Sociological Survey of Canadian Soccer Fans

[seathanaich]

Sociological Survey of Soccer Fans

I’d be interested to know what percentage of Canadian soccer fans fall into the following categories for each of the following areas. It would be interesting to see the results for this in a wider study.
If you are interested, please cut and paste the numbered answer for each section (A, B, C, D). Unfortunately, since this is in English, and is on a Canadian supporters site, that already slants the results, but I can’t really help that.
If this is too long for you, then don’t complain - just don’t respond. I realise that some of these choices won't apply to any people on this site, but I wanted to give all options I could think of.

A - FAMILY SITUATION / BACKGROUND

1. I was born in Canada to Canadian parents, and grew up speaking English in our home. I consider myself an unhyphenated “Canadian”, and like and do things that are considered mainstream Canadian; or I am at most a superficially hyphenated Canadian (ie I’m proud of my ancestry, but don’t speak another language, or participate in ancestral music, dance, cultural organisations, etc). I either don’t think about my “culture” much, or consider my culture to be “Canadian” (and I’m proud of that).
2. I was born in Canada to either Canadian or immigrant parents, and grew up speaking English in our home. I consider myself a Canadian, but I am also active in some activities which reflect my ethnic heritage (dance, music, language, culture), for example belonging to a Pipe Band, teaching Samba dancing, etc.
3. I was born in Canada to immigrant parents. I consider myself “Canadian”, although my parents moved here, and have attachements to their country that I don’t really seem to have. I am more “Canadian” than my parents are.
4. I was born in Canada to either Canadian parents, or to immigrant parents who encouraged me to become “Canadian first”. I have since taken more of an interest in my heritage than my parents were interested in teaching or showing me, and consider myself more of a hyphenated Canadian than my parents are.
5. I was born in Canada to immigrant parents, and grew up speaking two languages. I have maintained a dual identity as a Canadian, and as something else, and I’m either proud of both, or don’t think too much about it.
6. I was born in Canada to immigrant parents. My own interests and social circle seem more in line with my ancestry than with wider Canadian society. I am interested in visiting, or have visited, my parents home country, and feel more at home there than I do here. I may move to where my parents came from.
7. I emigrated to Canada, and now consider myself to be an unhyphenated, proud Canadian.
8. I emigrated to Canada. I love it here, and am also proud of where I came from, though I don’t really do much that is culturally specific to my old country, and I don’t have social groups or friends from my old country.
9. I emigrated to Canada, and have a lot of friends, social life, and cultural activities that reflect my heritage. I am either very proud of both, or don’t think about it too much.
10. I emigrated to Canada, but I don’t really feel at home here, and may move back.

B - SPORTING BACKGROUND

1. I grew up playing and watching lots of sports in a family that plays and watches sport.
2. I grew up playing and watching some sport other than soccer in a family that plays and watches some sport other than soccer.
3. I grew up playing mostly soccer in a family that mostly plays soccer, but doesn’t really watch it.
4. I grew up watching mostly soccer in a family that watches soccer, but doesn’t play it.
5. I grew up playing lots of sports in a family that really didn’t.
6. I grew up watching lots of sports in a family that really didn’t.
7. I grew up playing and watching sports in a family that did neither.
8. I started playing sports only as a late teen or adult.
9. I started watching sports only as a late teen or adult.
10. I started playing and watching sport only as a late teen or adult.
11. A friend / boy/girlfriend / spouse got me into watching sport (and now I like it).
12. I haven’t followed sports/soccer at all until just recently. I don’t really know what I like, or if I’ll continue to watch this particular sport, as I’m still checking a few sports out.
13. I haven’t followed sports/soccer at all until just recently. I wanted to check it out, because it’s new.
14. I’ll watch big events like the Olympics, the Canucks in the Stanley Cup Finals, or a Grey Cup party with friends; but I won’t really go out of my way to watch sports otherwise.
15. I’ll go to a sporting event with friends if we win free tickets, or get some cheap. It’s more about the social aspect than anything else.
16. I don’t like sports at all.

