Is watching sport more enjoyable when you’re not fussed who wins?
I must say I’m really enjoying Euro 2008. The best football tournament in living memory, for me anyway. Not least because England aren’t in it. I’m English so, inevitably and reluctantly, I support England when they play in international tournaments and sort of care how they get on. I say reluctantly because when it comes to international football all the worst traits of the national character come out to play: the tackiness and ugliness; the moronic xenophobia; the nasty, aggressive “passion”. I think of fat, topless, tattooed oafs in union jack shorts; cheap tatty flags of St. George all over the place; weasel-faced, lagered-up mongs picking fights in beautiful European town squares; and one of the most iconic (and, as far as I’m concerned, unpleasant) images of modern sport: Stuart Pearce “celebrating” getting the penalty shootout monkey off his back with a gesture of snarling, teeth-gnashed, fist-clenched menace and hostility.
The thing is though I like Stuart Pearce. And so I support England; but feel quietly pleased when they get knocked out in the quarter-final and all the nonsense dies down.
With England not in it I toyed briefly with the idea of supporting Spain, because I’m a Liverpool supporter and there are four Liverpool players in the Spanish squad. Thinking this through rationally (it brought up the uncomfortable question of to what degree an assembly of, on the whole, mercenary players from all corners of the globe represents “Liverpool”) I opted in the end to watch the tournament as a diehard neutral.
Sport after all is a spectacle, a show; it’s theatre. And you don’t watch a concert or a play hoping that one of the participants has an off-night so that the performer you’ve decided to “support” can steal the show.
Then again, sport is also gladitorial and it’s natural human instinct to favour one side over the other. Even when you fall asleep in front of the telly and wake up with the snooker on you still pretty quickly favour one of the (hitherto previously unknown to you) players over the other (a judgement often based on hair, in my experience) as you groggily watch for the next hour and a half.
In all the games so far I‘ve pretty quickly discarded my neutrality and started slightly favouring one team over the other. But really I’ve not been that fussed. So I’ve been enjoying the games without any of the nervousness, the edgy tension, the frustration, the bitter disappointment with a draw or a defeat, that accompanies watching Liverpool games.
I wonder if this is the best way to enjoy sport? By not giving a toss who wins. Or is it the other way round: that unless you‘re passionately behind one of the contestants, sport is pointless and boring.
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I enjoyed Wimbledon a lot more...
...when there were no British players who were in any danger of being in the last eight. Then Tim Henman came along and it was spoiled - not by Henman, who always behaved with commendable restraint - by the ranks of media who felt it was their duty to "get the nation behind him". When he failed to win the championship - which is what happens with 99% of even the very best tennis players - these same ignoramuses turned on him as if he had been guilty of building up their hopes under false pretences.
I don't worry too much about the beery oafs. Every nation has those. Where we suffer is in having unlimited amounts of media and money flung at a limited pool of talent. When overseas teams blame the English for being arrogant, which they frequently do, what they're responding to is our media rather than the players or the fans. Show a modicum of talent in this country and you're elevated to the level of the greats long before you've had the opportunity to earn it. That's why our national football team are fated to disappoint us. Because our expectations have been falsely raised by the manufacturers of lager and gym pumps and Rupert Murdoch.
And while we sit there and enjoy Euro 2008 - and it has been a terrific tournament so far = we can't pretend that we don't care who wins. We want a surprise. An upset. We want a sign.
We want Holland.
Or
Russia.
Henmania
was always deeply annoying and stupid. To his credit whenever Andy Murray is asked about Tim Henman (which he always is) he is at pains to point how much he achieved; what a great player he was. Far from the pathetic loser that the media, and the public at large who know bugger all about tennis, see him as because he never won Wimbledon.
Take your point about the England team. I think their natural ranking in world football is pretty much the level at which they usually arrive: last eight. Perfectly respectable, but not the world beaters that the gormless media seems to take for granted that they ought to be.
One of the most stupid and annoying phrases that has crept into common parlance in modern times is “world class”. I think it originated in football where England players are often deemed “world class”. It‘s crept into politics where it’s used to describe our public services (or at least the standard to which our public services should aspire). I have no idea what the term means. Nor does anyone who says it.
You are so right!
If the England football team had similar success to Tim Henman, i.e.regularly getting to semi finals of major tournaments and being constently entertaining, the mania would be unbearable. The England footbal team has been pretty poor for as log as I can remember, the last relatively successful team ws probably the 1990 sqaud which reached the world cup semi. They were actually a really talented team with lots of flair. World Class is a truly terrible term and in no way applies to pretty much all of the current England squad! I hate all the flag waving, the hope against hope and the jingoism which is always part of the Enger'land package. Finally, the thing that really annoys me is the usual assertion that successful players from other teams would not get in 'our' team. I remember that when Italy won the world cup such comments were made; well the thing is, they all would get in the England team because they are better and they have just won the world cup!!! I happen to support Huddersfield Town, trust me, the football is always better when watching as a neutral!
Holland ... or, dare I say it, Germany
Patrick Barclay offers a pretty coherent case for the Hun getting the thumb-up from right-thinking football fans . . .
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=A1YourView...
Yes, but I don't want coherent analysis
I want to spend a few days walking round feeling like the little guy won for once.
Nothing
beats the experience of watching the Dutch give the French a damn good thrashing.
France v Italy
I found myself with the odd sensation of wanting them both to lose.
Speaking as a Leeds fan
Definately. Especially play offs. They are horrible if you support one of the teams and they lose.
