Ultras should not take attention away from action on pitch
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To see Thai football fans overwhelmingly supporting their national team is surely a positive sign for the future of the game in the country, but they still need to learn to express their passion in the right way.
In recent years, a dramatic drop in interest in the Thai football team coincided with it’s a string of poor results on the international stage. Many pointed their finger at the FA boss Worawi Makudi for his poor stewardship of the body.
The growing antipathy towards Worawi resulted in a number of fans preferring not to take any particular interest in the Thai team as long as the 63-year-old was at the helm. However, last week witnessed a sharp surge in interest for the national team with people flocking to Rajamangala National Stadium to watch Thailand beat the Philippines 3-0 in the Asean Championship semi-final second leg.
The capacity crowd at Rajamangala, where a full house is as rare as an ice cube in the Sahara Desert, confirmed the increasing optimism about the team.
It all started with the national under-23 side, which put in a strong showing at the Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea, in September. They claimed fourth spot, equalling the country’s best result in the event.
The overflowing support at Rajamangala more or less helped the Thai side saunter past the Philippines, who are ranked the top team in Asean by the FIFA, and reach the final of the biennial tournament for the second time in succession.
Sadly, the game failed to end without incident. Even though the officials tried to make sure the fans were informed about prohibited objects at the venue, flares were lit during the game.
Lighting flares, no doubt, is a far less serious thing than clashes between rival fans, which marred the other semi-final tie between Malaysia and Vietnam in Kuala Lumpur. But the rules are something everyone needs to abide by and the fans’ action landed the Thai FA in hot water with the Asean Football Federation, which is taking the issue quite seriously.
This act by people associated with a group called “Ultras Thailand” was widely condemned on a popular online message board. The group tried to defend their action but the reasons they gave seemed ridiculous. For example, they said the opposition side trembled upon seeing the flares.
They also said they were novices in terms of supporting the team but if they support the team long enough they will learn how to act appropriately at a stadium.
Thailand faces Malaysia – who somehow completed a remarkable turnaround by securing a 5-4 aggregate win following a 4-2 second-leg victory in Vietnam – in the first leg of the final on Wednesday at the National Stadium.
It will be better if there is nothing to deflect attention away from the action on the pitch as the Thais bid to win their first Asean Championship title in 12 years – their fourth overall – which would put them level with Singapore as the most successful country in the tournament.