C - SOCCER DEVOTION

1. I only follow soccer, and I watch ALL of it - Canadian pro team(s), MLS, Canadian national teams, World Cup and international tournaments, European club competitions, etc. I even watch amateur, university, women’s, semi-pro level soccer (how else will it grow? Besides, it’s all good).
2. I only follow soccer, and I watch A LOT of it - my Canadian pro teams, some other MLS games, Canadian national teams, World Cup and international tournaments, European club competitions, etc. I won’t watch amateur, university, women’s, or semi-pro soccer though (you have to draw the line somewhere).
3. I only follow soccer, and my interest is mainly for big events, like the World Cup and the UEFA Champions League. That’s where you see the best soccer.
4. I only follow soccer, and my main interest is a club or clubs in one of the easily-viewed foreign leagues (England or Italy). I either grew up with that, or watch it because it’s the best.
5. I only follow soccer, and my main interest is a club or clubs in one of the harder to view foreign leagues (rest of Europe, South America, etc).
6. I only follow soccer, and my main interest is a Canadian club and/or the Canadian national teams.
7. I follow soccer most, but I like a few other sports (just not as much as I like soccer).
8. I follow soccer, but have one or two other sports I like just as much as soccer.
9. I follow soccer, but it’s not the most important sport that I watch.
10. I follow soccer a bit, but it’s not that important to me compared to another sport or sports.
11. I’ve never really watched soccer before. This is all fairly new to me, and I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.
12. I’ll watch if there is a big story, or the local team is about to win something, or if I get free tickets. Otherwise, I’m not that interested.
13. I have watched, and find that I don’t like soccer.

D - SOCCER TEAM DEVOTION

1. Incurable Local Addict: Soccer is my major sporting interest, and really my major hobby. I watch or follow a lot of games and teams, including some or even all of the following: my Canadian MLS team; the Canadian national team and/or another; a team or teams in televised foreign leagues (like England and/or Italy); major events like the World Cup and UEFA Champions League; more obscure / harder to find televised matches; maybe even local amateur/university/womens etc level soccer. I followed my local team before they were popular/big league, and search the internet or other sources to make sure I never miss a game or piece of news.
2. Incurable Global Addict: Soccer is my major sporting interest, and really my major hobby. I watch or follow a lot of games and teams, including some or even all of the following: one or more teams in a televised foreign leagues (like England and/or Italy); a national team other than Canada; major events like the World Cup and UEFA Champions League; and more obscure / harder to find televised matches. I search the internet or other sources to make sure I never miss a piece of news about the global game.
3. Die Hard Local Monogamist: Soccer is my first and only sporting love, and my local team are my first and (essentially) only love. I watch all the games of my local team either live or on television. I have season tickets, or would have if I lived in town / work allowed me too / I wasn’t a penniless student. I know everything about my favourite team, and my mood is affected by their results. Soccer in Canada is on the rise!
2. Die Hard Long-Distance Monogamist: Soccer is my first and only sporting love, and Foreign Team FC are my first and (essentially) only team. I watch all the games of Foreign Team FC either on television or the internet. I know everything about my favourite team, and my mood is affected by their results. Sometimes I’ll watch the local MLS team or the Canadian national team on television, but my allegiance is elsewhere, because the football is better there, and soccer will never be that big or that good in Canada.
3. Committed Local Fan(atic): Soccer is my favourite sport, and I watch a lot of it; or it’s one of my favourite sports, and I watch a lot of it. I either have season tickets to my local club, or at least watch most of their games. I will also support national team games in my city, and will watch the World Cup. I may have a team or team in other leagues (England, Italy, etc), or even another national team that I follow as well as supporting my local team and Canada.
4. Committed Long-Distance Fan(atic): Soccer is my favourite sport, and I watch a lot of it; or it’s one of my favourite sports, and I watch a lot of it. I try to watch games of my favourite club, which is from somewhere outside of Canada. I will also support my national team (which isn’t Canada), and will watch the World Cup. Sometimes I’ll watch the local MLS team or the Canadian national team on television, but my allegiance is elsewhere, because the football is better there, and soccer will never be that big or that good in Canada.
5. Casual Local Supporter: Soccer is one of the sports I like, but I either like other sports more, or I’m a casual fan of soccer along with a few other sports. I have a lot in my life, and I’m not going to drop everything to watch a particular team. I’m likely to watch a big event like the World Cup, and I will definitely watch if the local team or the national team is in an important game or Cup Final. Sport is about more than sport itself: there are other reasons to watch, like personalities, celebrities, great players, etc. My life won’t end if I miss a game - I can read about it tomorrow.
6. Casual Long-Distance Supporter: Soccer is one of the sports I like, but I either like other sports more, or I’m a casual fan of soccer along with a few other sports. I have a lot in my life, and I’m not going to drop everything to watch my team - especially since my team is not in Canada, and it’s hard to follow them from here. I’m likely to watch a big event like the World Cup, and I might watch on television if a Canadian MLS or the Canadian national team is in an important game or Cup Final. Sport is about more than sport itself: there are other reasons to watch, like personalities, celebrities, great players, etc. My life won’t end if I miss a game - I can read about it tomorrow.
7. Social Local Fan: I don’t go out of my way to watch soccer, but I’ll go with friends, or if I win tickets. I enjoy the game - don’t get me wrong - but there’s more to life. I have fun when I go, or watch on television. I will cheer for either the local pro team or for Canada.
8. Social Long-Distance Fan: I don’t go out of my way to watch soccer, but I’ll go with friends, or if I win tickets. I enjoy the game - don’t get me wrong - but there’s more to life. I have fun when I go, or watch on television. If the national team or a club team from my old country plays in Canada, I will definitely join my friends and family to cheer for them against the local Canadian team. It’s social thing that we don’t get to do very often.
9. Demanding Fan: I’ll watch a winner. My money is precious, and all these athletes are making more than I am. If you want me to pay, give me a winning product. Otherwise, I have other things to do in my life.
10. New Partying Fan: I’m a new fan, and don’t really know yet how much I’ll like the game. I like what I see so far, because the atmosphere is great and I have met some great people. I don’t get too bothered about whether we win or not, and I’m learning about the sport.
11. New Value-for-Money Fan: I’m a new fan, and don’t really know yet how much I’ll like the game. If I’m going to pay money to watch the team will have to be successful if it expects to keep me as a fan. If not, I’ll spend my hard-earned money elsewhere.
12. New Price-Sensitive Fan: I’m a new fan, and don’t really know yet how much I’ll like the game. This sport is affordable, unlike other local sports which I can’t afford to watch, so I’m seeing whether I like it or not. I’m learning about the team and the sport.
13. Not A Fan: I won’t really watch soccer, for whatever reason.