Have enjoyed dipping in to the Euro 2008 games and have enjoyed the Dutch and Germans - and Portugal getting knocked out.
Just to add - am honoury Dutch
Am going there on my hols so thought I'd pick 'em. They have been a joy to watch.
Perhaps someone can tell me
when professional footballers started to wear gloves in anything vaguely like chilly weather?
It may sound irrational (it is) but nothing winds me up like the sight of some overpaid, egotistical, pathetic little twerp playing football with bloody gloves on, for God's sake.
I want to run up to them and yell at them for being such feeble big girl's blouses.
Football is a man's game, and little diddums boys shouldn't be on the pitch.
/rant
Dare I say
that since we attracted a number of players who were used to winter break. That's the least xenophobic way I could put it I think.
Gloves, tights, handbags, neck scarves ... whatever next
Gloves I can sort of understand. I imagine people who have grown up in warmer climates - southern Europe, Latin America, Carribean - feel the chill a tad more than us North Europeans might.
It’s tights I never get. In my experience while you can get cold hands, ears, nose etc. playing football in cold weather, the one part of your body that never gets cold is your thighs.
Goalkeepers tend to carry handbags these days as a matching acccessory, which they deposit at the back of the goal. The Italian keeper, Gianluigi Buffon, has upped the ante by sporting a neckerchief for 2008. (Sorry, don’t know how to load up pictorial evidence). Hot tip for next season.
I remember the day when goalkeepers didn’t wear gloves.
I also remember when it was all fields round here.
p.s. while I’m all for our Dutch brethren, Russia looked tasty the other night. Should be a hell of a game.
Buffon? Buffoon!
I believe it's a Versace.
Holland - The official team of The Word Magazine?
Go on Mr Hepworth - make it so.
er...
...not right now.
I truly am
the kiss of football supporter death.
The Boxing
is making up for the Holland defeat though. What a fight.
I totally agree with you Richard...
England's absence is the reason I've been enjoying Euro 2008 so much. I can't remember another tournament in which there have been so many genuinely absorbing matches.
Arshavin
Last night's match made me realise that the Iron Curtain really is still there in many respects. A Western European player of that astounding quality still being with his first - rather mediocre - club at age 27 is just unthinkable these days. Once they're on the EPL/Liga/Serie A circuit they change their clubs more often than their Ferraris. (Your Giggses, Maldinis and Rauls started out in top clubs, so they had no reason to move.)
That's the great thing about these tournaments: you get to see brilliant players you've never heard of rather than just the ones you're sick to death of. Football becomes interesting again.
Do you think
they have big stereos and furry dice in their tractors?
And bearded WAGs
Ooh, politically incorrect Sunday. Yeah, I could be up for that.
I don't know about that
They say that these days Russian club players are paid as well as top players in any other country (thanks to the fact that the clubs are owned by your local friendly oligarch) and they anticipate that in the near future players will start to migrate from the Western European leagues to Russia.
And what's the most expensive city in the world right now? Moscow!
No - its much better when I am partisan
Yes there is despair. Being of Welsh extraction I have seen Wales lose terribly & often - and I hate it. the metaphorical cat gets kicked and the wife and kids avoid me during and after games.
But nothing in life has been more enjoyable than the grand slam games of 2005 and 2008. Nothing! And I was there!!
Watching without partisanship has its pleasures. But they are pale compared with the extremes effects when its your team involved.
Quite enjoyed the Russia game last night though.
BARON de COUBERTIN
famously said (albeit of the Olympics) that what mattered wasn't the winning but the taking part. I have to say that one of the reasons why my favourite sport is rugby is that I can go along to my local Division 1 club, watch a good standard of rugby, have a pint, stand next to a fan from the away team, have a natter and acknowledge when each other's team have done something good and go home without fear of getting involved in some kind of argy bargy. OK, there are still a few idiots around but generally few and far between.
I wonder if there's a correlation between Word's discerning music lovers and appreciation of sport. I mean, most people here are prepared to admit to liking unfashionable things or are prepared to criticise some CD's by acts they otherwise love. Likewise we'll cheerfully acknowledge when we've been beaten by the better team.
Word: a magasine, a way of life, a philosophy?!
It's not only Rugby
A few years back we were up at my sister in law's place in York. Her partner Alastair (Leeds Utd supporter) and myself (Everton) decided to go and see York City play Millwall, having nothing better to do on a wet Saturday afternnon. We went for a pint or two beforehand and in the pub got chatting with half a dozen Millwall supporters. And they were just like us, not some subhuman subspecies. It's not just rugby where you can talk to the away support. It's possible had we gone to a different pub we'd not have fared as well.
Agree
Totally agree with you. In my local which isn't far from The Liberty Stadium we've had a few away fans (Brighton, Doncaster, Swindon etc) turn up before the game and it's been pleasant and good-humoured. Always the same on foreign holidays as well. I've got a Swansea City tatoo on my left leg and quite often other team supporters comment on it and have a chat, never had a problem with other fans abroad.
the music
They have been remarkable for their choice of songs, expecially the Dutch some inspired choice of tunes!!!
...reduced to a gibbering wreck
The other day, watching my adopted Spain versus their old nemesis Italy, extra-time , penalty shoot out, the weight of God knows how many years of Spanish failures to get beyond the QF, it struck me quite forcibly, that I was not enjoying myself. When Cesc finally shut the lid on the Italians , I had been reduced to a gibbering wreck , knowing that I´ll probably go through it all again on Thursday night. So, Yes!, Sport is more enjoyable when you don´t care who wins.