Football chant

"Football Song" redirects here. For the song by Chumbawamba, see the Tubthumper album.

A football chant or terrace chant, is a song or chant sung at association football matches. They can be historic, dating back to the formation of the club, adaptations of popular songs, or spontaneous reactions to events on the pitch. They are one of the last remaining sources of an oral folk song tradition in the United Kingdom. Traditions vary from country to country and from team to team, but they are generally used either to encourage the home team or slight the opposition. Not only do fans sings songs to directly slight the opposition they are playing that day, many teams sing songs about their club rivals, even if they are not playing them.

Chants based on hymns and classical music

Several football chants are based on hymns, with "Cwm Rhondda" (also known as "Guide me, O thou great redeemer") being one of the most popular tunes to copy. Amongst others, it has spawned the song "You're not singing anymore!". Variants of this popular chant include "Does she take it up the arse?", "Does your boyfriend know you're here?", "We can see you sneaking out!" and "We support our local team!".

Various teams have used the chant "Glory Glory" (followed by "Tottenham Hotspur", "Leeds United", "Man United", etc.), to the tune of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic". Hibernian were the first team to popularise the song with the release of a record by Hector Nicol in the 1950s ("Glory Glory to the Hibees"). 

There have been various adaptations of "When The Saints Go Marching In" and the tune of Handel's Hallelujah Chorus. Many football crowd chants/songs are to the tune of "La donna è mobile" from Giuseppe Verdi's opera Rigoletto.

Chants based on spirituals and folk songs

Some chants are based on spirituals. "We shall not be moved" and "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands" are both used by fans. An example of the latter's use was "He's got a pineapple on his head" aimed at Jason Lee due to his distinctive hairstyle. The song was later popularised by the television show Fantasy Football League.

The tune to the Shaker song "Simple Gifts" has spawned many terrace chants including "Carefree", a chant associated with Chelsea. It was also used the tune for a Tottenham song abusing Sol Campbell after his move to Arsenal in 2001 and for a popular chant sung by Manchester United fans in honour of Park Ji-Sung, which has been described as "the greatest football chant of all time as it manages to be simultaneously endearing and offensive on a number of levels".

The Geordie folk song "Blaydon Races" is associated with Newcastle United. Other folk songs to have their lyrics altered include "The John B. Sails", "She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain", "My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean", "The Wild Rover" and "Camptown Races", which is used for "Two World Wars, One World Cup".

Chants based on popular music

Several football chants are based on popular music. Music hall songs such as "My Old Man (Said Follow the Van)", "Knees Up Mother Brown", "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles", "I Came, I Saw, I Conga'd" and "Two Little Boys" all form the basis of terrace chants. Popular standards such as "Winter Wonderland", the Cuban patriotic song "Guantanamera" and the 1958 winner of the Eurovision Song Contest, "Volare" are also widely adapted to suit players and managers. The tune "Tom Hark" is often played at many stadiums following a goal by the home team whilst Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be) by Doris Day is generally reserved for matches where the venue of the final is Wembley Stadium.

Music of the 1960s influenced terrace chants. "Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash and "That's Amore" by Dean Martin have been used by several sets of fans. "Lola" by The Kinks, "Hi Ho Silver Lining" by Jeff Beck has been adapted by several clubs such as Sheffield Wednesday and Wolverhampton Wanderers. "All You Need Is Love" and "Yellow Submarine" by The Beatles are often used. Songs from musicals have become very popular as football chants, such as "Chim Chim Cher-ee" from the 1964 musical Mary Poppins.

The emergence of funk and disco in the 1970s also made its mark on the terraces with songs such as "Go West" by the Village People and "Oops Upside Your Head" and The Gap Band remaining popular amongst fans. Music popular in the 1980s and 1990s is also used widely. Chants have been based on Just Can't Get Enough by Depeche Mode, "Love Will Tear Us Apart" by Joy Division, the Band Aid song "Do They Know It's Christmas?", "Papa's Got a Brand New Pigbag" by Pigbag and "This Is How It Feels" by Inspiral Carpets. Other chants have used tunes from on pop songs include "Three Lions", the official England anthem for Euro '96 and Manic Street Preachers song "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next".

More recent releases to have their music appropriated include "Re-Rewind" by The Artful Dodger. "Seven Nation Army" by The White Stripes has found extreme popularity across nations - most notably emerging during 2006 FIFA World Cup by fans and players of the Italy national football team

Chants based on advertising jingles, nursery rhymes & theme tunes

Football crowds also adapt tunes such as advertising jingles, nursery rhymes and theme tunes. "The Farmer in the Dell" known in some regions as 'The Farmer Wants A Wife', provides the famous chant of "Ee Aye Addio", a tune which also provides the first bars of the 1946 be-bop jazz classic "Now's The Time", by alto saxophonist Charlie Parker. The marching tune "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" is also used a basis for songs, such as "His Armband Said He Was a Red", sung by Liverpool fans in honour of Fernando Torres while he was still at the club. The children's song "Ten Green Bottles" became "Ten German Bombers", to the tune of "She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain)," both songs used by English fans to their main rivals, Germany.

Theme tunes which have been used as chants include Heartbeat and The Banana Splits.

Club-specific songs

Some football teams also have songs which are traditionally sung by their fans. The song "You'll Never Walk Alone" from Carousel is associated heavily with Liverpool F.C.. In 1963, the song was covered by Liverpool group Gerry & The Pacemakers. At this time, supporters standing on the Spion Kop terrace at Anfield began singing popular chart songs of the day. The mood was captured on camera by a BBC Panorama camera crew in 1964. One year later, when Liverpool faced Leeds in the FA Cup final, the travelling Kop sang the same song and match commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme commended the "Liverpool signature tune"

Chant Laureate

On 11 May 2004, Jonny Hurst was chosen as England's first "Chant Laureate". Barclaycard set up the competition to choose a Chant Laureate, to be paid £10,000 to tour Premier League stadia and compose chants for the 2004-05 football season. The judging panel was chaired by the Poet Laureate Andrew Motion, who said ""What we felt we were tapping into was a huge reservoir of folk poetry.""

See also

• List of UK hit singles by footballers
• Fight song
• Ōendan

External links

• Barclaycard Chant Laureate: A selection of the finalists