Social Media #COYS

#tottenham, #coys, #soldadotottenham, #bale, #sandroreturn. This is the daily and quite often hourly ritual I go through while searching Twitter. Whether it be the build up to a game or during the transfer window, I am a sap for Tottenham news, rumours and opinions.

Social media is a help and hindrance in equal measure for this. I was one of the many thousands of people who avidly followed a well known “ITK (In the know) anonymous agent” last summer. I watched his every Tweet with baited breath as he promised Moutinho would be signed shortly and that Damiao would be announced at the same time. His sources had been right about Lloris, so why not believe him? Of course when the window ended he revealed he was not an agent and had as much inside knowledge as the rest of us. He had done it to prove a point, anyone could scour the paper and form conclusions, anyone could claim to be “In the know”.

I am still guilty of getting excited when I see Spurs linked to a top player, however spurious the source, but since then social media combined with supporting Tottenham has added a much more real value to being a fan. Online and in these spaces we become a community, in which we can connect as fans as well as with the players we support. This is something that has been severely lacking in the Premier League era of commercialisation, nomad players and plastic fans.

When I first went to a football game in 1996 everyone around me shook hands at the final whistle, akin to the end of a mass where the congregation perform a similar ritual. Nowadays the final whistle is followed by the continuation of constant swearing, often in the presence of children, and a less than polite scrum towards the exit. Before the game is not much different, where although the local pubs around White Hart Lane will often have a stirring chant in the build up, it doesn’t quite feel like the same community that my Dad would describe when he went up the Lane in the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s.

[linequote]Online and in these spaces we become a community, in which we can connect as fans as well as with the players we support. This is something that has been severely lacking in the Premier League era of commercialisation, nomad players and plastic fans.[/linequote]

Online seems to be different though, fans show their colours, engage in conversation on all aspects of the club and even produce content that demonstrates a huge passion for our team. Whether this be the brilliant away day videos from @danlouw or the “Heroes in White and Blue” song by @andrewmagee3 and @olliesmyth, Spurs fans have a host of platforms to unite under a lilywhite banner.

This spreads into the real world, I met a bloke at an away game and exchanged Twitter handles and now we arrange to meet up for a few pints at each away game. You would probably get a dodgy look if you asked a fan you had met for a few minutes at half time for his number but a Twitter handle has different rules. This behaviour is mirrored in forums where fans discuss which pubs they are going to congregate at, how they will applaud Ledley on the 26th minute, why we should boycott StubHub and that Lewis Holtby’s name should be sung to the tune of “Just can’t get enough”. More than ever supporting Tottenham is organised by and demonstrated on social media. It has become a proper community again.

This is not limited to the fans, in a time where you don’t get Gary Mabutts who stay at the club for 16 years, it becomes difficult to know and truly love the players. Social media has changed that, allowing you to see a side of the players, not controlled by the media or a club press release. Sandro has embraced his nickname of Hulk and reposts fan art of him as such. Benoit’s Twitter posts are a hilarious insight into his character whilst Vertonghen posts funny videos on Instagram enjoying life as a Spurs player with his teammates. You get a sense that we’re all in this together and the players love the fans as much as we love them. It was encapsulated perfectly when Sylvie, now ex wife of VDV, posted “Thank you Spurs, and all the fans for an amazing time! You guys have the greatest team in England. Will love you always #coys Time to go home now” when he left the club.

Don’t get me wrong, nothing can compare to the times when the whole stadium erupts in the same chant or when you do chat to fans you have never met before. These moments do still happen and Tottenham is better than any club at it, I truly believe we do have the best fans in the world. I hope that movements like the 1882 help mirror these virtual sentiments in the terraces. However, in the Premier League era where players are depicted as passionless, greedy mercenaries, this is a refreshing, barrier – less way of feeling part of a unified club. My brother, currently travelling in America, knows exactly which pub he can walk into in each American city and find a gathering of Spurs fans. From these satellite supporters clubs, to youth team players, to the fantastic 1882, all the way through to Tottenham’s first team stars and legends, being a Spurs fan online really lets you feel the enormous pride that people take in being a supporter and the massive community you are a part of. #COYS.

[author name=”Jamie Webber” avatar=”” twitter=”_jamiewebber” tag=”JamieWebber[/linequote]