E - ETHNICITY IN SOCCER

1. Is soccer an “ethnic” (ie something other than British/French) sport in Canada? Yes/No
2. Do you consider soccer a foreign sport, or one of many Canadian sports? Yes/No
If no, are you aware that it’s played by more Canadians than any other sport? Yes/No
3. Do you consider soccer to be part of your ethnic heritage? Yes/No
If so, why (considering it is played almost everywhere)?

F - LAST OF ALL

What got me into watching soccer was:

(parental indoctrination / I play it / friends / my heritage / appeal of a more global game / liked the way it introduced me to other places and societies / disillusioned by other sports / wanted something different than hockey / etc)

Why I support the team(s) that I do:

(are you crazy? Always support your local team! / to help the national team improve / I can actually follow them live / I can easily follow them in local media / my dad taught me to love them / I loved them since I was a kid / that’s where I’m from / that’s where my family is from / great player in the past / style of play / history / connects me with my heritage / they’re a big team that always wins and I get self-validation for my poor self-esteem by cheering for them / I support players more so than teams / I look to watch great soccer, no matter who plays it, so I don’t really support just one team)

[seathanaich]

For me, it's the following:

2. I was born in Canada to either Canadian or immigrant parents, and grew up speaking English in our home. I consider myself a Canadian, but I am also active in some activities which reflect my ethnic heritage (dance, music, language, culture), for example belonging to a Pipe Band, teaching Samba dancing, etc.

