than the main stand at Loftus Rd. Whether this manifests itself in taking photographs in front of the stand, or attending games I don't know. I do believe however that a contemporary tourist is entirely capable of being seduced in the same way that many of us were by the old Trinity Rd stand. I think UK Redsox touched on this, as I'm sure that Fenway Park is more visited by tourists than Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia for example.

[FatSam]

Dave, when in the USA, I've been known to travel for hours on a train just to take photos of the outside of a closed baseball ballpark. Therefore, maybe I look at stadiums differently to most people.

In a similar vein, I have some photos somewhere of the outside of the Baseball Ground in Derby on a wet day.

[ADVILLAFAN]

There have always been negative comments on here about Manure/Arse/Scousers having lots of tourists and reckoned it was a bit pot/kettle/black

Mind you, the glory hunter I actually know who winds me up the most is a Kidderminster bord and bred Man United fan, who has never shown any interest in actually going to Old Trafford, or a Man U game anywhere, for that matter, yet waxes lyrical (mostly on Facebook, of course) about his "beloved" Old Trafford.

I'd find it hard to describe any place i hadn't actually been to as "beloved".

It's like that bloody Plumbutt Cooper. Born and bred in Tamurff and only goes to Villa Park when he gets a free ticket. Really grinds my gears....

[andyaston]

I reckon the most awe inspiring view of Villa Park is from the Aston Expressway on the way in to the city centre.

I worked in the city centre for a few years, and drove past it every morning, and every single time, back then, and even now, I couldn't resist a long look at it.

If you drive past during the night, on the way to a night match, it looks even more impressive, all lit up. I always think that away fans, coming off the M6 and in towards the ground, must see it and think they're seeing a real institution on their way into the city.

Excellent post as ever Paulie. I feel the same way and have never ever lost that thrill of seeing Villa Park past the church for the first time whenever I return to Brum. I remember the first time I took my two daughters to a game a few years back and having a competition to see which of them could be the first to spot the stadium and they were so made up when they saw it. I love the walk beneath the underpass too and that sight you have of the road dividing in two, the Holte pub and the massive Holte end behind it. I think that is very iconic and not surpassed at too many other stadia around the country, certainly not in my experience

Both of you summed it up as well as anyone could.

[Lastfootstamper]

Had a chap sat next to us at the albion game this season, camera round neck, little rucksack, the whole tourist caboodle. Got chatting, turned out he's an Australian. Been to Europe a fair few times, but this was his first game. Asking him why the Villa, he said he'd followed our results and fortunes ever since he was a kid in the seventies, cos we had someone quite good who shared his name (Brian, by the way!), and his school rugby team played in our colours. Took him nearly forty years to get here, but he never forgot, and made it in the end. Got himself plenty of photos, and thoroughly enjoyed his day

[Witton Warrior]

The thing that stands out for me is that they all comment on the great atmosphere - we moan that it's not as good as it used to be (whenever that was) but apparently we are tremendous in our support. The Italians with us on Sunday went ballistic when we scored the first and then held back a bit watching for the free kick - one started making that circling-finger up the side of the head thing while grinning like a loon ;-)

Explaining some of the chants is always a challenge...