Supporting different football teams at different times is not only acceptable but also a rational response to life's changes, argues one fan who has followed Nottingham Forest, Napoli, and now Millwall. In a culture where club loyalty is often treated as sacred, this perspective challenges the notion that switching allegiance is a sign of weakness.
A personal journey through football allegiances
Luke McLaughlin, a journalist, recounts his own footballing history, which began with a childhood trip to Upton Park in November 1987 to watch West Ham against Nottingham Forest. The hosts won 3-2, and despite living in south London, he became a Forest supporter. Earlier, he had supported Everton and Tottenham, the former a pure glory-hunting choice, the latter possibly influenced by Paul Gascoigne.
Geographically, he should have supported Crystal Palace or Millwall, having been brought up between their grounds. He vividly remembers visiting the Den with a Swindon-supporting schoolmate during the Terry Hurlock era. His brother became an Arsenal fan, but McLaughlin followed Forest around London, including a draw at the Den in 1993-94 marred by post-match violence after a Stan Collymore equaliser.
The case for switching teams
McLaughlin argues that if professional athletes can represent multiple countries and clubs, fans should have the same freedom. He points to the growing disparity between mercenary players, who earn huge sums and show little loyalty, and loyal fans, who invest emotionally without reward. He suggests that being a diehard fan often leads to defending the indefensible, from unethical sportwashing to on-field foul play.
He also notes that it is possible to be too emotionally invested in a club's fortunes. As a teenager, he felt his personal happiness was linked to Forest's results, treating a late-90s defeat by Wimbledon as a personal tragedy. Now, he loves football but is more ambivalent about outcomes.
Finding a new football home
Since living in London, McLaughlin has become a regular at the Den, following Millwall's results more than Forest's. He enjoys the tight, noisy, old-fashioned ground, with no VAR, and close to home. He also follows Napoli, after a formative experience watching them lose to Chelsea in 2012, and has visited Naples several times, including for the Serie A title win in May 2023 under Luciano Spalletti.
He concludes that fans should not be ashamed of switching allegiance, and that it makes sense to base support on what's happening in your life. As he says, "As long as I live in London I will enjoy following Millwall … with Forest and Napoli thrown in. Not forgetting Dulwich Hamlet. Should I ever return to Somerset, though, I’ll be Yeovil till I die."