1. I grew up playing and watching lots of sports in a family that plays and watches sport.

8. I follow soccer, but have one or two other sports I like just as much as soccer.

3. Committed Local Fan(atic): Soccer is my favourite sport, and I watch a lot of it; or it’s one of my favourite sports, and I watch a lot of it. I either have season tickets to my local club, or at least watch most of their games. I will also support national team games in my city, and will watch the World Cup. I may have a team or team in other leagues (England, Italy, etc), or even another national team that I follow as well as supporting my local team and Canada.

E - ETHNICITY IN SOCCER

1. Is soccer an “ethnic” (ie something other than British/French) sport in Canada? No
2. Do you consider soccer a foreign sport, or one of many Canadian sports? No
3. Do you consider soccer to be part of your ethnic heritage? No

F - LAST OF ALL

What got me into watching soccer was:

Realising that I should watch the sport I played and coached as much as I watched the CFL (never played football) and the NHL (stopped playing hockey at 13).

Why I support the team(s) that I do:
Are you crazy? Always support your local team! I grew up with the Whitecaps, and now that they are in MLS no other team could be my favourite. I support Canada because that's where I live, and my ancestors moved here a century ago, rendering previous allegiances obsolete.

[BringBackTheBlizzard]

1. Is soccer an “ethnic” (ie something other than British/French) sport in Canada? Yes/No

This is a loaded question for two reasons. Firstly, the truly indigenous inhabitants of Canada are neither British nor French culturally or ethnically and now that the sun has very much set on the age of Empire under Canada's constitutionally entrenched multiculturalism policy there has been a deliberate attempt to move away from this whole notion of a three-way social division between two founding colonial groups and "ethnics". Secondly, since soccer is the most popular team sport in both the UK and France the wording appears to have been deliberately concocted to solicit a "No" answer by making a "Yes" seem absurd, when a different wording could lead to a very different response from a lot of people.

It's unfortunate that certain people seem to see a soccer board as a suitable venue to carry out a "culture war" on this sort of stuff given the reality is that it was post-WWII immigrants from many different countries (including people from the UK and France who were genuinely British and French culturally) that have been the main driving force in building soccer in Canada in recent decades rather than the pre-WWII immigrant sort of demographic, who whether people like it or not, have tended in the past to greatly prefer hockey, baseball, Canadian football and basketball and until recently to often view soccer as being foreign to their Canadian culture.

Questioning the role of ethnicity is, therefore, an incredibly divisive thing to do, since that reality led to soccer clubs having to be organized by social clubs founded and frequented by recent immigrants, including a substantial number by people who were genuinely British in cultural terms. It's too bad some people can't show a little bit of r-e-s-p-e-c-t for the efforts that were made in that regard by those clubs but every society produces individuals who struggle with cultural diversity so I guess it's just a fact of life that you inevitably have to deal with stuff like this from time to time.

[argh1]

I don't know how to answer as I have conflicting answers.
1) I am the child of immigrants from NI (in the 1940's)
2) I consider myself Canadian and belong to no cultural group that isn't inclusive of all locals.
3) I follow and played "Canadian" sports hockey, lacrosse, baseball
4) I follow soccer, played and reff'd some
5) Minor soccer like other sports should be the same as inclusive of the region or municipality
http://www.riverviewsoccer.com/index.php?content_id=110
This is the my opinion.
The statement from RSA shows the weakness of Canadian Soccer that there are few places for elite players after the midget age.
The lack of Junior age elite leagues like hockey. Ethnic or regional.

[seathanaich]

This is a loaded question for two reasons. Firstly, the truly indigenous inhabitants of Canada are neither British nor French culturally or ethnically and now that the sun has very much set on the age of Empire under Canada's constitutionally entrenched multiculturalism policy there has been a deliberate attempt to move away from this whole notion of a three-way social division between two founding colonial groups and "ethnics". Secondly, since soccer is the most popular team sport in both the UK and France the wording appears to have been deliberately concocted to solicit a "No" answer by making a "Yes" seem absurd, when a different wording could lead to a very different response from a lot of people.

It's unfortunate that certain people seem to see a soccer board as a suitable venue to carry out a "culture war" on this sort of stuff given the reality is that it was post-WWII immigrants from many different countries (including people from the UK and France who were genuinely British and French culturally) that have been the main driving force in building soccer in Canada in recent decades rather than the pre-WWII immigrant sort of demographic, who whether people like it or not, have tended in the past to greatly prefer hockey, baseball, Canadian football and basketball and until recently to often view soccer as being foreign to their Canadian culture.

