Allegiance

[Lowerdeck]

So here's a question for everyone out there.  If a team moves into, or starts up, in your city/state/equivalent- do you stay a fan of whatever club/team from before?  Or become a fan of the new one close to home?

 

Like say, if you're an Orioles fan living in Nashville but the Rays move to Tennessee.  Or an expansion team gets put in Nashville instead, but you're an Orioles fan there.  Do you stay a Royals fan?

[Colly]

America is crazy. Also MK Dons.

[stokeriño]

I live in Milton Keynes.

Fuck that noise.

[Krabby]

I guess it depends on the exact situation but it'd end up being a little bit of Column A/a little bit of Column B for me.

I'd probably end up supporting both teams to some extent. 

[gunnar hendershow]

I feel like with the exception of baseball and football, where allegiances are for the most part going back decades and passed down by family, fans of teams are not particularly loyal. So when a new ice hockey team starts up (see, Vegas or Seattle) there's a ton of fans who may have liked watching the Kings, Avs, or Canucks but are ready to fully buy in with the new team. I know with the Lightning there's always stories of people who have moved from Buffalo or Boston or Chicago down there and have taken them on as a team 1b or even team 1a.

This isn't a problem I'd have anytime soon, there aren't going to be NHL or NBA expansion teams with Washington so close by.

[Warhawk8492]

I support my local teams myself, I am a Commanders fan, a Wizards fan,  Nationals fan, a Capitals fan well you get the picture.  Being a fan of some of these teams is a test in patience.

[LL!]

If David Beckham is providing me with a team anywhere he gets my allegiance. Civic pride ain't shit!

[Your Mom]

With the possible exception of the Cubs moving, I would always just support my local teams. Was the way I was brought up and I don't see it changing now. My loyalty is more to the city than the teams, I guess?

[DMN in the House]

I stick with my teams.

Obviously, I've stayed a Raiders fan through a few moves, and while I'm happy to see the Rams best anyone that isn't the Raiders, I'm not switching teams, and of course the same goes for the Chargers (who obviously belong in San Diego anyway).

I've stuck with the LA Galaxy despite LAFC being the new hot thing. Actually kind of annoyed by how quickly it feels like LA forgot about the Galaxy.

No one is ever replacing the Dodgers or Lakers in LA, and the Kings are very solid too, so, yeah, I stick with my teams.

[Maxx]

I moved to my teams.

[Your Mom]

47 minutes ago, Maxx said:

I moved to my teams.

Now that's Allegiance!

[Lowerdeck]

2 hours ago, damhausen said:

I know with the Lightning there's always stories of people who have moved from Buffalo or Boston or Chicago down there and have taken them on as a team 1b or even team 1a.

 

I know a guy who is originally from Pittsburgh, moved to Tampa.  Pens are 1A, Lightning is 1B.  At least they're in different divisions.  Same with Pirates and Rays.

[GhostMachine]

I stick with my teams. 

I'm a Cowboys fan, but throw *some* support to the Titans, but it has nothing to do with them moving to Tennessee. The Oilers were my favorite AFC team waaaaay back when Warren Moon was their QB. I just pull for the Cowboys more, and will be pulling for them whenever the two team play.

On the flip side....

I used to go to Smokies (minor league baseball) games all the time when they were here in Knoxville, but in 2000, they moved to Sevier County. I went to one of their last few games here before they left Knoxville, but I haven't been to a game since. While they were here in Knoxville, they were a White Sox affiliate (Tony LaRussa actually coached them for a while), then a Blue Jays one. That's going back to at least the late 60s, if I remember right. Since they moved, they've been affiliates of at least 5 different teams. I don't know or care what team they're with right now, and they can lose all their games as far as I am concerned. BUT.....we're getting the team back in 2025, I'll go back to supporting them, and I already plan on going to a few games.

 

[Gazz]

My nan is knitting me a 'Riyadh United' scarf as we speak.

[The Lusophone]

Used to be, I'd follow Manchester United to the ends of the earth, but the older I get, and the further away I get from the days where I could safely ignore the shitshow behind the scenes, the less I feel like I morally can continue to support them. I don't know, post-Fergie, what exactly has changed at the club - has it lost it's moral centre? Or has a veil of secrecy merely been lifted, and has the club always been home to predators and scum? Was Giggs a one-off at the time, or was he just the one that got caught?

Either way, between trying to bring Greenwood back and the prospect of being sold to Qatar (if the Glazers are serious about selling), I'm not sure I'm a United fan any more. And it helps that I have family ties to Plymouth Argyle, who appear to be the exact opposite of the typical basket case EFL club.

[jrhodes]

I'm a Blackburn Rovers fan as that was my local team growing up. I've since moved to America and don't really watch a lot of football but Rovers are still my team. If they were to move I'd probably just become a neutral football fan. Man U and Liverpool can forever fuck off though.

Now I'm more of an American Football follower, with the Chicago Bears being my team. But I've never been to see them at Soldier Field and I don't live in Chicago. If they moved, I'd still support them as it wouldn't really have any affect on me anyway. If there was a huge controversy like trading for a scumbag (like Deshaun Watson), I'd make a switch and likely start supporting the Bills as that's my local team now and my wife's family support them.

[Gazz]

23 minutes ago, jrhodes said:

I'm a Blackburn Rovers fan

Condolences.

[jrhodes]

4 minutes ago, Gazz said:

Condolences.

We've won a Premier League title and a Worthington Cup in my time. It could be worse.

Being a Bears' fan has been much more painful.

[Captain Kirk]

Grew up a Rangers and Manchester City fan, over the years found myself losing interest in City especially when the money came in and was barely interested by time the league was won. It was always only a second team though.

[METALMAN]

The only sports team I follow is Kilmarnock*. They've been there since 1869 so I don't see them moving anywhere soon, which is just as well because the location is everything from me. I've not lived there since I moved out for uni when I was 17 so the team is one of the very few things I have linking me to the community and the town that I'm from. And you know, with the decline of other aspects of community like trade unions, industrial jobs and the church the football team is just about the last one of these things left. In my lifetime the team has won three trophies (1997 Scottish Cup, 2012 League Cup, 2022 Championship - not bad, all things considered) and I've not seen the sort of scenes or mass gatherings that arose from it in the town on any other occasion (apart from the protests in 2009 when the Johnnie Walker whisky factory (the town's main employer) closed down but that kind of proves my previous point). So yeah, it's entirely about the location for me. I've rambled on a bit and I'm sure a lot of people from post-industrial towns could tell the same story but there you go.




* I have a moderate soft spot for Surrey cricket team because I live nearby and go to their games from time to time, but I don't really care all that much. And I like Lewis Hamilton but he isn't a team.