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96-464: The torcidas are characterized by forming associations looking for the best way to support the team with flags, football chants , mosaics and performances inside and outside the stadium. The rationale for the fans' behavior is that it can help the team gather strength to beat the opponent. Although their main and explicit objective is to support their clubs, torcidas are also linked with several incidents of hooliganism and football violence . The name

192-464: A barra brava is generally related to the level of the club's popularity. However, some clubs have big supporters' groups without being very popular (this usually occurs when the club has, at least, a relatively high popularity in a high populated working class zone of an urban area). Group sizes range from a dozen of members in very small clubs, to more than a thousand in important ones (groups with several hundred of members or more started to appear in

288-442: A golden goal , Palmeiras supporters invaded the pitch to celebrate. São Paulo supporters invaded an area under renovation, stealing bricks, rocks, sticks and other building materials to invade the pitch as well and attack their rival supporters. As this was a junior tournament, police and paramedical services were too meagre to manage the riot. 108 people were wounded and one person died, resulting in tighter controls being imposed on

384-490: A German toast " Zicke zacke zicke zacke hoi hoi hoi ". In the United States, despite a lower popularity of association football, " I believe that we will win! " and " U-S-A! " are generally chanted during matches US national teams are playing on the world stage. The chant "U-S-A!" has also been used outside of sports, such as in the halls of Congress during rallies of American support. Some chants consist simply of

480-585: A football song in honour of the Wolverhampton Wanderers striker, Billy Malpass , after watching a match in February 1898 between Wolves and Stoke City . However, the anthem he wrote, "He Banged The Leather For Goal", never caught on among fans on the terrace. The oldest football song in the world that is still in use today may be " On the Ball, City ", a song believed to have been composed in

576-579: A formal association of Hajduk Split fans in the Croatian Dalmatia region. Torcida Split is now the oldest (1950) organized supporters' group in Europe. Thanks to Torcida Split , many other Torcida organized supporters' groups were created, among them rapidly growing and acting Górnik Zabrze fans, called Torcida Górnik , KF Trepça fans called Torcida Mitrovicë , and FK Novi Pazar fans, called Torcida Sandžak . Generally speaking,

672-436: A game, the league, be promoted, or win a major cup tie at venues such as Wembley . There may also be expressions of dissatisfaction, such as criticism of the team when they are performing poorly, or calling for the manager to resign, and occasionally against the owner of the club. Chants may be aimed at individual players or managers, and these can range from the amusing to the offensive or obscene. For example, " Who Ate All

768-444: A gigantic team shirt, but a constant in these flags is a reference to the torcida that made them. The reason why torcidas constantly sing is because they believe it is important to support the team, no matter what is occurring on the field. That is why it is so common to see the crowd singing, even if the opposing team has just scored a goal. However, during the half-time, the torcidas tend to organize small protests that are directed to

864-602: A job" to the tune of " You'll Never Walk Alone " started at a time when there was high unemployment in Liverpool. Tragedy chanting involves chanting about an opposition club's tragedies or tragic events that happen in their home cities. Instances in English football include exchanges between Manchester United and Leeds United fans, and between Manchester United and Liverpool fans. Some chants are spoken, sometimes accompanied by percussion. These chants may simply consist of

960-452: A large and constantly evolving repertoire of chants in addition to a smaller number of songs closely associated with their club. A more controversial aspect of this period of change was that abusive chants targeted at rival team or fans also became widespread. These may be taunts and insults aimed at the opposition teams or players to unnerve them, or obscene or slanderous chants targeted at individuals. A sampling of English football chants in

1056-476: A loud shout or whoop with a hand clap, sometimes led by a drum beat that gets increasingly faster, such as the Viking Thunder Clap made popular by fans of Iceland . Similar chants have been performed by fans of teams such as Motherwell and Lens , and a version called "Boom Boom Clap" has been used by fans of North American clubs such as Seattle Sounders FC and Toronto FC since 2008 as well as

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1152-405: A number of occasions when it has led to a fight between fans. The chant is sometimes used after the opposition have scored. It is now considered to be a dated chant with little current usage in English football culture despite being in common use in the 1970s and 80s. Several football chants are based on hymns , with " Cwm Rhondda " (also known as "Guide me, O thou great redeemer") being one of

1248-663: A particular player or manager. Fans may also use football chants to slight the opposition, and many fans sing songs about their club rivals , even when they are not playing them. Sometimes the chants are spontaneous reactions to events on the pitch. Football chants can be simple, consisting of a few loud shouts or spoken words, but more often they are short lines of lyrics and sometimes longer songs. They are typically performed repetitively, sometimes accompanied by handclapping, but occasionally they may be more elaborate involving musical instruments, props or choreographed routines. They are often adaptations of popular songs, using their tunes as

