Far Away Fan

David is from England. and a fan of FC Zenit, Russia. David’s interest in Russian football with a play by mail league, where he played as Torpedo Moscow. An early adopter of Twitter, how Zenit interacted with their fans on Twitter, and his early memory if of Hulk scoring a mind-blowing free-kick. He’s half English and half Mauritian, he talked to me about his inspiration to start the Twitter handle @FC Zenit Mauritius to promote the club on the island.  He’s got an interesting bunch of teams that he follows. He’s a former West Ham fan, who now supports Leyton Orient, with a soft spot for Sunderland. We went on to discuss club rivals, Spartak Moscow, and his pick for club legend Arshavin. David discussed the Russian Football watching community from across the world that follows the club religiously. Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Kokorin is a player he feels deserves a bit more praise for his time at the club. And Andrei Mostovoy is a young player he’s looking to see more of. I asked him what made him pick Leyton Orient after being disillusioned with West Ham. David’s also got a podcast called The Retro Wet Shaving Podcast with the @dyspraxicshaver  We went on to discuss Dyspraxia, a coordination disorder that David was diagnosed with last year, because of which he can is unable to drive.  He talked to me about his collecting of Kit and programs, once of which is from the 1970’s when Zenit played his hometown team of Southend United.  Do listen to Dave's wonderful response when I ask him what following the club has brought to his life. 

Pedro is from Detroit, USA and a fan of Santos FC, Brazil. In 2006, Pedro had broken his foot. While stuck indoors he discovered the club through a sports encyclopedia his grandfather owned and also watched the World Cup that year, being half Italian, it all seemed to come together to set him down his footballing journey. He started his Twitter handle @SantosFC_Ingles, in part inspired by the Canary and Blue podcast. We discuss Santos’ rivals, and how each of them can be different for each supporter. Pele is Pedro’s pick for club legend. We talk about Pele’s global reach and the cultural phenomenon of Pele. We go on to discuss the popularity of the Brazilian league and the wealth of young talent. And how they have interesting homecomings later on in their careers having moved quite early on in their youth to play in Europe or Asia. Pedro talks me through his cherished collection of kits, one of which is his framed Neymar Barcelona kit. Pedro has studied at Wuhan University. He talked to me about his experience there and his interest in the football culture in that part of the world. One he asked me to check out was the Hong Kong Premier league. He’s been taking pictures in the various cities he has visited with the Santos FC kit and has an interesting story attached to it. We talked about our shared love for podcasts and how he hopes to have one on Santos soon. Do listen to Pedro's wonderful response when I ask him what following the club has brought to his life. We’d love to hear from you, get in touch with us on Twitter @FarAwayFanPod or on Instagram.

Samantha and Shawn are from Canada and are fans of FC St Pauli. Shawn had seen a page in a sports catalog about a team he had never heard of. He was a Liverpool supporter at the time but the skull and crossbones motif made a distinct impression. Years later when he didn’t feel the connection to Liverpool anymore, he recalled the motif, looked up the club on the internet, and read about FC St Pauli and the culture and politics of the club. He started to discuss the club with his fiance Samantha, a Manchester United fan who was disillusioned by the appointment of Jose Mourinho, and they have been on this amazing journey and shared passion for FC St Pauli ever since. They have a podcast called Fell In Love With A Girl: An FC St. Pauli Podcast 7000km Removed We spoke about their trip to the stadium in Hamburg with their friend Nick Davidson who has written a book called about the club called Pirates, Punks & Politics. They talked me through the fantastic culture and fan driven ethos of the club, which you can see in the projects such as Viva Con Agua, the clean water project started by a now retired player and supported by the club. The Levi’s Music School which uses Levi’s corporate suite at the club during non-match days to provide free music lesson to kids in the district.  They shared with me a wonderful and crazy story about a pair of goalkeeper’s gloves signed by Philipp Heerwagen that you have to hear!  We went on to discuss how entertaining Bundesliga’s second division can be with it constantly shuffling week after week,   Listen to their wonderful and heartwarming response when I ask them what following the club has brought to their lives. 

