Soccer Fans Change 60s Pop Lyrics For Chants

Soccer samba is shaking our Singapore fans with frantic football fever. Many 60s music fans are also soccer fans and many football chants or terrace chants are based on pop songs. Below are some examples.

Sydney FC fans always sing their version of The Beatles, Hey Jude, adding the word Sydney during the chorus. A-League based side Wellington Phoenix, chant a more relaxed melody of the Johnny Cash hit, Ring Of Fire in reference to Wespac Stadium where they play, and it's nicknamed, The Ring of Fire.

A sing-a-long, When The Saints Go Marching In is another number adapted for stadium chants. Other songs include, Go West by Village People and the spiritual, He's Got the Whole World in His Hands is common with soccer crazies.

To honour specific individuals, the tune to Winter Wonderland was sung by Newcastle United Kevin Keegan and the melody for the Band Aid song Do They Know It's Christmas? is similar to Feed the Scousers chant sung against the supporters of Merseyside clubs of Liverpool F.C. during Christmas.

Simply The Best by Tina Turner, was banned from matches involving Rangers F.C. and one, when Bobby Zamora was at Brighton, adapted the song That's Amore by Dean Martin. Then there's Chim Chim Cher-ee for Nwankwo Kanu and All You Need Is Love by The Beatles for Damien Duff.

Various chants have been based on Can't Take My Eyes Off You by Frankie Valli. Besides popular songs, Camptown Races is used for, Two World Wars, One World Cup, and Ten Green Bottles became Ten German Bombers. She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain is another. These songs are used by England fans to slight their main rivals, Germany.

My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean has lyrics that goes: "If I had the wings of an Eagle, if I had the arse of a crow, I'd fly over... and shit on the bastards below...", while some songs are generally reserved for cup matches like the FA Cup, Football League Cup, Football League Trophy, FA Trophy and FA Vase, where the venue of the final is at Wembley Stadium. Examples include an adaption of, "Que Sera, Sera/Whatever Will Be, Will Be/Que Sera, Sera/Whatever Will Be, Will Be/We're going to Wembley..."

The chant, "We are the Champions, Champions of Europe" from Queen, is often sung by fans of Leeds United. Some football teams have traditional club anthems sung by their fans like Liverpool's You'll Never Walk Alone, West Ham United's I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles and New York Red Bulls with, Stand By Me.

2010 Fifa World Cup should use some of the following songs for soccer chants: Africa Bamba by Santana, Africa by Toto, Africa Unite by Bob Marley and the Wailers, Under African Skies by Paul Simon and Storms In Africa by Enya. I guess the vuvuzelas are more effective?

Information (Edited) : Wikipedia.