1344-442: A percentage of the profits. Also, when the stadium of some club is used for a non-football event (like concerts), usually the club's barra brava members are employed as security guards to take care of the facilities. In Argentina, since the 2000s, a large percentage of deaths related to football were related to internal disputes within barras bravas , emerging subgroups into it that sometimes even had its own names. The size of

1440-502: Is a symbol of the city. Italian Torino fans sing their signature chant Toro alè to the tune of French anthem " La Marseillaise ". The anthem theme was first popularized as a chant by A.S. Roma's curva sud after a 3-1 match win against Juventus on 30 January 1977. The anthem has also been modified by the RC Lens fans. French PSG fans sing a rendition of " Flower of Scotland ". Arsenal fans have been singing "Good old Arsenal" to

1536-582: Is a widely used anthem by Irish sports fans, sang particularly at rugby and football matches. The song was adopted and reworked by Liverpool fans as " The Fields of Anfield Road ". Popular music is the most common source of football chants. In the United Kingdom, music hall songs such as " My Old Man (Said Follow the Van) ", " Knees Up Mother Brown ", " I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles ", "I Came, I Saw, I Conga'd" and " Two Little Boys " have long been used as

1632-630: Is based on the Portuguese verb torcer , which means "to wring" or "to twist"; the definition shifted to "to root for" after wringing scarfs became an emotional outlet for female Brazilian spectators attending football matches in the 1930s. Due to hooliganism and violence associated with the Torcidas organizadas, the Brazilian government created the Estatuto do Torcedor , a law which regulates

1728-424: Is left empty to show respect for the place of the barra brava . Originally these groups were not very numerous or powerful. Over the years, this changed to the point of cases where the barra brava decided who would be the club's chairman. Since the 1980s and 1990s, hooliganism has grown and some groups engaged in illegal activities such as extorting money from club leadership, players and hawkers that work at

1824-561: Is normal to see gear of allied teams ( Palmeiras ), Atlético Mineiro , Grêmio Bahia and ABC Futebol Clube at Vasco da Gama games. Torcida Independente , Torcida Jovem Fla and Máfia Azul' s alliance was known for their own "symbol". To symbolize their own group and alliance, they raised their fists and crossed them, calling themselves "punhos cruzados" (crossed fists). In reference and prejudice to this, Mancha Verde , Galoucura and Força Jovem do Vasco put heir middle fingers up and called themselves "dedos pro alto" (raised fingers);

1920-493: Is sung by fans when Indonesia plays at home. Popularised at the Sydney Olympics and used by Australian football supporters everywhere is the " Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi " chant between two groups of supporters. It is a derivation of Welsh rugby chant " Oggy Oggy Oggy ", which was also adapted by Chelsea supporters in tribute to Peter Osgood . A version "Zigger Zagger Oi Oi Oi" has been suggested to be based on

2016-543: Is the currently term appeared in Argentine media in the 1960s, but became popular in the 1980s. Until the early 1990s, barra brava members in Argentina rejected that term (many even today) for considering it pejorative, and prefer being denominated as fanbase/crowd's guides (largely because if a supporter group it's identified as a defined group of people that is involved in illegal acts, the Argentine justice can judge

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2112-404: Is the growth and evolution of youth culture in this period which, together with popular music started being played over the public announcement system at matches instead of brass bands, encouraged fans to start their own singing based on popular tunes. Another suggestion is the mixing of fan cultures from different countries through international football matches that started to be broadcast, such as

2208-444: Is the union between three of the main organized firms then and today: Mancha Verde ( Palmeiras ), Força Jovem Vasco ( Vasco ) and Galoucura ( Atlético Mineiro ) who have a friendship that dates back to the early 1980s, while rivals Torcida Jovem Fla (supporters of Flamengo ), Torcida Independente (supporters of São Paulo FC ) and Máfia Azul ( Cruzeiro ) are also linked to each other. These old unions, dated, some say, since

2304-500: The Band Aid song " Do They Know It's Christmas? ", "Papa's Got a Brand New Pigbag" by Pigbag and " This Is How It Feels " by Inspiral Carpets . Other chants have used tunes from on pop songs include " Three Lions ", the official England anthem for Euro '96 and Manic Street Preachers song " If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next ". Fans of a number of different clubs in the United Kingdom have adopted " Rockin' All Over

2400-463: The Torcidas organizadas, giving them rights and duties. In the beginning of the 1940s, and until the 1960s, torcidas organizadas were informal associations of fans who gathered to buy fireworks, cloth for large flags, and other stuff to be used during celebrations. The first one was the "Charanga Rubro-Negra" ( Flamengo ), created in 1942. Later, such associations became permanent, and were legally formalized as nonprofit recreational associations with

