‘At the end of the storm, there’s a golden sky’: The importance of an English football anthem for the Swedish fans

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to discuss the significance of Liverpool Football Club’s (LFC) anthem ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ (‘YNWA’) for Swedish fans of LFC. The song has been played before home matches at the Anfield stadium since the 1960s, and via the media, it has spread all over the world. We can therefore talk about a kind of satellite supporters who can be involved no matter where in the world they are. Based on a survey conducted with help from Liverpool FC Official Supporters Club Sweden, 378 people (355 men and 23 women) answered questions about their relationship to the city of Liverpool and the Liverpool football team, how long they have been fans and why they chose LFC, and, finally, their connection to ‘YNWA’. The results show that the Swedish fans feel a great sense of belonging to both the team and the city of Liverpool and that the song is very important to them even in everyday life. For the fans in the survey, ‘YNWA’ unites them with the team and fans from all over the world while separating themselves from other fans and football clubs with other anthems. The song thus becomes larger than itself. Identity and performances are important concepts on which the article is based.