So close, but never felt so far....

[Nii Lamptey]

Just voicing my opinion as I feel I'm really starting to fall out of love with football, top flight football at least, and just wondering if I'm the only one in this camp?

It's a feeling that has been slowly creeping up on me over the last 18 months or so, and I think I'm close to calling it a day, both home and away - I turned 50 at the end of last year, and I'm starting to think there are better things I could be doing with my time. I go to home and away games by myself, but will occasionally meet up with mates pre-match at the pub, or chat with season ticket holders sat near me.

Odds stacked against us
We probably have the best manager we've had in my Villa supporting lifetime (*I didn't properly follow Villa until the inception of the Premier League), but to me, I feel we've never been further from making that step up into the 'serial contenders' bracket. Hamstrung by spending constraints, it feels very much like one step forward, two steps back - Robbing Peter to pay Paul. As an example, no way will Rogers be here next season if we don't get Champions League football, and this is looking increasingly likely due to how spending constraints have hamstrung us this past season or so.

Watching live football - Is it all that?
To me, the highlight of going to watch Villa 'live' is the thrill ride of getting caught up in the atmosphere- The fast paced action, the singing, cheering, celebration, etc. These past few years, barring the odd highlight such as the Bayern or PSG games, has deteriorated massively, and it's not just Villa, I'd tag most clubs in the league with the same problem. It's flat.

I think it's a two-sided issue - This new 'play from the back' system that most clubs have employed in the past few seasons doesn't exactly get bums off seats. It's akin to a team seeing out injury time with a 1-0 lead, but for the full 90 mins.

On the other side, there is the clamour to fleece fans for every penny they can. Having a season ticket in the Upper Trinity, I see it more evidently than most - 'Customers' that rock up with their half n half scarves, taking selfies throughout the match, not singing along when songs start breaking out (*as most of the time they don't even know the players' names, let alone the songs!). Lifelong fans who I've sat by for years, have slowly drifted away and been replaced with day trippers (*or away fans). I'm not saying you don't get devoted fans in there, of course you do, but our recent limelight has started to attract people who have blatantly have no interest in following Villa. 

Then there is the never-ending rising cost involved following Villa, along with ridiculous kick-off times that derail any form of family life. Saturday 3pms, you knew you had the mornings and evenings to do family/dad things - Russian roulette with the football calendar these days.

And the cherry on top - VAR.

Some might label me not a proper fan, and that's fair enough, but to me, it's starting to feel like more of a chore, than something I look forward to as the weekend gets closer.

I'll always love and follow the Villa, but I think I'll be dusting off the armchair before much longer. 😔

UTV

-Nii

[dave.woodhall]

Post of the decade. Show this to senior management and they'd be glad another low-spender is going.

[Tony Daleys Shorts]

I’m the same age (50), this post sums up my feelings too. I’m already in the armchair, have turned down free tickets to go to games as I just don’t enjoy it like I used to.

[N'ZMAV]

I feel the same, and to top off this corrupted sack of shite is a world cup in America. Vile.

[Chris Harte]

Some might label me not a proper fan...

Not a chance, Nii. Your post screams proper fan.

Cherry on the cake today is Chelsea being fined £10.75m for basically cheating. We know that if Villa (or Forest, Newcastle, Everton, etc) decide to go that route and then fess up the penalty would be significantly more harsh, but that's probably for another thread.

[PeterWithesShin]

I stopped going some years ago. I flatly refuse to pay the piss take prices on principle. Club don't care as i'll have been replaced, and once you haven't been for a while you don't really miss it. There was a time when i'd have hated missing a LC 2nd round 2nd leg against someone like Rochdale having already won the 1st leg 3-0, now I'm not bothered I missed Bayern, PSG etc. I still love the Villa which is why I spend so much time on here, but the love changes.

[Nii Lamptey]

Some might label me not a proper fan...

Not a chance, Nii. Your post screams proper fan.

Cherry on the cake today is Chelsea being fined £10.75m for basically cheating. We know that if Villa (or Forest, Newcastle, Everton, etc) decide to go that route and then fess up the penalty would be significantly more harsh, but that's probably for another thread.