2496-528: The Village People and " Oops Up Side Your Head " by The Gap Band remaining popular amongst fans. " Ain't Nobody " by Rufus and Chaka Khan has been used by Arsenal fans and others. Music popular in the 1980s and 1990s is also used widely. Chants have been based on " Just Can't Get Enough " by Depeche Mode , " Love Will Tear Us Apart " by Joy Division , " Pop Goes the World " by Men Without Hats ,

2592-407: The goals . Police and rioters were criticized by the media, and newspaper La Razón mentioned the existence of barras fuertes (strong gangs) in Argentine football that were already known by many people, differentiating them for the first time from the traditional barras as being more organized, hierarchical, and coordinated, as observed among River Plate' rioters on that occasion. Barra brava

2688-428: The torcidas organizadas have a different supporting style to the barra bravas and ultras : firstly, torcidas wear their own uniforms when attending games rather than the club's uniforms, sometimes it is a color that differs from their club's primary color, e.g. Palmeiras Mancha Verde wears white while Torcida Jovem ( Sport Recife ) wears yellow as opposed to the club's red-and-black. Additionally, they sing all

2784-467: The "Li-ver-pool, [clap, clap, clap]" chant. Chants became more extensive in the 1960s, and popular songs became increasingly common as the basis of chants as fans adapted these songs to reflect situations and events relevant to them. Chanting the name of the team, chants for players and managers started to become prevalent. Liverpool supporters, particularly those on the Kop , were known for modifying songs in

2880-609: The "two, four, six, eight!" chant that was used for sports in the United States from the early 20th century was adopted by football fans in the UK in the 1950s. The "Olé" chant from bullfighting is believed to be first used in Brazil for Garrincha in 1958, and one version of the " Olé, Olé, Olé " chant was first heard at a league game in Spain in 1982, while another version quickly spread around Europe in 1986 and became widely popular around

2976-403: The 1890s by Albert T Smith, who became a director of Norwich City in 1905. The song was adopted by fans of the club and it is still sung by Norwich's fans. Such club song may have its origin in the public school system, while others have links with working-class music hall. Other early football chants still sung today include "Pompey Chimes" or "Play up, Pompey" sung by Portsmouth fans since

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3072-461: The 1920s (a form of the chant is believed to have been sung at Fratton Park in 1899, therefore it is arguably older than "On the Ball, City"), and " Blaydon Races ", a Geordie folk song from 1862, which was adopted by Newcastle United fans in the 1930s. Some of the songs sung at football ground by the 1920s were modified from popular music hall songs, for example "Kick, Kick, Kick, Kick, Kick it" from "Chick, Chick, Chick, Chick, Chicken" and "Keep

3168-428: The 1920s (the tradition of singing " Abide with Me " at FA Cup finals started in this period). While various elements of football chants were already present in the early period, it was in the 1960s that the nature of football chants started to change and modern football chants emerged to become an integral part of fan culture and experience. The catalyst for the change may be due to a number of factors; one suggestion

3264-401: The 1920s, which became more overtly confrontational in later decades, raising the possibility that sectarianism may have been the origin of oppositional chanting and singing at football matches. Fans of the early period also had a limited repertoire of chants, which become more varied as singing was encouraged by the use of brass bands before games and the community singing movement that arose in

3360-426: The 1959 England's tour of South America and the 1962 World Cup . The exposure to intense chanting by South American and Italian fans during the 1962 and 1966 World Cups may have encouraged British fans who were previously more reserved to do the same. They also picked up different type of chants from other countries; Liverpool fans for example, may have used a Brazilian chant "Brazil, cha-cha-cha" and turned it into

3456-593: The 1960s, also against the Argentine club Atlanta (commonly heard in the 1960s but may have begun as early as the 1940s), and against the Dutch club Ajax in the 1970s. Racist insults directed at black players began to be heard in the 1970s and 1980s in England and Spain when black players started appearing in their leagues in increasing numbers. Concerns over the abusive nature of some of these chants later led to measures in various countries to control them, for example,

3552-503: The 1964 musical Mary Poppins . Some early songs became popular as football chants later, for example the Venezuelan song " Moliendo Café " popular in early 1960s first became used as a chant in Argentina in the late 1970s, which spread to Italy as "Dale Cavese" chants in 2006 and then later to clubs around the world. The emergence of funk and disco in the 1970s also made its mark on the terraces with songs such as " Go West " by

