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 What
is a Football Casual? Are they a breed of meathead
hooligans looking for any excuse to have a ruck? Are they a bunch
of skinheads in bomber jackets and Doc Martens who have affiliations
with right-wing political militant groups? Are they chav kids
intent on causing public disorder? Whatever your perception is
or however you want to label them - I guarantee most of you will
be wrong.
Being a Football Casual was and is in it's simplest
form, about one-upmanship. The term casual is one that tends to
stick the most, but there were also 'Perry's' from Manchester
and 'Scallies' from Liverpool and numerous more other regional
names for a similar type of football fan.
The Football Casual subculture wasn't about being
politically led. Many casuals within the same crews had varying
left-wing, right-wing and liberal political views. Neither was
it was driven by one type of musical style. There's a wide spectrum
of musical styles that many Football Casuals
enjoy. Varying from original mod, revivalist mod, ska, dub, indie
rock, rave, nu-rave, madchester, punk, post-punk , oi and even
more. Football Casual culture had the allure
to many of these other musical followers to cross-over to the
casual side - and many of them did. Was it a fashion thing? Almost
certainly - but not at first. It was a general look thing, which
then transformed into a label slave thing. Was it a violence thing?
Yes, but it was more of a byproduct of the one-upmanship - a necessity
to show that your crew were number one both in the fashion and
violence stakes. Violence and fashion were the key battlefields
- but under the banner of the team of which you supported.
 The
need for a country like Britain to have a youth culture which
is either led by teenage angst, political anarchy or musical revolution
has always been evident. Most recently, ever since the 60's when
the mods took on the rockers - these type of tribal clashes of
various youth cultures have dominated our shores. I cite the mods
in particular, as I believe that many of the fashion principles
of mod culture (clean lines, minimal styling) also lie at the
heart of the Football Casual subculture. Obviously
there also some musical links, but that's where it ends really.
The whole art and jazz thing (the original modernists) are certainly
things which don't translate in Football Casual
culture. Every movement needs a vehicle and with mods it was music,
scooters and fashion. It just so happens, that the Football
Casual subculture originated from the football terraces
and their vehicle was football, fighting and fashion. If you were
a mod, it was arguably easier for you to move across - as brands
such Fred
Perry and (less so) Ben Sherman could translate.
 Where
and when did the whole thing start? There's been much debate on
this, but it's universally accepted that the scene originated
from Liverpool in the late 70's. Liverpool were kings of Europe
and a number of fans started to pick things up on their travels.
Before long, expensive sportswear and designer labels found on
the continent were soon also finding their way onto the terraces.
Sergio
Tacchini, Fila
and Lacoste
tennis shirts were quite popular around this time. Footwear was
taking off too with the adidas
sambas and Diadora Borgs Elites. Before long many northern firms
were going on 'shopping' trips to Europe to loot a number of German,
French and Swiss designer sportswear stores, as security was far
more lax than in the UK. Over the course of a few years, everybody
was wearing the staple brands, with each individual firms showing
preference to particular brands. Suddenly, one-upmanship was all
the rage as more and more brands were being discovered, but often
varied in popularity from region to region.
By the mid 80's there were brands which were almost essentials
and others which varied from crew to crew. Stone Island and CP
jackets were essential, as well as vintage adidas trainers. Fila
BJ, Ellesse, Sergio Tacchini and Lacoste track tops also grew
in popularity. Tennis chic is the look which has probably defined
the casual look more than any other. Before long the likes of
Armani, Burberry, Aquascutum, Berghaus, Fiorucci and Lois were
soon being added to the wardrobe.
 When
the 90's came around, the focus moved slightly from sportswear
to more designer brands such as Polo Ralph Lauren, YSL (before
it became over commercialised), Paul Smith and Prada began to
emerge across the country. However, many of the sportswear brands
around at the beginning are still acceptable today. It must be
said though that only certain ranges are acceptable. For instance
Lacoste 1212 polo shirts, v-neck and crew neck jumpers are all
okay - but not Lacoste baseball caps or t-shirts.Another example
is Fred Perry twin tip polo shirts - but probably only the twin
tips. Again, this varies from region to region and cannot be assessed
scientifically.
In essence, this site is more of retrospective guide to the history
and brands associated with Football Casual culture.
We do not attempt to be a mirror guide for what is happening now.
We believe the best way to approach a site like this is to treat
it as a generalist tribute to aesthetics and brands, rather than
a resource for those in-the-know.
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