He’s been a Leeds fan since the early 2000s when they reached the then UEFA CUP. He’s seen them go down and come back up after 16 years. He fell in love with Leeds in the early days when they faced teams in Europe like Real Madrid and Lazio. We talked about the impact Marcelo Bielsa has had and how Leeds is now a second team to so many. We talk about the young players in the team like Pascal Struijk and Illan Meslier.  He talked to me about how things have changed, and how Leeds is no longer a club that needs to sell their best players. He’s confident that Leeds could soon be competing with the Big 6 in the Premier League. Alex used to work as a Football Journalist for a few years, he spoke to me about his experiences during this time. We discussed his hopes for Indonesian Football and when possibly supporters could be back in the stadium. He now works as a tour guide in Indonesia and posts the most beautiful images of the Islands of Indonesia. While Alex has been affected by the pandemic, he still considers himself fortunate to still be working at this time. He explained to me the work he has been doing to help promote tourism in a few islands that were affected by the pandemic. He also has some interesting recommendations for people looking to visit Indonesia. Finally I ask Alex, what it means to him following Leeds United Football club. Visit www.AlexJourney.id or you can get in touch with him on Instagram @AlexJourney.id

Morgan Day is from Oklahoma,USA and is a fan of Glentoran FC in Northern Ireland.  Morgan told me she doesn't really follow sports, but that that only makes this story even more unique. Morgan’s journey began on April 23rd 2020 when a Glentoran fan inadvertently tagged Morgan wishing her a ‘Happy Morgan Day’.  A bit about Morgan Day, on April 23rd 2005, Chris Morgan scored a last-gasp winner for the Glens and a title decider against arch rivals Linfield. It has since been celebrated every year by the East Belfast club. Morgan being the sport that she is, tweeted back a message of support which set the ball rolling. The tweet was picked up by the club and in Morgan’s words it just blew up. The fans welcomed her and called her ‘The Queen of East Belfast’. She spoke to me about that special day.  A special part of which was meeting Alan White, a local Glentoran fan who now lives in Oklahoma, who then offered to meet her to hand her a scarf, kit and a book about the club.  She went on to tell me about this unique relationship she now has with the club, and how her local club Energy FC got involved too.  Morgan has been adopted by the Glentoran FC family with open arms, she went on to give a “ Queen’s speech’ at Christmas! and some day soon hopes to make it to the Oval to catch a game.  Long live her reign! #MorganDay

Alberto Doblaré is from Zaragoza, Spain and is a fan of FC Union Berlin, Germany Alberto has lived in Berlin for a few years. One day a colleague told him they should check out a game of this club in the second division. The experience was something he had was looking for in the city. He moved back to Zaragoza and promised himself to start a Twitter account in Spanish, dedicated to the team if they came to the First Division. His handle is @fcunion_es, he doesn’t just discuss football but also the history and context around it. He puts up some amazing threads and has fantastic interactions with people around the world.  He has been a lifelong Zaragosa and Barcelona Fan, but in the last few years, he felt his passion change. Union Berlin helped him reconnect with football.  He is part of a Union Berlin podcast in Spanish, with a fellow fan Julio originally from Brazil and now lives in Amsterdam. They talk about Berlin and about fan-owned clubs. He gave me a bit of the history of Union Berlin, and how they were rebels of the system in East Germany, what the club now represents and more importantly why the fans are so protective and proud of the club and its achievements.  Their historical rivals are Dynamo Berlin but today it would be RB Leipzig, both for very different reasons. Malick Sonogo is a young player Alberto is hoping to see more of. We discuss the expectations for a club like Union Berlin in the Bundesliga.  Alberto told me about his favourite matchday experiences, one in particular with Irish fans at the Euro cup is extremely heartwarming. He likes to collect football scarves, he calls them a diary, each associated with a particular memory or person.  He spoke to me about his family and how he finds it funny that his parents are now watching Union Berlin. And a very romantic story of why Berlin is so important to him. I finally ask him what being a Union Berlin fan has brought to his life and what it means to him We’d love to hear from you, get in touch with us on Twitter @FarAwayFanPod or on Instagram. 