3648-464: The American national teams. "You're Gonna Get Your Fucking Head Kicked In", sometimes pluralised to "You're Gonna Get Your Fucking Heads Kicked In", is a football chant originating in England. It is also used as a case study in psychology and sociology . The chant is often used as an intimidatory chant towards the opposing fans rather than as an actual threat of violence, but there have been

3744-734: The British government made racist and indecent chants an offence in the UK in 1991. In Italy, the Mancino law was used to prosecute fans for inciting racism. Despite efforts to stop them, some chants remain an issue around the world, such as the " Eh puto " chant used by Mexican fans, and racist chants in many countries. As the sport of football spread to other countries, so did its associated fan culture of football chants. Many countries, however, have developed their own tradition of football songs and chants; for example, most Italian clubs have their own official hymns, often written specially for

3840-610: The Forwards Scoring" from " Keep the Home Fires Burning ". Chants that referenced players were also heard on the terrace; for example, "Give it to Ballie" chanted by Swansea fans in reference to a player name Billy Ball who played for the club in 1912-1920. Football chants in the early years were club-specific and they were generally friendly or jocular in tone. Songs with sectarian overtones, however, had been sung at matches between Rangers and Celtic in

3936-828: The Mountain " to "We'll Be Coming Down the Road" by the Scotland national team and Liverpool fans, " My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean ", " The Wild Rover " and " Camptown Races ", which is used for " Two World Wars, One World Cup ", whilst Birmingham City fans sing " Keep Right on to the End of the Road ". The melody of " Bella ciao " is often used as a chant by Italian ultras groups of Salernitana , Cosenza Calcio , A.S. Livorno and also outside of Italy like with Aris Thessaloniki , AEK Athens F.C. or Paris Saint-Germain F.C. fans, as well as

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4032-706: The Pies? " may be used against a player considered fat, or racist chants directed at black players. Chants may sometimes reflect players or managers in the news, or they may be made-up accusations directed against them that can be sung in either a humorous or offensive manner. Chants may target fans or home grounds of the opponents (e.g. "My garden shed is bigger than this" or "Is this a library"), and may also refer to events in their rivals' club history, sometimes in highly offensive manner (see Tragedy chanting below). Fans may also use parodies of their rivals' anthems, for example, singing "sign on, sign on ... you'll never get

4128-613: The Timbers Army of MLS' Portland Timbers. The song was also adapted by Brazilian fans during World Cup 2018 to tease and taunt Argentina about their possible exit in the first round, which eventually did not occur, with references to Argentinian players Di María , Mascherano , and Messi (Brazil and Argentina have a well-known football rivalry ). Italian tifosi are strongly used to sing mocks based on national, and internationally famous folk tunes, like "L'uva fogarina", " Oh! Susanna " and " Alouette ". " The Fields of Athenry "

4224-506: The Torcidas Organizadas. Rivalry is embedded in Brazilian football culture, but when it comes to their organized (or uniformed) supporters, things can take a turn for the worse. Some groups can relate only with their equals, a common occurrence for "torcidas organizadas", " barras bravas " and " firms " all over the world. Torcidas Organizadas have also strong ties with local organized crime . In 2017, Moacir Bianchi, one of

4320-425: The World " by Status Quo as a chant. Liverpool fans sing " Scousers all over the world". Arsenal fans sing " Saka and Emile Smith Rowe ". Rangers fans sing "Gerrard stopped ten in a row", in reference to the club winning the 2020-21 Scottish Premiership under manager Steven Gerrard and breaking bitter rivals Celtic's nine-year monopoly on the title. Fans in England sing "Leeds are falling apart again" to

4416-420: The alliance between Young Flu (Fluminense) Fúria Independente Guarani and Fúria Independente Paraná also have their touching fists symbol. Players for both teams, especially from Flamengo and São Paulo, are known to represent these 'expressions' after scoring a goal on the pitch, driving the hard-core fans crazy with pride. Depending on the club the Torcidas Organizadas can have a certain level of influence in

4512-443: The appearance of such groups, when a team played away, it was intimidated by home fans. Barras bravas were a response to this pressure, so each club started to have its own barra brava , financed by the club leadership. These groups were given tickets and paid travel to the stadiums, and access to these benefits were controlled by the group's main members. To obtain prestige, the member had to be violent. In Argentine football, it

4608-457: The away matches. While intimidation towards referees and rival players and supporters was previously spontaneous, from that moment on it would be their main objective (along with encouraging their team). Another objective came to be defending the rest of spectators and players of their club from the attacks of rival fans (especially in away matches), and police repression, which increased fights and riots, that occurred more frequently before and after

4704-429: The basis of terrace chants. Popular standards such as " Winter Wonderland ", Scott Joplin 's " The Entertainer ", and the 1958 Eurovision entry " Volare " are also widely adapted to suit players and managers. The Cuban song " Guantanamera " became popularly used as a chant in the UK as a version by The Sandpipers charted soon after the 1966 World Cup; it is commonly sung in a large variety of chants, for example in

