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Football in the sun anyone?

Every now and again, somebody comes up with an idea which may change the face of football forever. At the moment, there are plans to introduce video technology as well as a third linesman for example. However, trawling through the masses of literature on the internet, I became interested in another concept which does seem plausible.

This surrounds moving the football season so it encapsulates the summer months rather than the cold hard winter. Now many years ago, when I was a child, I became incredibly frustrated that just as the weather warmed up, and everyone had the chance to go out and play, the goalposts were taken down everywhere you looked – how annoying is that?

In terms of generating attendances, particularly at the lower end of the football spectrum – moving the season to the summer could also have major benefit in terms of attractiving the floating fans. People are more likely to stand outside and watch football when the weather is nice rather than freezing cold aren’t they?

Saying that though – isn’t becoming freezing cold at a football match part of it’s tradition and appeal.

What do you think? Would you be in favour of a summer move ?

Come on all you “United fans” - lets be ‘avin you!

I would not say that I am a Manchester United supporter by any stretch of the imagination. Pretty much anywhere you go in the country you will see people with the famous red shirts on complete with names and numbers on the back, who state that they support the Old Trafford outfit. The question which we all have to ask is how do you define “support”.

United are said to have the largest fan base in the world and there is no doubt that they are a massive global brand. However, does the fact that you have bought their latest shirt and occasionally watch them on Sky make you a “supporter”.

The reason I am bringing this up is that too many people say that they support successful teams and as a result consciously ignore their local teams as a result. If you look in the Manchester vicinity for example, you will see many teams, both league and non league who are struggling to find people to come through their turnstiles.

How many of these people are choosing to watch Soccer Saturday instead? In my mind they should take a hard look at themselves and consider the joys of live football in their local area. Watch United on the television for sure – but not at the expense of your local side who really do need you!

Can it ever be right to boycott your team?

There are literally millions of football fans around the world all of which take a keen interest in their team. Many people go and which their team every week and brave the elements in order to do so. But what happens if the team is not winning trophies – or even winning matches?

At any level of football, a winning team is going to generate larger gates than a losing one. This is common sense – people don’t go to watch a game of football if they are pretty sure that there team will lose.

The question is however whether or not there is a fine line between fan loyalty and lying down and letting your club take the mickey out of you. I am going to boycott my club this week as not only is the style of football absolute garbage, the results are even worse. But more than that, nobody at the club seems to give a damn in terms of investment in the team or the club in general.

Is this right? Does this make me a lesser supporter than someone who blindly accepts whatever the club say to them? It’s a difficult one to answer but in my mind, staying away from your club in certain situations can be because you love them so much you have to do it.

What do you think?

Plan for Valentines Day early folks!

As many of you will be aware, next Saturday is Valentine’s Day and this could cause you a certain amount of trouble, particularly if your team is playing away from home. Wives and girlfriends will be wanting you to spend the day with them when really all you want to do is go out, have a few beers with the lads and watch your team.

There are a number of different ways in which you could create a situation which is beneficial for everyone and WIE has some ideas which may help you out. The first one is maybe the simplest and that is to take your partner to the match with you. Invite them for a “day out” with you which may well involve a meal after the match where the two of you can spend some time alone.

Another idea is to bring up the issue early and suggest that you do something together on the Friday night instead. Again a trip to the cinema or meal out may well suffice.

If Friday does not suit then what about Sunday lunch out together instead – take her for a slap up meal and treat her like a princess for the day.

Alternatively of course you could just say you forgot about it and have made other plans – but we certainly would not recommend this!

Good luck!

New grounds or old?

Over the last decade many clubs have invested in a new ground. These have ranged from the impressive Emirates Stadium to the Deva Stadium which is the home of League Two side Chester City. There is now the situation where many clubs, both large and small are considering turning their back on their homes in order to move to newer stadiums which they believe will take them to the next stage in their developments.

Yet the question is – are these new grounds really worth it?

Some teams such as Arsenal move to new stadiums in order to attract larger crowds – which due to the success of the team, they can assume will come. Yet lower down the football pyramid this is not necessarily the case. Some clubs who are not even filling half their ground at the moment are considering moves to new stadiums with a raised capacity. This obviously raises the question – why?

A good example of this is Shrewsbury Town whose new ground may well be a disaster if they do not get promoted from League Two this season. There was, in my mind, no reason to move from Gay Meadow, yet the building of a largely character-less stadium was thought to generate more people through the turnstiles and therefore a more successful team. The short answer is of course that it hasn’t.

What do you thing – new stadiums or keep with the old?

Tell us what you think!

Do we take football too seriously?

For me going to the football can be an incredibly uplifting experience, however it can also be a depressing one and potentially could ruin the weekend.