Questioning the role of ethnicity is, therefore, an incredibly divisive thing to do, since that reality led to soccer clubs having to be organized by social clubs founded and frequented by recent immigrants, including a substantial number by people who were genuinely British in cultural terms. It's too bad some people can't show a little bit of r-e-s-p-e-c-t for the efforts that were made in that regard by those clubs but every society produces individuals who struggle with cultural diversity so I guess it's just a fact of life that you inevitably have to deal with stuff like this from time to time.

I'm sorry that you see this merely as a disguised attempt by me to continue conversations started elsewhere, since that wasn't my intent. Rather than solicit arguments, I was actually interested in what people would describe themselves as. I was also expecting a few people to point out some options for some of the answers that I hadn't thought of. If you didn't want to answer, you had the option not to.

[seathanaich]

I don't know how to answer as I have conflicting answers.
1) I am the child of immigrants from NI (in the 1940's)
2) I consider myself Canadian and belong to no cultural group that isn't inclusive of all locals.
3) I follow and played "Canadian" sports hockey, lacrosse, baseball
4) I follow soccer, played and reff'd some
5) Minor soccer like other sports should be the same as inclusive of the region or municipality
http://www.riverviewsoccer.com/index.php?content_id=110
This is the my opinion.
The statement from RSA shows the weakness of Canadian Soccer that there are few places for elite players after the midget age.
The lack of Junior age elite leagues like hockey. Ethnic or regional.

Hi Argh. Thanks for your answers, I tried to cover all possibilities but knew that I couldn't do so.

It's certainly true that every part of Canada has different problems to face; in NB that would be small population. It seems to me that the population there is so small that you would almost need a league with teams in Fredericton, St John, Moncton, Sydney, Halifax, and Dartmouth, in any sport, in order to have top calibre opposition and programmes. The problem is: how many people are going to commit to that level of travel? When I was involved with the Lower Island (Victoria) teams in the BC Metro soccer league, we had a big van operated by one dedicated local soccer ref/coach, and it went over to Vancouver every Sat and Sun for the season, with the league ensuring that 2 x Victoria teams were at home and 2 x teams were away every week, just to faciliate our travel. Things like that require a lot of dedication, planning, and the willingness of people to set aside their egos for the greater good. On that point . . . it was amazing how club level coaches either supported the Metro programme and therefore lost their best players, or completely opposed it (ie told their players not to try out) based pretty much solely on feeding their own egos as coaches. Cheers.

[rdroze]

I'll have a go...


A - FAMILY SITUATION / BACKGROUND

1. I was born in Canada to Canadian parents, and grew up speaking English in our home. I consider myself an unhyphenated “Canadian”, and like and do things that are considered mainstream Canadian; or I am at most a superficially hyphenated Canadian (ie I’m proud of my ancestry, but don’t speak another language, or participate in ancestral music, dance, cultural organisations, etc). I either don’t think about my “culture” much, or consider my culture to be “Canadian” (and I’m proud of that).

B - SPORTING BACKGROUND

5. I grew up playing lots of sports in a family that really didn’t.

C - SOCCER DEVOTION

7. I follow soccer most, but I like a few other sports (just not as much as I like soccer).

D - SOCCER TEAM DEVOTION

3. Committed Local Fan(atic): Soccer is my favourite sport, and I watch a lot of it; or it’s one of my favourite sports, and I watch a lot of it. I either have season tickets to my local club, or at least watch most of their games. I will also support national team games in my city, and will watch the World Cup. I may have a team or team in other leagues (England, Italy, etc), or even another national team that I follow as well as supporting my local team and Canada.

E - ETHNICITY IN SOCCER

1. Is soccer an “ethnic” (ie something other than British/French) sport in Canada?
No

2. Do you consider soccer a foreign sport, or one of many Canadian sports?
No
If no, are you aware that it’s played by more Canadians than any other sport?
Yes

3. Do you consider soccer to be part of your ethnic heritage?
No
If so, why (considering it is played almost everywhere)?
--

F - LAST OF ALL

What got me into watching soccer was:

appeal of a more global game

Why I support the team(s) that I do:

are you crazy? Always support your local team!