4800-659: The basis of the chants, but some are original. Football chants are known to have been used by fans from the late 19th century onwards, but developed into the current popular forms in the 1960s. Football chants can be historic, dating back as early as the formation of the club popularly sung down the years and considered the anthems for these clubs. They may also be popular for only a relatively short time, with new chants being constantly created and discarded. The tradition of football chants vary from country to country and team to team, but some chants are common to many clubs and popular internationally. Football chants may be considered one of

4896-546: The beginning of the 1980s and 1990s (in the Jovem Fla-Independente case), has been theme for songs and ovations whenever these two teams meet or whenever they meet each other's rivals. They proudly sing that each one of them is unified with another hard-core group of supporters. With this, two opposite mobs of national unified groups were created. Within these unions it is normal that the supporters exchange shirts, caps, and other articles; therefore for example it

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4992-481: The beginning the torcida organizada movement was fragmentary, but would later consolidate into larger bodies or leagues. Some torcidas would open branches throughout the country to support their teams playing away, given the national range of their supporters. "Torcidas organizadas" later became infamous for their association with stadium violence, which would cause Justice to disband some of them (notably Gaviões da Fiel , Mancha Verde and Torcida Independente , both

5088-405: The bottom. Each group usually also has a banner with its name. Traditionally, many members (usually important ones) stand upon the crush barriers that are placed in terraces to prevent crushing . In order to not fall from there, they hold on from a "suspender" (this was the purpose for making these flags shaped like strips), the body of someone else that is by his side and sustained to the flag, or

5184-562: The club by a prominent singer or composer who is a fan of the club. Many countries also have football chants dating from the early part of the 20th century, and clubs such as Real Madrid may have an official club song as early as 1903. Football chants created in different countries may be specific to the local culture. Hand-clapping chants were popular in South American countries such as Brazil before it spread to other countries. Some chants originated from other sports; for example,

5280-561: The confines and politically within the clubs; notably Gaviões da Fiel have a considerable amount of power in Corinthians as do their rivals Mancha Verde in Palmeiras ; who were single-handedly responsible for the demise of players like Vagner Love and Diego Souza to move on to other clubs. Yet Torcida Independente have little to no influence over São Paulo FC . The Brazilian influence stretched into Europe through Torcida Split ,

5376-649: The destination is too far), the making of flags or buying elements (balloons, confetti, pyrotechnics, etc.) used in the team's receptions on the pitch. They often provide services to political and union leaders who hire them as agitator groups (during rallies and mass meetings, that in Argentina traditionally have people chanting like football crowds, playing drums and even shooting firecrackers), goon squads (clashing with supporters of other political parties, unions or police during demonstrations, protests, rallies and strikes), bodyguards, etc. They are funded also by club leadership, which may give salaries to some members or even

5472-553: The early 1960s to suit their own purposes, and this practice quickly spread to fans of other clubs who created their own versions after hearing these chants. Repertoire of chants credited to Liverpool fans included the rhythmic clapping based on " Let's Go " by The Routers , the chorus from " We Shall Not Be Moved ", and " When the Saints Go Marching In " used to honour Ian St John , chants which were then also adopted by fans of other clubs. Fans of many clubs now have

5568-426: The existence of barras bravas after the riots during a match between Vélez Sarsfield and River Plate (at José Amalfitani Stadium ), at which 18-year-old bystander Alberto Mario Linker was killed by police (he was accidentally hit in the head by a tear gas grenade thrown at point-blank range from a grenade launcher) when cops tried to disperse River Plate fans who were causing unrest in a terrace located behind one of

5664-609: The folk tradition blason populaire where a group vocalise their identity as well as their rivalry against another group. Football fans' vocalisations came in the forms of cries, chants and songs in the 19th century. War cries were known to have been used by football fans from the 1880s onwards, with the earliest recorded in Scotland after the Scottish Cup final of 1887 . The first known song that references football, "The Dooley Fitba' Club" later known as " 'Fitba' Crazy ",

5760-603: The following decades, riots and deaths increased at the same time that barras bravas organized and multiplied. According to some studies, Argentina has the most dangerous organized supporters' groups in the world. Through August 2012 Argentine football has experienced more than 200 deaths related to hooliganism. Since 2013, all visiting fans were banned from matches of the first division. These groups deploy and wave flags (that in Argentine football slang are called trapos -rags), banners and umbrellas (with their team's uniforms), and use musical instruments (such as drums and, since

