Psychology of a sports fanatic

Almost all of us, at some point of our lives (or every point), have fought with our friends, co-workers or colleagues for the sake of our favorite clubs, teams and players and a die-hard supporter can never stand any insult or derogatory remark made against them. Rivalries between fans of football clubs (East Bengal -Mohun Bagan, Manchester United-Chelsea), players (Messi-Ronaldo in football, Ganguly-Dhoni in cricket) etc are quite common in our country, where almost every person takes his fanaticism seriously. This article provides an insight into the minds of sports fans and the reasons for choosing their favorites. The article also tells about the different types of fanatics and which type of fanatic I’m personally and the rationale behind that.

Some fans like to settle things in a different way

Lets tag the first type of fans as team red and second as team blue

There are two types of fanatics.

For one type of fan, glory, success and reputation of a player or team are the main factors which drive him/her towards supporting the person or team. Examples-Fans of Manchester United, Sachin Tendulkar, Roger Federer and the Spanish football team (after it won the world cup). These type of fans rejoice the successes, achievements and glories of their favorite players and teams, which come by very often. It is often said that being an ardent supporter and a true fan is a very tough job as it requires the faith and belief of the fan, both in the times of success and failure. For the first type of fan, the job becomes easier, as successes and achievements are many but failures only far and few.

The second type of fan is an optimist. This aficionado always supports the weaker player, the second best team, the unsung hero, or the comeback king, in the hope of a miracle or an unexpected result. The fan’s favorite team or player might not have achieved what the player/team of the first type of fan has achieved, but still the fan rejoices every small victory and every little achievement. Examples- Fans of Arsenal, Chelsea, Rafael Nadal and Sourav Ganguly. The joy of winning, after being written-off by everyone, is special. The contentment a defeat over a much fancied opponent brings is unparalleled.

By now, you must have assessed which type of fan you yourself are. I’m a fan of the second type; I support Chelsea FC, knowing very well the fact that the chances of Manchester United winning trophies are far more. I supported Andriy Shevchenko when he played for Chelsea FC as he was written off by everyone and was termed a failure, but I knew what the man was capable of doing. I still support Sourav Ganguly with all my heart and each and every comeback he made has made me ecstatic.

Keep supporting; keep spreading the word…..

(Disclaimer: These are my personal views. I hold no personal grudge against any fan and I’m not a psychologist!)