[seathanaich]

Thanks for answering. I got about 15 responses on the Southsiders site. Bearing in mind the obvious bias built into posting only in English, and only on these particular web sites, it's interesting to see which things apply to the most fans here. Cheers.

[Trident]

A - FAMILY SITUATION / BACKGROUND

1. I was born in Canada to Canadian parents, and grew up speaking English/French in our home. I consider myself an unhyphenated “Canadian”(I'm so Canadian that I'm a hyphenated Canadian), and like and do things that are considered mainstream Canadian. I love my culture, and I keep it alive despite being a minority.

B - SPORTING BACKGROUND

1. I grew up playing and watching lots of sports in a family that plays and watches sport.

C - SOCCER DEVOTION

8. I follow soccer, but have one or two other sports I like just as much as soccer.

D - SOCCER TEAM DEVOTION

3. Die Hard Local Monogamist: Soccer is my first and only sporting love, and my local team are my first and (essentially) only love. I watch all the games of my local team either live or on television. I have season tickets, or would have if I lived in town / work allowed me too / I wasn’t a penniless student. I know everything about my favourite team, and my mood is affected by their results. Soccer in Canada is on the rise!

E - ETHNICITY IN SOCCER

1. Is soccer an “ethnic” (ie something other than British/French) sport in Canada? No (what kind of question...)
2. Do you consider soccer a foreign sport, or one of many Canadian sports? No
If no, are you aware that it’s played by more Canadians than any other sport? Yes
3. Do you consider soccer to be part of your ethnic heritage? No
If so, why (considering it is played almost everywhere)?

F - LAST OF ALL

What got me into watching soccer was:

I play it / friends / appeal of a more global game / liked the way it introduced me to other places and societies / disillusioned by other sports / wanted something different than hockey

Why I support the team(s) that I do:

I loved them since I was a kid / that’s where I’m from

[theaub]

I picked the one that was most accurate, although in some cases multiple ones apply.

A - FAMILY SITUATION / BACKGROUND

1. I was born in Canada to Canadian parents, and grew up speaking English in our home. I consider myself an unhyphenated “Canadian”, and like and do things that are considered mainstream Canadian; or I am at most a superficially hyphenated Canadian (ie I’m proud of my ancestry, but don’t speak another language, or participate in ancestral music, dance, cultural organisations, etc). I either don’t think about my “culture” much, or consider my culture to be “Canadian” (and I’m proud of that).

B - SPORTING BACKGROUND

2. I grew up playing and watching some sport other than soccer in a family that plays and watches some sport other than soccer.

C - SOCCER DEVOTION

9. I follow soccer, but it’s not the most important sport that I watch.

D - SOCCER TEAM DEVOTION

3. Committed Local Fan(atic): Soccer is my favourite sport, and I watch a lot of it; or it’s one of my favourite sports, and I watch a lot of it. I either have season tickets to my local club, or at least watch most of their games. I will also support national team games in my city, and will watch the World Cup. I may have a team or team in other leagues (England, Italy, etc), or even another national team that I follow as well as supporting my local team and Canada.

E - ETHNICITY IN SOCCER

1. Is soccer an “ethnic” (ie something other than British/French) sport in Canada? No
2. Do you consider soccer a foreign sport, or one of many Canadian sports? Yes? (I don't understand which part of the question is yes/no I assume its the 2nd part)
If no, are you aware that it’s played by more Canadians than any other sport? Yes
3. Do you consider soccer to be part of your ethnic heritage? No
If so, why (considering it is played almost everywhere)?

F - LAST OF ALL

What got me into watching soccer was:

One of my best friends in elementary school was a Newcastle fan, but I didn't really get into soccer until TFC came around. Although I'm far more of a Canada fan (and always have been) than a TFC/Newcastle fan.

Why I support the team(s) that I do:

(are you crazy? Always support your local team! / to help the national team improve / I can actually follow them live / I loved them since I was a kid / that’s where I’m from / that’s where my family is from)