5856-413: The form of "There's only one [player's name]", or "You only sing when you're winning". The tune " Tom Hark " is often played at many stadiums following a goal by the home team and for chants such as " Thursday Nights, Channel 5 ", whilst " Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be) " by Doris Day is generally reserved for matches where the venue of the final is Wembley Stadium . The rhythm, rather than

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5952-474: The founders of Palmeiras ' torcida organizada Mancha Verde, was murdered by a member of the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) as he attempted to mediate and prevent a hostile takeover by a PCC-backed faction. Teams active over a wider range on national and international field have come to experience historical clashes that created fierce rivals, as well as close and loyal allies. An example for this

6048-411: The hand of some supporter that is standing below (in the floor). They start and coordinate most of the chants, wave the most important flags, and always are located in the center of the terrace that they occupy. Until the group enters onto the terrace (usually a few minutes before or sometimes after the match starting), the center is not occupied by the crowd (even if the terrace it is almost filled). It

6144-507: The largest of Grêmio one of the largest in Brazil - is styled after the Platinean barra bravas. Football chants A football chant or terrace chant is a form of vocalisation performed by supporters of association football , typically during football matches. Football chanting is an expression of collective identity, most often used by fans to express their pride in the team they support, or to encourage them, and to celebrate

6240-458: The last remaining sources of an oral folk song tradition. Football chants may be considered modern examples of traditional storytelling and folk songs. According to folk singer Martin Carthy , football chants are "the one surviving embodiment of an organic living folk tradition." It is also a unique public expression of collective identity, and football chants may be seen as modern examples of

6336-410: The late 1970s found these types of chants to be the most numerous. Threats of violence may also be made to their rivals in chants; although such threats were rarely carried out, fights did occur which, together with increasing level of hooliganism in that period, gave these threats a real edge. Some abuses are racial in nature; for example, anti-Semitic chants directed at Tottenham Hotspur began in

6432-581: The matches outside of stadiums (although many also occurred on the terraces during the games, sometimes leading to their suspension). Thus, they became the first organized, violence-centered supporters' groups of football fans in the world (which later appeared as hooligan firms in United Kingdom , ultras in Italy and torcidas organizadas in Brazil). Argentine journalist Amílcar Romero stated that, before

6528-687: The melody, of " Let's Go (Pony) " by The Routers is widely used for clapping, drumming or banging by fans worldwide. Music of the 1960s influenced terrace chants. " Ring of Fire " by Johnny Cash and " That's Amore " by Dean Martin have been used by several sets of fans. " Lola " by The Kinks , and " Hi Ho Silver Lining " by Jeff Beck have been adapted by several clubs – most prolific of these include Aston Villa , Sheffield Wednesday and Wolverhampton Wanderers . " All You Need Is Love ", " Hey Jude " and " Yellow Submarine " by The Beatles are often used. Songs from musicals have become very popular as football chants, such as " Chim Chim Cher-ee " from

6624-416: The members as participants of an illicit association , a legal figure that hardens the penalties). Although there were many fights and riots carried out by fans since the beginnings of Argentine football, Argentine players, club leaders, and police (with the first registered death caused by violence in 1923), the death of Alberto Mario Linker signaled the beginning of an era of habituation to violence. During

6720-468: The mid-2000s, trumpets) to accompany their chants . They occupy terraces where viewers must stand, while in all-seater stadiums (rare in Argentina), barras bravas also remain standing throughout the match. The most characteristic flags are shaped like giant strips several meters in length (called trapos largos -long cloths- or tirantes -suspenders-), that are deployed from the top of the terrace to

6816-450: The middle of the crowd. However, it is quite common for torcidas to ask for a substitution, generally just by chanting the name of the player they wish to see playing. Although some believe such practice seems to diminish the other players' efforts, this situation is quite common in stadiums. Some Brazilian Torcidas have organized themselves in a manner that resemble more like barra bravas or European ultras. Most notably, Geral do Grêmio -

6912-659: The most part of Europe and Asia, Australia, and North Africa). During the 1920s in Argentina, irregular groups of fervent fans spontaneously began to appear at football matches. These groups were denominated as barras by the media, a term that in Rioplatense Spanish slang is equivalent to the term gang , but in its original meaning (not necessarily associated to crime), that is 'an informal group of people (usually friends) who meet frequently and usually do common activities'. Their actions were limited to stadiums during home matches because they could not follow (at least

7008-461: The most popular tunes to copy. Amongst others, it has spawned the song " You're not singing anymore! ", "We support our local team!", and "I will never be a Blue !". Various teams have used the "Glory Glory" chant (used by " Tottenham Hotspur ", " Leeds United ", " Manchester United ", etc.), to the tune of the " Battle Hymn of the Republic ". Hibernian were the first team to use the song with

