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The second season of the Indian Super League is just over a week old and the tournament already has the fans thronging to the stadiums and supporting their teams with gusto.It is very important to get the crowd on your side as teams battle for supremacy in the ISL and the fact that the supporters responded very well to the first season of the league has provided added impetus to teams to try and increase their fan base.From the yellow wall of the Kerala Blasters supporters in Kochi to the partisan support at the Fatorda stadium in Goa, we take a look at 5 of the most enthusiastic ISL home crowds:
#5 NorthEast United FC
The only team in the Indian Super League that represents an entire region rather than one city/ state, the team automatically have a huge fan base, who are called the Highlanders as they have looked to unite all 8 north-eastern states using their love of football.
In a region that has seen its fair share of troubles, football is the perfect antidote for the people. The club has a large number of homegrown players playing in the team which makes their fans all the more passionate.
The club’s fans back their team to the hilt and weren’t deterred by their poor finish last finish as they still came in huge numbers to watch their team play some good football.
The Highlanders also have one of the highest average attendances per match. The stadium can hold 35,000 spectators and the volume very often reaches pitch making it a hair-raising experience for players and the supporters.
The only non-corporate team in the league is home to the most ardent supporters who love their football. The Highlanders deserve much better than a last place spot which they had to accept last season and the team have been working hard to ensure that they deliver something good for their fans this year.
#4 Chennaiyin FC
The capital city of Tamil Nadu can hold up to 34,700 spectators in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. Win or lose, the fans from the southern state, called SuperMachas make sure they make their presence felt.
The distinct blue and yellow wave covers the entire stadium like a carpet. Their team’s logo encapsulates perfectly what the club means to its fans – “Dhrishti Bommai” – which symbolizes chasing away negativity and maintaining positivity at all times.
With a little over 230,000 SuperMachas supporting them on Facebook, the Chennai outfit are definitely one very closely connected with their fans. The passion shown by co-owners Abhishek Bachchan and Vita Dani is there for all to see, and the fact that they MS Dhoni is another co-owner garners them even more support.
One look at the comments section and you can see how passionately the people discuss and dissect every match that their team plays. At Chennai, every fan is a manager waiting to be heard by Italian coach, Marco Materazzi.
#3 Atletico de Kolkata
The hotbed of Indian football, the East Indian city can host close to 68,000 supporters in their stadium. When you play for Atletico de Kolkata, you know there are millions of people rooting for you not only in West Bengal but throughout the nation.
The city is bonded by the love for the beautiful game and wouldn’t settle for anything less than another shot at ISL glory this season. The sight of thousands of supporters waving their club flags and doing the Mexican wave adds some color to the cheerful atmosphere in the stadium. The Bengal Tigers have a whooping 670,000 Facebook supporters cheering them on from all parts of the world.
At the same time, they expect their players to play an attractive brand of football. One of their co-owners, Cricket icon Sourav “Dada” Ganguly said, “The standard of football has to be good and I am sure popularity will follow." We couldn’t agree more.
#2 FC Goa
December 19th, 1961 was the day Portuguese colonial rule ended in Goa. It was around that time when the coastal state started developing an interest in the beautiful game.
While the stadium can hold only 19,500 people, it sure doesn’t sound like it when the crowd erupts every time their team turns on the style.
The Goan fans are unlike any other. You won’t find them playing fruit ninja or taking selfies when the match is in motion. They are as focused on the game as the players are. The club has an organic fan club which travels all around the country to watch their team in action.
Apart from that, about 230,000 fans cheer for FC Goa on their Facebook page. Fans have sometimes been known to spend an entire night outside the stadium in hope of getting a ticket to one of their home matches. The motorcycle march done by their fans last season was a thing of beauty and showed that the team is very close to the fans.
#1 Kerala Blasters
God’s own country is one of the few places in India where interest ín football beats cricket. So, it is slightly ironic that the Kerala club are owned by the “God” of cricket- Sachin Tendulkar.
When Kerala hosted NorthEast in their first match this season, the atmosphere was electric to say the least. Over 61,000 Blasters, as their fans are fondly called, attended the game and created a brilliant experience around the stadium. Even the commentators were lost for words at the passion exhibited by the fans from the South.
The Blasters don’t like to lose and that is clear from the way they support their team. Not a moment of silence to give the away team any respite, the 60,000 strong crowd makes sure they act like the twelfth man for their club.
The second match of this season saw them create an amazing pattern with their mobile phones as the match went on. Their enthusisasm and constant energy is reflected in the manner in which the team plays, a hard-working outfit to the core.
With more than 700,000 fans on Facebook, the team has left no stone unturned to ensure that their supporters are well connected with the club and have worked hard to build engagement among their fans world over.
During last year’s final, even the electronic shops in the state were kept open late night for the fans in the streets to watch the match.
