TomK

Also, forgot to mention. I am back in Walla Walla, Washington now so IP check away!

Hey allcinaye, sorry I didn't get back to you sooner. I honestly don't know how many Americans follow football. I know it's a very popular sport among kids--it's probably the most played sport amongst kids under 16. But over time, and in secondary school, most kids transition to the traditional American sports. Nobody really knows why that is...on the other hand, football, or soccer, is still far and away the most popular female sport. But that's definitely a different topic, for a different day. The average attendance of matches in the MLS (the American professional league) is around 20,000 per match, which is similar to the SPL, if a little lower. But bear in mind, the US is a much bigger country, so this figure is a much lower percentage of the total public than it is in Scotland. However, some teams, like my team the Seattle Sounders, consistently draw 40,000 fans, and have up to 70,000 supporters come to exhibition matches with big European clubs like Chelsea and Barcelona. So the potential is there for large crowds. In terms of television viewership, the most-watched match during the league this last season was watched by about 900,000 people on TV. Compare that to the Super Bowl, which was watched by 110 million Americans. There's obviously a big difference in the interest in watching the respective sports on television. Part of that is merely promotion and advertising, and the MLS is growing rapidly. But it has a LOT of catching up to do to make it to the same scale as the NFL, the NBA, or MLB. Thanks for your questions everyone, hope I'm doing enough to prove I'm not a spy! haha

American football fans have probably heard of Rangers--there just aren't many American football fans! The average American has never heard of DeMarcus Beasley, or even Claudio Reyna or Bocanegra. This is brilliant, thanks a lot!

Not saying that is or isn't the case...I'm just saying that's what most people who know about Rangers in America think about Rangers. And to be clear, I'm saying I don't agree with this view. Haha I knew it was going well! In all seriousness, sorry you think that. No doubt, talking about American gun laws is important. But my grandfather always said, "Do what you love," and what I love, sadly enough, is talking about and watching football. If you don't want to talk, fair enough. To everyone who has PM'ed me, I thank you. I will make sure that your efforts will not be a waste of time for you.

Thanks for the suggestions...and I didn't have an idea about the "Old Firm," so sorry if I pissed you guys off! Obviously it's going well here... Yeah, perhaps not recently, but overall that's what Americans think of British--both Scottish and English (maybe Welsh? I don't know)--football. Dumb films like that one with Frodo Baggins playing an Inter City Firm member (can't remember its name?) don't really help either. The image Americans have of British and Scottish football is of skinheads hitting each other over the head with bricks while wearing Burberry.

Sorry, no offense meant. In America, of what little people know about Scottish football, there are negative ideas about it--"hooliganism" and violence and all that stuff. I just meant that I hoped to show something more about Rangers than this stereotypical image.

Check's in the mail

I'm currently west of London--near Reading, visiting relatives. So as of now, as someone else has asked, my IP address would reflect that. But within the next week I will be back in Washington State, and hopefully my information can be verified as per a few people have requested. Why do I suggest football isn't popular? Well, relatively, it isn't. It's the fourth most-watched professional spectator sport in the US, at best. The average American has never heard of Rangers, let alone any of their domestic league teams. But I'm guessing you know this. I know it, it's obviously a popular topic to talk about. But again, not very well known in the States, and my intention is to take a different angle than most of the literature has before. However, that angle is entirely guided and aided by you. Apologies if this is tedious for you all, I understand entirely that it isn't necessarily enjoyable to answer the same-old questions over and over again. But like I said, that isn't my intention. Haha, obliged. Just so everyone knows, this study is composed of both Rangers and Celtic supporters. So rest assured, I will be asking them questions like this. But I also want to hear your end of the story...and if cost is a problem, Skype is always an excellent option. Thanks for everyone's feedback and responses, I really appreciate it! Tom

Hello there! My name’s Tom, and I’m a student at Whitman College in the USA. As part of graduating with a sociology degree, I am writing a thesis on football fans in Scotland—particularly fans of the Old Firm. As part of this research, I’m hoping to interview you—the supporters. I want to talk to you (for probably about 30 minutes) about Rangers—how you became a supporter, why it’s important to you, how you think it’s important to Scotland, and what the relationship is like with Celtic—the club and the supporters as well. Alternately, I’m open to doing an interview over the phone/through PMs/over Skype whenever you would be free! This research, and these interviews, will be used as research material in my thesis, which will be published by my university. Your responses will be anonymous and confidential, but there’s no telling where this publication could end up or who will read it, so bear that in mind. Having said that, I hope that this research could be a laidback way to talk about your club, to have your story as a supporter heard, and to have it saved in the historical record. I ask only 30-45 minutes of your time. I can’t guarantee any compensation, and for this I apologize! I'd love to have a round on me, but I won't be able to make it up to Glasgow to do interviews in person. I’m really grateful if you’re interested in participating. I’m a fellow football fan, but as you probably know, the world’s game isn’t that popular in America. In America, as well as many other places around the world, when people think of the Old Firm they think of sectarianism and religious violence. I want your help in showing that there’s much more to your club than just that. Thanks for reading this. If you’re interested, please message me and we can talk about setting up for an interview. If you’re a Rangers fan abroad, I’d love to do an interview over the phone, if that works for you! Let me know, and thanks so much. Tom K PS. If you are on other Rangers forums, you might notice that I will post on those too. Please don't take offense or think of this as spam! For my research to work I have to reach as many people as possible. Thanks for your time.