7104-476: The name of the team and/or words of encouragement. The chants may also be in a call-and-response format. For example, Chile national football team fans will do a routine whereby one group of fans will chant "Chi-Chi-Chi", and another group will respond "Le-Le-Le". For the Indonesia national football team one group of fans will chant "In-Do-Ne-Sia" with an air horn and hand clap in response. "Garuda Di Dadaku"

7200-434: The police. Actions such as exhibition of choreographies (like throwing smoke bombs, firecrackers, confetti and balloons and displaying giant flags that cover entire stands, or part of them, before the match's start) to welcome the team when it goes out to the pitch; waving and displaying of flags, banners and umbrellas; and coordination of chants (that accompany playing bass drums and trumpets and end up being sung by part or

7296-905: The primary goal of providing a better spectacle at the stadium and surroundings. Some of the noteworthy torcidas organizadas from this time were: Torcida Jovem Fla and Raça Rubro-Negra ( Flamengo ), Gaviões da Fiel ( Corinthians ), Torcida Independente and Dragões da Real ( São Paulo FC ), Mancha Verde ( Palmeiras ), Força Jovem Vasco ( Vasco da Gama ), Máfia Azul ( Cruzeiro ), Galoucura ( Atlético Mineiro ), Torcida Jovem do Santos ( Santos FC ), Young Flu ( Fluminense ), Fúria Jovem do Botafogo ( Botafogo ), Bamor ( Esporte Clube Bahia ), Torcida Jovem do Sport ( Sport Club do Recife ), Os Imbatíveis ( Esporte Clube Vitória ), Inferno Coral ( Santa Cruz Futebol Clube ), Os Fanáticos ( Clube Atlético Paranaense ), Império Alviverde ( Coritiba Foot Ball Club ), Garra Alvinegra ( ABC Futebol Clube ), Máfia Vermelha ( América de Natal ). In

7392-464: The release of a record by Hector Nicol in the 1950s ("Glory Glory to the Hibees"). The Stars and Stripes Forever is often sung with the words " Here we go, here we go, here we go! ". There have been various adaptations of " When The Saints Go Marching In " (e.g. by fans of Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur), and the tune of Handel's Hallelujah chorus . Many football crowd chants/songs are to

7488-478: The rest of their team's crowd in the stadium while jumping or applauding) during the whole match, are characteristic of their fervent behavior, whose purpose is to encourage their team while intimidating referees and rival fans and players, for which they also provoke violence. They also look to attack rival fans (especially rival barras bravas ), which leads to fights with them (most of the time outside of stadiums before or after matches, but sometimes during them in

7584-441: The rubber of bike inner tubes (filled with sand, and tied with wire at the ends) that this group used in some occasions to attack rival fans. Sometimes they would also throw objects at the players of rival teams to bother them when they should intervene in the game. The barras became a traditional part of the Argentine football crowds and evolved until, in the mid-1950s, they began receiving funding from football clubs to attend all

7680-420: The same methods against their team. At the end of this decade, a few newspapers described one of this groups as a barra "brava" (Spanish for fierce), appearing the words barra brava together for the first time, but not yet like a term. One of those groups, named La barra de la Goma ("The barra of the rubber") by the press, appeared in 1927 and supported San Lorenzo de Almagro . The nickname comes from

7776-414: The stadium and surroundings, sell tickets (that are given by club leaders) to matches on the black market, charge for parking in the vicinity of the stadium, etc. Many members also steal (participating in burglaries , larcenies and robberies , sometimes even being part of criminal organizations) or sell drugs as a way to obtain money for travels (club leaders do not pay the travel for the whole group when

7872-483: The stands), and defend the rest of their team' spectators from rival attacks (especially in away matches, where normally they are outnumbered by home fans) and police repression. These groups originated in Argentina in the 1950s and spread throughout the rest of Latin America. They are similar to hooligan firms (from United Kingdom), torcidas organizadas (from Brazil), and ultras (originally from Italy but spread to

7968-434: The team manager or the team president, in order to express their dissatisfaction with recent decisions or even long-standing unfulfilled promises. As for what concerns the players, the torcidas usually try not to point out a player who is not putting all of his best efforts to work. As matter of fact, many supporters who belong to torcidas cannot stand anyone around them criticizing the players, which often results in brawls in

8064-493: The team, individual players or managers. Typically popular tunes are used for this type of chants, for example, "There's only one [ name of player ]" sung to the tune of " Guantanamera ", "Super [ name of player or team ]", or the " Olé, Olé, Olé " chant. The chants may give encouragement to the team, for example, "Come on you [ name of team ]", " Vamos [ name of team ] ", "Allez [ name of team ]". They may be expression of confidence and optimism, suggesting that their team will win

