01/08/2026
To me, the fans are always at the core of what I shoot, and are the soul of any club. Without them, a club is just an empty shell. Yet increasingly, it feels as though traditional fans are being pushed out and alienated by the clubs they dedicate their lives too. The same fans who stand by clubs in times of despair, the fans who organise parades and welcomes, who trudge to the match in all amounts of rain and sleet in a never ending series of midweek games, fans that carry with them the histories, traditions and cultures of the generations who came before them.
The reward for those fans? Price hikes, last minute date changes, cultures and traditions treated like commodities to be traded on.
Fan culture is one of the most incredible things about a club, yet so many clubs seem to prefer a more sanitised version of that culture, one which on the surface seems to mimic the traditions and values of its fanbase, but beneath a very thin veneer, lacks any authenticity. A poor imitation at best.
The game is changing, I get that, but the relentless march towards pricing out fans that carried clubs to the modern era, in favour of the flashier, manufactured padded seat culture, will just continue to erode the bond between fans and club until it’s beyond repair.
Photos taken over the last season at Everton’s new ground, documenting fans on Black and White film.
📸: OM SYSTEM UK OM-10
🎞️: ILFORD PHOTO HP5
🧪: Take It Easy Film Lab & Community
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