It depends on how you define spark and atmosphere, if you mean hooliganism and crowd tragedies then yes, it has lost its 'spark'.
No I don't mean that at all and to be honest resent that insinuation , the atmosphere now is woeful compared to what it used to be , seating has been added to the detriment of the working man , the price now is that high how can the vast majority afford a ticket for the game ?
I'd say the reason for that is the two things I've listed above, clubs have had to reduce capacity to accommodate all-seater stadiums, which in turn increases the price. The police have a much larger presence and alcohol has been banned from being drunk in view of the pitch. A good atmosphere, in my opinion, can be found at Craven Cottage where the crowd is made up of men, women and children. This idea that a good atmosphere is a group of drunk men shouting at a pitch is ridiculous.
Savour this moment mate because it isn't likely to happen again in your lifetime... I agree with you! (Apart from all that anti-middle class crap, that's stupid.)
I can not remember alcohol being sold in 80's on the terraces but then again I was too young to drink . The sterile atmosphere is crap in stadiums today , this is not a rise rose tinted glasses look back this a quite popular opinion , as you say with the advent of seating it has given the clubs an opportunity to use this as an excuse to raise prices but they forgot to notice the lifeblood is seeping out with a less passionate but a more financially secure supporter .
No anti middle class slant at all , football now is far more middle class than it was or should be , the middle class shall flirt with the sport but never really adopt it hence the ****e atmosphere along with plastic seats .
I'll have to look up the FA ruling that states law 12:section a: football should be for the working classes, or any specified classes for that matter.
I agree.Football is for everyone and anyone. Couldn't give a toss if someone was working, middle or upper class tbh
Football grounds in the seventies and eighties were uncomfortable and often dangerous places. Not somewhere that welcomed women, or youngsters for that matter. They were also passionate and noisy, the atmosphere of an intensity rarely seen today. I personally enjoy sitting down in comfort (I'm over 50, so perhaps that's why), don't miss being ankle deep in piss when I go to the loo, and don't want to feel I'm putting my life at risk on the way to the station after an away tie. But I do miss the atmosphere, and I do deeply resent the prices at many premiership grounds. Nick Hornby covered this dilemma very well in the excellent "Fever Pitch" - and that was before they knocked down the atmospheric and architecturally inspiring Highbury and replaced it with a glass and steel monstrosity named after a middle eastern airline.
I am not saying its not for everyone as such I am saying its gone too far , its far far too middle class and exclusive , I can remember it used to be inclusive ie anyone could go now that is not the case as at all . The Milton Road end in the 90's was £2 for a kid and £6 for an adult ! Better atmosphere , fairer prices and we have had better players playing for us than we do now !
Highbury to be honest was always quiet compared to the Northern teams and even Spurs , West Ham and Millwall , actually the list could go on and on . Arsenal has to be the worst atmosphere for a club of its size over the years , is this due to an above average of prawn sandwiches ?
This is getting worrying now I am agreeing with you! Always thought Highbury had a crap atmosphere. No singing unless they were winning easily. Remember seeing Saints there soon after they had signed Bergkamp and the place was like a morgue until he scored a Denis special!
Aberdeen had the first all-seater ground in the UK. It`s all our fault - sob. Mind you, everyone used to stand on the seats.
I used to go to Pittodrie in the late 70's & 80's when they first had seating. Don't remember standing on the seats (bench) but they were good and sucessful times. I think Coventry wasn't far behind, inspired by Fulham legend Jimmy Hill. Atmosphere was still good those days but then the stadium was mostly full then. Good luck Southampton fans for the rest of the season. I think you'll be fine.
If they install safe-standing then the atmosphere will begin to improve. We've got the best fans though, our fans don't have to practice their singing like fans from mainland Europe do, don't forget that there is a big difference in ultras and British fans.
I remember going to Steau Bucharest and standing in that ****ty stadium, with its open ends and no roof, seeing the bank of Steau fans up the other end thinking "we won't be able to hear them"..... but then bloody hell, did they manage to make one hell of a racket. Don't believe the hype, british football fans are not louder than most european fans. I watched a youtube clip a while ago of Seattle Sounders fans singing. Americans. Bloody americans and you know what... very impressive, very loud, very organised. English football (at the top levels) is only going one way, more corporate, more soft, more dull.
They are. British fans don't need to organize their singing like fans from the continent do. They practice their singing and they are only a few thousand that sing. At British games the whole stadium is bouncing, for example, the Old firm games, all the fans are signing, I've never seen this happen anywhere else in the world.