8160-406: The time, usually the anthem of the club or songs that are known even to those that are not part of a torcida . These songs are usually played along with drum beats and other musical instruments, although most are not allowed inside the stadiums. Other significant differences are the enormous flags that are made and expected by everyone in the stadiums. The torcidas usually display a team logo, or even

8256-523: The top and most hard-core firms and active in one of the largest cities in the world: São Paulo ). Some clubs would also be plagued by rival torcidas which would battle each other as well as the opponents. A notable incident of violence was the "Battle of Pacaembu" in 1995. When the U-20 "Supercopa Junior" tournament finals between Palmeiras and São Paulo FC at the Pacaembu Stadium ended with

8352-570: The tune of Rule Britannia since the 1970-71 season when they won the double. Most Turkish teams have been using the theme of To Brazil by Vengaboys with their own team's lyrics. Some chants are based on spirituals . " We shall not be moved " and " He's Got the Whole World in His Hands " are both used by fans. An example of the latter's use was "He's got a pineapple on his head" aimed at Jason Lee due to his distinctive hairstyle. The song

8448-523: The tune of " La donna è mobile " from Giuseppe Verdi 's opera Rigoletto , for example the chant by Derby County fans in honour of Fabrizio Ravanelli of "We've got Fabrizio, you've got fuck allio". Italian tifosi employ various operatic arie , especially those by Giuseppe Verdi , for chants. For Parma 's home matches at the Stadio Ennio Tardini , during the entry of the teams in the field, Aida 's triumphal march resounds as Verdi

8544-426: The tune of "Love will tear us apart" by Joy Division to mock fans of Leeds United . Barra brava Barra brava ( lit.   ' fierce group ' ) is the name of organized supporters' groups of football teams in Argentina, analogous to European ultras and British hooligans in providing fanatical support to their clubs in stadiums and provoking violence against rival fans as well as against

8640-443: The whole members) their teams to other cities very often, neither was violence provocation their objective, as violence arose spontaneously due to frustration caused by bad results of their team or as a way to influence the match through intimidation of rival players and referees with insults, throwing objects and occasionally entering onto the pitch to assault them. Sometimes they also attacked rival fans (usually barras also) who used

8736-469: The world. As football fans travel to other countries on away international matches, and international broadcasts of football matches are common, fans from around the world often picked up chants from other clubs and countries, and some chants spread in an organic manner and become popular internationally. An example is the chant based on " Seven Nation Army " by The White Stripes – it was first adopted by fans of Belgian Club Brugge KV in 2003, their chant

8832-502: Was also written in the 1880s by James Curran, although it was intended for the music hall rather than the terrace. It was also recorded in the 1890s that Sheffield United fans had adopted a music hall song, the "Rowdy Dowdy Boys", while Southampton fans sang a "Yi! Yi! Yi!" chant based on a war cry. Blackburn Rovers fans were reported to have chanted "We've won the cup before – many a time" before their 1891 FA Cup Final match against Notts County . Composer Sir Edward Elgar wrote

8928-516: Was customary that, if you played away, you were pressured inexorably. Although it was not about barras bravas as we know them today. Home fans pressured you and, police, if not looking away, also pressured you. That had to be compensated with a theory that in the next decade (the 1950s) was rife: to every operating group with a mystical ability to produce violence, the only way to counter it is with another minority group, with as much or more mystique to produce violence. In 1958, media has begun to notice

9024-512: Was later popularised by the television show Fantasy Football League . Christmas carols have also been used as chants like with the theme of " O Tannenbaum " by the likes of Manchester United or Chelsea fans. The tune to the Shaker song " Simple Gifts " has spawned many terrace chants including " Carefree ", a chant associated with Chelsea . It was also used for a Tottenham song abusing Sol Campbell after his move to Arsenal in 2001 and

9120-568: Was sung by Manchester United fans, in honour of Park Ji-Sung . Chelsea fans also adapted the song "One Man Went To Mow" as an anthem. " Sloop John B " has been popular amongst English football fans since the mid-2000s. It was adopted by the supporters of English non-league team F.C. United of Manchester as a club anthem in 2007. The Geordie folk song " Blaydon Races " is associated with Newcastle United . Other folk songs to have their lyrics altered include " The John B. Sails " to "We Won it 5 Times" by Liverpool fans, " She'll Be Coming 'Round

9216-409: Was then picked by Italian fans, and it was made an unofficial anthem for the Italy national football team in the 2006 FIFA World Cup , following which it spread to other football clubs around the world as well as beyond football into other sports and events. A wide variety of football chants exist, some of the more popular ones may be grouped into the following types: The chants may also praise

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