Presenting the Columbia Fightin’ Lions

Growing up, I never watched or played soccer. In fact, I never even played FIFA. Whenever I heard the word “soccer,” images of low-scoring matches full of flopping Europeans and different-colored cards immediately came to mind, which for obvious reasons didn’t appeal to me. So for 18 years I avoided the sport and focused instead on football, basketball, and baseball. Things changed when I got to college.

I was quickly exposed to more soccer than I had ever experienced in the two decades before. Whether it was watching the Chelsea Football Club with a friend from the floor or trying my hand at FIFA, I got my fair share. I learned to enjoy the subtleties and flow of the sport that had eluded me for so long. But what really hooked me was the fans.

Soccer fans are the craziest, most intense sports fans on the planet. They live and breathe soccer all year round, which often leads to exciting—and even dangerous—environments at matches. The movie “Green Street Hooligans” immediately comes to mind, in which Elijah Wood becomes a fist-fighting, soccer-loving member of the Green Street Elite firm of West Ham United. A firm is essentially the team’s gang, and consists of its toughest, grittiest, and most loyal aficionados. Essentially, it’s like the Oakland Raiders fans in the Black Hole, multiplied by a thousand. In the movie, West Ham United is a mediocre soccer team, but the GSE is a top-notch firm famous for its devotion to West Ham soccer as well as its ability to win street brawls. The GSE are superfans. I think we need a firm of our own.

It’s common knowledge that Columbia sporting events, such as football games, lack the passion of West Ham matches. I’ve heard plenty of explanations for this, the most common being that our teams never win. No one wants to watch a team that doesn’t win. But that is exactly why we need our own firm that devotes itself to all of Columbia athletics.

A passionate and devoted fan base is the key behind every successful team. The catchy chants and never-ending abuse of referees is what fuels a team to add on to big leads or rally from behind. If you don’t believe me, just watch the top teams in each sport. The stands are always full, the crowd is rowdy, and one can feel the energy in the air. Unfortunately, this is not always the case at Columbia sporting events. The lack of fan support is not even close to the main reason for the Lions’ inability to win games, but it certainly doesn’t help. If Columbia sports teams are going to succeed, fans are going to have to will them to victory.

This is where the firm comes in. Composed entirely of students, the Columbia Fightin’ Lions (the name could probably use some work) could attend every event, home and away. Admittedly, this is too much to ask, so for now we’ll change the previous statement to include only home games. The purpose of the firm will be simple: to create a hostile environment for Columbia’s opponents. I am not supporting the violence that is so prevalent in “Green Street Hooligans,” but there is nothing wrong with some “aggressive” team support. Like the stadium at West Ham, Columbia will be a hostile destination for our Ivy League rivals. It’s important to note that the firm does not exist entirely for the success of the team. Like most dedicated sports fans will tell you, nothing beats going to watch your team play, especially when league rivals are in town. So if you want to spend some afternoons chanting and cheering like a madman, the Columbia Fightin’ Lions is the firm for you.

Bart Lopez is a Columbia College senior majoring in economics-mathematics.