Articles from When Saturday Comes. All 27 years of WSC are in the process of being added. This may take a while.
After England's recent goalless draw in Italy, Mike Ticher claims that we still haven't shaken off our reputation as football hooligans
“Multiculturalism is a divisive force… One cannot be loyal to two nations any more than a man can have two masters.” So said Norman Tebbit in the week before England qualified for the World Cup with an accomplished performance on the field and a hideous mess off it.
Despite the perfectly good behaviour of the majority of England supporters in Italy, Paul Kelso feels that the occasion was ruined by a select few
There are, we now know, two types of travelling England fan, and they are so distinct that it’s a wonder we didn’t spot it earlier. On the one hand there is the harmless, decent, patriot who likes nothing better than to paint his (or her) face, sing his (or her) heart out for the lads, and wear a replica shirt for four days straight.
Not all the action was on the pitch. Richard Mason reflects on the reputation of the England supporters after they left Rome
The week that began on Sunday, 5th October and ended on Saturday, 11th October saw the re-emergence in all its complexity of the problem of football violence in Italy. First it was the home-grown variety, in connection with the Serie A fixture between Atalanta and Brescia, and then, of course, the much-reported – but perhaps less-understood – incidents which surrounded the Italy v England World Cup Qualifier at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome.
England managed to defend better than the Italians in their recent encounter, but Cris Freddi doesn't think this approach is new
Judging from some of the press reaction, here and in Italy, to England’s tactics in Rome, you’d think some kind of genuine sea change had taken place. The Italians seemed almost dumbstruck that an England team could play that way, so defensively, like an Italian team. But it’s been happening, on and off, for over thirty years. Does the name Ramsey mean anything to them?
Football is the most popular sport in the world, so Matthew Foreman wonders why sponsors aren't earning enough out of it
It seems remarkable given the multi-millions sloshing around the Premier League, but in advertising circles they’re saying the world of football sponsorship is in crisis. Some of the game’s sponsors are seeing sales rise but others are wasting millions, naively thinking that football’s trendy status will help them sell any product they fancy. So what’s the secret of a good marketing campaign, and is there a downside to the advertising upsurge?