Richard Kharman is from Maryland, USA and a fan of Schalke, Germany. Richard happened to watch a game on TV in 2003, and was just impressed by the Schalke fans and has been following the club ever since. And a few years ago he started the SchalkeAmerica Podcast, the only English podcast for Schalke with listeners from over 100 countries. We talked about the Club legends that made Richard fall in love with the club. Huntelaar and Kolasinac, have just returned to the club in an effort to save them from relegation, we talk about the sense of community and family around Schalke. Jefferson Farfán and Lincoln are players who Richard feels deserve a lot more praise. Schalke has a history of developing young players. Ahmed Kutucu, Malick Thiaw, Timo Becker, Can Bozdoğan, Matthew Hoppe are the players Richard is looking forward to seeing more of. We talk about the popularity of the Bundesliga in America and the great job the teams are doing to reach out to the fans.  We discuss the young American players and how the league is seen as one that can help develop these players. Evan Rotundo is one he says we should watch out for in the future. We discussed Klopp’s influence, and what that has meant for other Bundesliga coaches. We also discussed his local team, DC United and Major League Soccer and how the league is growing steadily over the years. He’s also an AC Milan fan, he told me how he’s always been fascinated by all things Italian. He also hosts the Seria A Sitdown.  He has fond memories of visiting San Siro. He told how he met Clarence Seedorf in DC, not by accident. While Milan is doing well, he jokes that he likes to support clubs that give him heartache. I finally ask him what being a fan has brought to his life. We’d love to hear from you, get in touch with us on Twitter @FarAwayFanPod or on Instagram.

In this bonus episode I am joined by Jack Wills to talk about his wonderful series, 32 Sides To Every Story. Where Jack interviewed fans from each of the countries that participated in the World Cup. It's a series filled with heartwarming stories, not just of passionate fans who visited Russia to support their teams but also about their wonderful experiences along the way.  Jack spoke to me about how he came up with the idea and went about finding these fans, we talk about some of our favourites from the series and the amazing team behind Heart of Football.

Germán Aguirre is from Buenos Aires, Argentina and a fan of Portsmouth FC, England. Germán is 17 years old. He was searching for a club of some historical significance and a somewhat forgotten club while playing career mode in FIFA. He got interested in the club and went on to discover more about their history. He talked to me about their rivals, Southampton and his twitter rivalry with Southampton Argentina, who has also been a guest on this podcast. I also asked him about his local club Velez, and their historical win against Milan in the Intercontinental Cup of 1994. He’s also a fan of AC Milan, Italy. We went on to talk at length about the challenges as a Far Away Fan. I asked him about his interactions with fans from Portsmouth and how they reacted to him being a fan from Argentina. He also explained to me what ‘Mush’ means in Pompey slang ?!? Finally I ask him what being a Portsmouth fan has brought to his life. He hopes to see Pompey back in the Premier League and be able to visit Portsmouth in the near future. It was such a joy to speak to a young fan discovering his love for a club. Find Germán on twitter @ArgentinaPompey We’d love to hear from you, get in touch with us on Twitter @FarAwayFanPod or on Instagram.

Fransisco Fourcade is from Buenos Aires, Argentina and is a supporter of Southampton FC, England. We began by speaking about Diego Maradona and the cultural impact he had across the world, not just in football. Francisco started following Southampton for a bunch of different reasons, starting with him being the manager of a play by mail league and having to fill the slot for Southampton. As his passion for the team increased, Trevor Foy of Global Saints and journalist Sebastian Garcia (a QPR fan from Argentina, do check out his beautiful journey here) urged him to start a fan account for Southampton. So in 2014, he started the @SaintsArg Twitter account.  We went on to talk about ‘Casa Fourcade’, the store his family has owned since 1956 where Fransisco continues to work today. We discussed the history of Southampton FC. Francisco is passionate about finding the connections between Argentina and Southampton. He has a matchday program from 1956 between Southampton and San Lorenzo. He told me about the connections he has developed as well, with his friend Dex in Southampton and how he’s come to call the city his home away from home. He wants to take his mother to Southampton some day. Francisco has even been invited a couple of times to the British Embassy in Argentina. We discussed managers Ralph Hasenhüttl, Mauricio Pochettino and Marcelo Bielsa. Francisco showed me a FC Goa kit. (from my home state!) It is one of the 2000 kits he owns. We both complained about the post and customs when it comes to getting kits. He tried to explain to me the erratic nature of the Argentine league. And finally, I ask him what it has meant to him to be a Southampton fan. We’d love to hear from you, get in touch with us on Twitter @FarAwayFanPod or on Instagram.