Tell us about yourself and where you’re from.
My name is Okechukwu Igboamaeze and I am from Nigeria, Africa. I have been living in Ghana with family for the last six years.
I am from a city called Lagos, where I lived for thirty years. It’s one of the most populated cities in West Africa.
It has everything, and is a good travel destination for anyone who says “I haven’t been to Africa, let’s see what it is really like.” This is the real Africa, not what they show in movies or on TV. Lagos is a multicultural city with diverse views and religions. A real reflection of Nigeria
It is just like any other mega city across the world. While a wonderful place, Africa is still very difficult. It is not easy and many struggle to survive. In Africa, it seems you are either exceptional in sports or academics. That’s how you succeed.
How long have you been an Arsenal fan?
Since the early 90’s. My younger brother is actually a Chelsea fan. In the late 80’s we watched
the national team play and all the African talent from the U17s through the senior team; we were very passionate about our African players.
When the early 90’s came around, some African players were doing quite well. In 1995, two Nigerian players in particular, Nwankwo Kanu and
Finidi George, were the first ones to win the Champions League playing for Ajax. This sparked the love and passion to follow European football.(A Sportmarkt survey of 2011 found that 72% of Africans were interested in football, 55 percent watched the EPL and 39% followed an English team with 300 million African viewers regularly tuning in. Apparently, the country is divided between Arsenal and Chelsea. David Goldblatt, The Age of Football: The Global Game)
So Kanu was the catalyst for your support of Arsenal?
I would say, yes. It all started with Kanu. I was just so enamored with his progress and rise in football.
When he was signed by Arsenal, a lot of Nigerians fell in love with the club. Nigeria now has the largest number of Arsenal supporters in Africa because of Kanu.
I started watching Arsenal games and learning about the history of Arsenal. That is how the love story started for me and, since then, I never looked back.
One thing that made Arsenal unique to me, was that Wenger was targeting more unknown players who were working hard and performing well. It gave me hope that if you put in hard work, you can be successful.
(Arsenal signed Kanu from Inter Milan for around 4.5m in February 1999. After making his debut for Arsenal against Sheffield United in the FA Cup, he played from 1999-2004 and amassed around 119 appearances and scored 30 goals for the Gunners. Kanu was named African Footballer of the Year in 1996 and 1999).
What was your favorite Arsenal moment?
Oh, that is such a difficult question – there are so many.
My favorite Arsenal moment is actually my favorite Kanu moment as well. It was his hat-trick against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. Every major news outlet was reporting it: Kanu 3, Chelsea 2. It was crazy, everybody was screaming and yelling and going crazy.
Another moment that comes to mind, though it did not end happily, was the Champions League final against Barcelona. Arsenal fans went on a parade. It was crazy. Not only did people paint themselves in Arsenal colors, but they painted animals as well.
The loss still haunts me to this day, but it was still extremely memorable.
How did you watch the matches?
Initially, the TV would show little clips. You could only watch the highlights of your idols. Gradually, TV became more affordable. Otherwise, you would watch the match at commercial
centers.
Commercial centers?
Basically, it was a private business that would show football. Since many in Nigeria did not have cable, they would screen the games so you could watch. There are now many across Lagos.
Was it free?
No, it wasn’t. It was generally close to 50 Naira, which is Nigerian currency. The owners would use the funds to pay the electricity and cable, etc.
What would that be in US Dollars?
About $2.
Tell us more about the commercial centers.
People would save up for a long time to afford being able to watch the matches. It made it especially difficult when your team lost because you just worked so hard just to watch the game.
Sometimes there were hundreds of people watching various matches at once. In one section, you would have Arsenal supporters watching an Arsenal match; in another section you would have Chelsea fans watching a Chelsea match. All the screens have matches going on at the same time.
We got used to it for many, many years. This how we followed, supported, and cheered our team on.
It must have been quite loud with all those different fans in the same place.
Very noisy. You can not describe the passion with words. Everyone knew each other for the most part. Everyone in the neighborhood has a team and some fans would taunt you all week, you could not escape it. This made the banter extremely intense.
Sometimes, if we lost a game I got so depressed I could barely eat. I remember this being magnified towards the end of the Wenger years. Everything became so toxic. The banter was just too much.
The beauty was that no matter how many times they taunted the Arsenal fans, people still showed up every day to support the team.
What is your first memory of the commercial centers?
I would have to say the FA Cup Final in 2002. I remember the game vividly because of the lovely goals by Ray Parlour and Freddie Ljungberg. It was a thrill.
Do you still go?
Now, the games are more available at home. I watch them there or at work in my office. I don’t really have that experience anymore, but I miss it. Even though I have the opportunity to watch at home, I still go to watch with other fans sometimes.
It sounds like African fans can be very passionate.
Very passionate. I even know of some people who had an Arsenal wedding. You had to wear an Arsenal jersey or you were not allowed in. That is how it is for some people here.
Sometimes I see arguments from people in the UK who tend to think they are the only true fans, but there are fans all over the world that have their own ways of showing support. Nigerians are really passionate about football.
That passion has led to something we have here called ‘Arsenal Day.’ This has existed for ten years now. We do not know who started it, but it is a reflection of our passion for football, and the club.
This is a celebration that is fully organized. It has a proper structure; a president, vice-president, treasurer, financial secretary – it is very much an organization.
The city of Okene – in Kogi State – is most famously known for the way they celebrate it.
In your perspective, where do you think we are as a club?
I think you have to start with Wenger.
I believe he may have stayed too long and refused to take advice. In the world we live, you have to diversify. It was affecting his judgment and some of the other things that were going on at the club. The consensus was that he had to go.
When Emery was appointed, while I knew his background, I said let’s see. I knew he did well previously, but not so much at PSG. I was hopeful it would work. It started off well, we even went on a decent unbeaten run. But it eventually started going sideways. It just seemed like he couldn’t motivate
the players.Then the Europa League final. It was really sad to lose. I mentioned how intense the banter is here. The Chelsea fans were fiercely taunting us. I was torn between wanting Emery to go and giving him a bit more time. After all, it was his first season. Unfortunately, his second season was not much better.
When we started losing to teams we should have beaten, I said “I’m done with Emery.” My wife would ask ,“Why do you support Arsenal? You are always so depressed. Go support a team that has a winning mentality.” I tried to make her understand that I didn’t have a choice.
What about this season?
I think we’re in the right place. With Emery, there was this notion that perhaps it was the un- coachable players he had. I think Arteta has proved that to be wrong. He has shown he can make those same players better.
We are now more difficult to beat. We are playing more unpredictably. The line-up selection is not straightforward and we utilize different tactics to beat our opponents.
I have fallen in love with the football we’re playing. I just hope the board backs Mikel.
Have you had the opportunity to go to the Emirates?
No, I’ve never been to the Emirates.
We have programs that provide tickets and travel to lucky fans to see their team play. It is a promotional program, sometimes with products sponsors and things like that.
I’m hoping to one day visit the Emirates and watch an Arsenal game live. To see the statues of Arsenal legends and our golden trophy. It is going to be a surreal experience.
A note from TGT: Jon and the rest of us would like to thank Okechukwu for taking the time to sit down and provide us with an insight into his life as an Arsenal fan. His passion-filled words, and his love of the club certainly ring true.
It is important to remember that not all fans of Arsenal hail from north London. We are a global club with a fanbase that resides in all corners of it. Now, more than ever, we as a community – a family – must come together and support the club we all hold so dear.
Thank you Jon and Okechukwu for a terrific piece. I’m sort of old enough to remember that game against Chelsea, the angle Kanu scores from the third goal from was just crazy. Those were the days. And thank you so much for this.