Soccer fans are known for being obsessive and even fanatical about their sport. If you're a genuine soccer fan and supporter of your club or your national team - you are attached to them for your entire life and everything that they go through. The moments of elation in victory are matched only by those of utter despair in defeat. Soccer is a magnification of all the intense emotions related to winning and losing. It is an extremely tribal sport, arguably the most out of all of the team sports around.
This tribal aspect also means that you have rival "tribes". In soccer this rivalry can go from a heated debate about your club to a passionate argument, and in extreme cases hooliganism and actual physical confrontation.
Naturally, club matches spark impassioned rivalries but it's the international (National club Teams) across the world which really gets the blood boiling. International football tournaments are amazing events and are by themselves sporting rituals. There is this cliché about soccer that the national team represent elements of the country's character in the way the team plays. For example: the English team plays with a kind of doggedness, they do not necessarily play with a lot of flare, but with a lot of determination. The German team plays with order and precision, while Spain plays with panache and a Latin grace.
The sense of national identity that is coupled with this international sport is important and cannot be ignored. It is for this reason that soccer fans sometimes seem to go overboard with their zealous support of their team. One group of soccer supporters are known as "Ultras". They are distinguished by their elaborate displays of support which includes the use of flares, chanting and carrying large banners. They do this not to only encourage their own team but also to intimidate the apposing team and fans.
While" ultras" can become violent, the vast majority of matches they attend are concluded with no violent incidents. Unlike these fervent supporters soccer hooligans are also a part of the scene in some games. Unlike the "Ultras" they don't usually wear their team colors, in order to avoid being detected by the authorities. Hooligans exhibit destructive behavior and are knows for their street fighting, vandalism and intimidation. Fights between supporters of rival teams can take place before or after football matches, or they can explode suddenly at the stadium.
It is unfortunate that it these hooligans receive most of the attention from the media and have therefore characterized in some way the view that a lot of the people have of soccer fans. The truth however is that this group only represents a very small percentage of the "real soccer fans"
The" real fans" may seem to a lot of people as slightly "crazy" but they are peaceful and just simply love their team and the beautiful game of football/soccer. The most common way to show your support for your team would be wearing your team's "colors". Soccer jerseys are a multibillion dollar industry, which shows you just how much soccer fans relate to this sport and their teams.
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