Main Subjects
Opposit the Eurostand campaign in 1998 this years protest will focus on more subjects than just the prohibition of stands without seats. In football today there are a lot of subjects that we as fans can campaign against, but still we know that a lot of those subjects are out of our reach to affect. As a consequense of that fact we have chosen 5 main subjects to concentrate on in the Eurostand 08 campaign:
All-seaters:
The discussion about stands was the starting signal for Eurostand 98. In the latest years it has become a trend to put seats on the terraces originally not made for seats, and to have new stadiums made completely covered with seats. In several European countries it has even become law that stadiums only are allowed to contain stands with all seats, therefore the name all-seater stadium. The football executives of the world substantiate this standard with the matter of safety, but the real reason is more likely to have more controlled and calm fans instead of standing and active fans.
There are a lot of modern stadiums in Europe which has stands without seats and very high level of safety at the same time. Veltins, and Allianz Arena of Schalke 04 and FC Bayern in Germany are great examples of new and very modern stadiums, having a high level of safety and a stand without seats for the active fans. As active fans we must come together and fight for our right to stand while supporting our respective clubs. Every stadium should and must have a stand without seats for the active fans!
Permanent and regular matchday- and time:
Today the matchplan is totally controlled by the media-companies, without considering the fans following the clubs around the country. This results in fans having to travel for many hours and miles on a weekday, to for example see their team play on a Thursday night at 8.30 PM.
This is not fair for the fans who puts a lot of time and energy into the matter of following and supporting their team. To solve this problem, a permanent match-day and time must be set for the league matches, and a permanent weekday for the cup matches. It does not matter what the exact time is, what matters is that the deal is accepted both by the club and the fans.
Ticket prices:
The ticket prices are a big problem for many fans. Many places in Europe the prices have reached a level where many fans simply cannot afford to enter the stadium for matches. Take Old Trafford in Manchester for an example. At this stadium the ticket prices has reached prices making it impossible for fans with regular wages to afford the tickets. The sponsors and rich tourists has overtaken the stadium, meanwhile the true fans are forced to watch the matches at pubs, where the atmosphere due to the overpricing is far better than at the stadium.
We feel that the prices should be at a level that enables people from all layers of the society to be present at the stadium. Football is a sport, not a product only rich people should have access to.
Sale of name of stadium and club:
The growing influence of sponsors is beginning to show in the otherwise very proud tradition of stadium names. For an example Borussia Dortmunds legendary stadium is no longer called Westfalen Stadion, just as Schalke 04s Arena Auf Schalke and FC Nürnbergs Frankenstadion no longer holds their proud and original names.
These names were the faces of famous and feared stadiums, but with their new sponsornames all the charm and glory is gone. There is a huge difference between having your home ground on Waldstadion or Commerzbank Arena in Frankfurt.
The worst example is by far the Austrian club SV Austria Salzburg. The club has been bought and wrecked by the beverage-company Red Bull. The name, logo and colours of the club have been changed to match the ones of Red Bull. Much respect must be sent to the people who keep SV Austria Salzburg alive in the lower leagues. We should and must fight together against this commercialization of football: We are fans of clubs not of companies!
Restrictions of celebrating goals:
Joy and passion are two of the most amazing things in football. However these two elements are being held down by the rules existing today. One of these rules prohibits the players to take off their shirts after having scored a goal. The biggest reason for this rule is the fact, that the sponsors complained that their logos was not getting exposure on TV, when the cameras were filming players without their shirts on.
In addition to this we feel that it should not be the referees job to hurry and stress the joyous players after a goal. If a celebration of a goal takes a minute or two, the referee should instead add that amount of time to the additional time as it is made for. Of course the time used on celebrating should be reasonable, but when all is taken into account, an extra couple of minutes are very reasonable.