People live for football, they work all week in order to follow their team up and down the country in the hope that they will win more than they will lose and who knows maybe even win the odd trophy or two.

But the question is do we take football too seriously? At the end of the day it is just a game although the emotions that it evokes suggest that it is much more than that. For millions of people football is a way of life. Their whole world is dominated by ninety minutes every Saturday afternoon and occasional Tuesday night.

Do we take our national game too seriously in this country? My own opinion is that as long as this does not evolve in to fanaticism which is expressed in a violent way then leave people to it. We all need to be obsessed with something in our lives and there is nothing wrong with this being football.

So let us praise football fans everywhere – you truly are the salt of the earth!

Support your local team!

There is no doubt about it – its freezing outside – literally. Yet this is the time when your local team needs you the most. Yes there is a credit crunch and yes Manchester United may me on the TV but where is your loyalty?

Attendances at lower league football are dangerously low in some quarters and as the financial crisis gets worse, this is surely the time to stand up and be counted. Even if you just go to one game a month, there is something heart warming about supporting your local team whether it be Aston Villa or Yeading you have your role to play in their future.

So make sure that you have a good thick jacket, a woolly scarf and maybe even a hip flask and get through them turnstiles. Too many fans just sit back and watch whatever games are on television when there are teams on their doorstep who need their support. WIE wants you to give them the support which they deserve. If collectively we turn our backs on them then it is quite probable that numerous clubs will go to the wall – I really don’t want to have that on my conscious and deep down neither do you!

How will you spend your Saturday?

With the majority of games in the English Football League called off, it promises to be a wierd Saturday afternoon for many of you today. No icy conditions or bovril at half time – so what are you going to be doing to pass the time?

Many of you will now doubt be watching the legend that is Jeff Stelling and seeing just what all the fuss is about. Others may prefore the Score programme on the BBC, but one thing is for sure – just because your match has been called off, does not mean that you have to have a football free Saturday.

Have a look in the papers, see if there are any other games which you can get to, other than that why not put a few quid on some of the televised matches to make the afternoon a bit more interesting.

The West Midlands derby between Villa and West Brom is first up whilst the league leaders Liverpool travel to Stoke in the pick of the late kick offs. So dont fear, your afternoon does not have to be shopping or decorating – make sure that you still have a cracking Saturday afternoon however you decide to spend it!

Good news for away fans!

With the terrible weather which we have all experienced over the past week or so, many games have had to be called off due to frozen pitches.

Last week, the FA announced some new guidelines to clubs in terms of the procedures which they have to follow before calling a match off. This came as a result of the Exeter City v Port Vale match which was called off at around 1:45 last weekend with the vast majority of Vale fans already in Devon.

Clubs now have to inform the Football League as early as possible if a game looks to be in doubt and a local referee drafted in early to make a firm decision if the away team has a long journey ahead of them. The plans are designed to facilitate a match being called off before opposing teams and fans begin their journey no matter what time this may be at.

This is good news for all those people who have been caught out in the past and will hopefully save many people from wasted journeys in the future.

The cold spell does look to be passing however and it is thought that next weekend will see normal service being resumed.

Our New Year predictions!

At this time of the year, everybody likes to make their New Year prediction about how the different leagues will take shape during the coming months.

Here at Winning is Everything, we are no different and we will share our tips with you here.

Lets start with the Premiership – personally I cant see anyone stopping Manchester United’s quest for a third consecutive championship. Chelsea and Liverpool will be in with a shout but United’s blistering second half of the season form will secure the trophy once more. We also fancy the Scousers so secure the runners up position just pipping Chelsea to the post.

In terms of relegation, sorry Baggies but West Brom are our tip to finish at the foot of the league closely followed by Stoke and Paul Ince’s Blackburn Rovers. The former England International has secured a Premiership job to early in his career for us and we feel that the Lancashire outfit will pay the price for not securing the services of a more experienced coach.

Here are our predictions in full –

Premier League
Champions – Manchester United
Runners Up – Chelsea
Relegated – West Brom, Stoke City, Blackburn Rovers

Championship
Champions – Wolverhampton Wanderers
Runners Up – Birmingham City
Relegated – Doncaster, Nottingham Forest, Norwich

League One
Champions – Leicester City
Runners Up – Leeds United
Relegated – Hereford United, Crewe Alexandra, Cheletenham Town, Yeovil Town

League Two
Champions – Wycombe Wanderers
Runners Up – Darlington
Also promoted – Bradford City
Relegated – Luton Town, Grimsby Town.

So there you have it – if you bet on all these then we want a cut!

Do you agree with these predictions – let us know!

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