Thanks Chris. This is what actually sparked my post.... on top of being beaten by a team who can still spend the equivalent of a developing country's GDP, despite being literally billions in debt?!

[Exeter 77]

I am sort of at the same point but with football itself. The ever increasingly ridiculous financial restrictions, the obvious bias towards the favoured few, the contant changing of the laws, the interpretation of VAR in England, the media, the terrible refereeing, the Manchester City 115/130 charges. And then there's FIFA - celebrating an obviously warmongering orange octogenarian child as a peaceful man, leaving the World Cup in America, the financial scandals, the ever expanding tournaments. The list just goes on.

I carry on going to Villa Park to see friends  - I used to think I was in love with football but it really is just a love of Villa and the club’s history. How long that will last I have no idea but it is 50+ years so far.

[aldridgeboy]

Excellent post

[eamonn]

Yeah but what would you do instead ? It's too late, you'll always need your Villa fix.

[Legion]

Spot on.

[Villan82]

Hmm.

Season 2025/26. The season where we were so comfortable in third at the midway point that there was chatter online about the Villa park atmosphere suffering from the lack of jeopardy to our games yet by March we were less comfortable but still 4th and the whole chatter seems convinced the entire club is about to collapse.

Make it make sense.

p.s I hate the rules too but we are still a pretty top team right now and I have loved the past 4 years.

[dorsetvillian]

I love the Villa but hate modern football. The eight hour round trip for each home game is becoming more difficult to justify. However I would love to see Villa win just one more cup before I say I'm done. I'm 63 so I do wonder how old I will be before I can retire...

[RamboandBruno]

I don’t know. I get the sentiment of the thread. I’m
52 now and I understand the corruption of football via the money now involved, no point in repeating everything that’s already been said.

And yes its a rip off as well, I pay for me and my sons lower holte season tickets as well as the euro games on my credit card and by the time its paid off, it’ll be time to go again, unless they price me out.

I understand I’m being ripped off and I understand the monetisation of football is creating a seemingly impossible cartel to break into….and even if Villa did, then what.

But despite all of that, recent years have been some of my most enjoyable ever in over 40 years of going down. I loved when Dean became our manager and the 10 game run to the play off final was exhilarating. I loved regularly taking apart the so called better teams under Emery and some of the European nights have been incredible. Maybe its because I’ve shared those moments with firstly both my kids as they’ve grown up, now just my son as my daughter has moved away to uni and stopped going. Maybe if and when my lad wants to go with his mates rather than his dad, or in a couple of years he decides to move away to uni, I may feel differently, I can’t imagine going without him.


I think age and personal circumstances play a part and if you really have had enough, maybe its time for you, it’ll come to us all at some point.

[Beard82]

Thats a really good post. 

I do think football has lost something in the last 5-10 years or so.  I've not been much this season - we moved house and its a bit of a doer-upper so finanically and timewise it has been challanging.  To be fair the people I normally go with havent seemed any more keen to go more. 

Some is due to the cost.  A little bit is we havent really played that well this season - even on our winning run.  We have often looked professional and organised but nothing like 2 seasons ago.

I have started to resent the whole idea of trying to become an elite club (whilst at the same time desperate we get there). I hate the consitent fear of Villa not over-achieving and having to lose even more players than we normally do in the summer.  Or worse Unai leaving.

I have had some amazing times watching villa over the past few years. But I hate selling players you become attached to - or worse not selling them when you should and not getting the PSR advantage. 

I hate the awful, awful punditary that cames with every game, and all the click bate bollocks.  I hate the fact we pretend the rules are even remotely suited to having VAR applied to them.  And no-one standing up to say tha a rule from 140 years ago was never meant to be analysied to within a millameter.

The most I enjoyed a game this seaon was on boxing day - staying with the inlaws - and I last minute decided to go and watch Braintree v Southend.  I really enjoyed it - but even than cost £22 - the kids had no interest in coming - plus I couldnt get a cup of tea at half time.

I know that a player today is better than 30 years ago - but I dont think a football match is.  The thought of watching a game on TV that doesnt involve Villa is completely alien. 

I think football in this country is at risk of killing itself.  Or, Im getting old.