Supporters and Rivalry
See also: The Oatcake (fanzine), Naughty Forty, and Potteries derbyWhile much of the support that the club enjoys is from the local Stoke-on-Trent area, there are a number of exile fan clubs, notably in London and stretching from Scandinavia to countries further afield such as Australia and the USA. A capacity 28,000 crowd regularly turn out to see them in the Premier League.
Stoke have had problems in the past with football hooliganism in the 1970s, 80s, 90s and early 2000s which gave the club a bad reputation, this was to the actions by the "Naughty Forty" firm which associated itself with the club and was formed by supporter Mark Chester. Mark Chester reformed himself and now works as a youth inclusion promoter. In 2003 the BBC described Stoke City as having "one of the most active and organised football hooligan firms in England". In response to these criticisms, the club introduced an Away Travel ID scheme; this was subsequently suspended in 2008 as a result of improved behaviour and an enhanced reputation. More recently, Stoke City's fans and their stadium have been perceived as loud, friendly, passionate and modern, welcoming as guests Sugar Ray Leonard and Diego Maradona. There is in the media now "genuine admiration for the volume and volatility of the club's loyal support".
In November 2008 a group of Stoke fans were forced by the Greater Manchester Police to leave Manchester before a league match against Manchester United. The Human Rights group Liberty took up the case of the fans, and Manchester police eventually apologised for their actions and the fans were awarded compensation.
Stoke's local rivals are Port Vale, based in the Burslem area of Stoke-on-Trent. As the two clubs have regularly been in different divisions there have only been 46 league matches between the two sides, with the last match being in 2002. Regardless of the lack of games, the Potteries derby is often a tight and close game of football with few goals being scored. Stoke have won 19 matches whilst Vale have won 15.
With Stoke City's rise to the Premier League coinciding with traditional rival Port Vale's relegation to League Two, and a hard-fought promotion battle with another West Midlands outfit West Bromwich Albion, rivalry with West Brom fans has increased. Another rivalry exists with fellow West Midlands club Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Read more about this topic: Stoke City F.C.
Famous quotes containing the words supporters and/or rivalry:
“No Government can be long secure without a formidable Opposition. It reduces their supporters to that tractable number which can be managed by the joint influences of fruition and hope. It offers vengeance to the discontented, and distinction to the ambitious; and employs the energies of aspiring spirits, who otherwise may prove traitors in a division or assassins in a debate.”
—Benjamin Disraeli (1804–1881)
“It seems to me that we have to draw the line in sibling rivalry whenever rivalry goes out of bounds into destructive behavior of a physical or verbal kind. The principle needs to be this: Whatever the reasons for your feelings you will have to find civilized solutions.”
—Selma H. Fraiberg (20th century)