A Global Gooner

Football (or Soccer as they refer to it in some parts of the world) has always been an important part of my life, ever since I played it for the first time. All I can remember is my dad taking me to the football training early one morning when I was 9 years old. And there was no looking back! At that stage, it was just fun playing every Sunday & Thursday morning with my team & getting a chance to represent my school for over 8 years in a row.

Somewhere around this time, the English Premier League was suddenly available live on television. I don't know if it was great keeping by David Seaman, the "Dreamcast, Sega & O2" jersey or just the type of football Arsenal played, that I started to get more involved with club.  

As I grew older, I came across many Arsenal fans from different parts of the world. What surprised me was how effective Arsenal was in bringing people from different continents, cultures and religions closer.

I have had unique experiences with Arsenal fans in 3 different continents.

A)  Asia - Arsenal Mumbai : Arsenal Mumbai (Arsenal's Official Supporters Club in Mumbai) will always be special for me since I have been involved with the club since the very beginning. I was given the task to present a case why Arsenal Mumbai deserved an official status by the club back in 2006. I met the supporter liaison officer, Jill Smith at the Highbury House in London & that turned out to be my first ever successful presentation!

From a few hundred passionate gooners meeting up regularly in 2006, the fan club has grown tremendously with over 7000 fans last season. Their screenings of Arsenal matches is as close as it can get to an alternative of watching Arsenal at the Emirates. Over 700 gooners getting together under one roof to cheer for the team is nothing less than a mind blowing experience.

If you are ever in Mumbai, make sure you attend one of their screenings! @Arsenal_Mumbai 

B) Europe - Germany : The day I landed in Berlin, Arsenal was playing Hull City in the FA Cup finals. I din't know any one in the city but that was not going to stop me from watching Arsenal winning their first trophy after a long time. After some online research, I decided to head to the Oscar Wilde Irish Pub on Friedrichstraße. As I got there, I saw over 100 gooners making their way inside the pub. They included fans living in the UK who were on a 'Euro Trip' and many German fans as well. The match started off with some nervous moments, but the end could not be better! After 90 minutes and not sure how many pints of beer, I remember celebrating with fellow gooners on the streets of Berlin. Couldn't quite ask for a better first day in a new country.

While I was in Germany, Arsenal was drawn into a group with Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League and was visiting Germany for an away fixture. Thanks to @Arsenal_Mumbai , I got a ticket for the game in the away stands and I was on my way to Dortmund.

In Dortmund, Arsenal Germany (Arsenal's official supporters club) had a pre drinking ritual every time Arsenal visited Dortmund. They had asked all gooners to come over at a bar which was reserved only for Arsenal fans. There were about 200 gooners along with the @arsenalfantv team as well.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGuvvtxLKpE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvUrSlb5FvY

I met many gooners who were travelling from the UK and they were excited to hear I was a gooner from India and there is an huge fan base existing in India as well. Met a couple of season ticket holders who have being watch all Arsenal matches since the last 5 years. They kept telling me amazing stories of how they got into following Arsenal and now have around 5 season tickets in their family. These amazing guys kept buying me beers till we made our way to the stadium. It was really nice to meet such passionate gooners.

C) Australia - Melbourne : I moved to my new home town Melbourne right before the FA Cup finals this year. As I was getting used to the time difference, I realised the FA Cup finals was at 2.00 am local time! Again there was no way I was going to miss the game, even though it was post midnight. But the supporter's club in Melbourne, had made some great arrangements for that night. They had reserved an entire pub in the CBD area for the screening and for the pre game, they were screening the last FA Cup finals. Isn't that just amazing? There was also a live podcast recording done by Gunners Down Under. A good crowd of around 100 gooners turned up even though the timings were really bad. And Arsenal won the FA Cup again !!!

I think gooners in this part of the world need some special mention as its not easy to keep supporting a club when the time difference is so crazy. But in spite of this, Arsenal Melbourne is doing a great. Make sure you join us for the upcoming Arsenal screenings, where you are in Melbourne! @ArsenalMelb

These experiences have been just amazing. Looking forward to this weekend's Community Shield finals! Hoping this season is going to be a good one for us.

Come On You Gunners!