Just out of interest ....

[France in Focus]

.... those of you who like football, do you still support the team you supported in the UK?

Do you watch French footie and follow French teams or do you prefer to only watch the matches that your UK teams are playing in.

Just me being curious,
Char

[Doug]

The only football I watch is les bleus internationals.
Rugby is another thing, try to watch it a lot, both union and league, always watch the tour.

[Char]

I only watch Football (and Rugby for that matter) when the French National team are playing, we record the tour and I haven't finished watching it yet , and the dauphiné etc. I also watch F1, motorcycle Gp and superbikes, Horse Jumping and Dressage.....

But I was really just curious to see whether people followed the French football teams over here or whether they prefer supporting the team they've always supported in the UK.

[DaveW]

I support the team I supported in the UK, that will never change. I do watch a fair bit of football in France and often go and watch Monaco play, because It's close and I can take my football mad grandsons along to a safe environment. They are even very good these days, Monaco that is.

When I first came to France I used to go and watch AS Cannes. It was a good time, a certain ZZ and Patrick Vieira played for them. A joy to watch.

[Liz]

Ditto, my home team is always the first result I look for, followed by Ipswich Town. Nothing makes a Canary happier than Norwich winning and Ipswich losing!
I haven't seen any live pro football in France, we are simply too far away from any decent teams.
Our local bar is run by a family from Dijon so we all have to follow them... downwards last season. Hoping we'll see more of the Cnaries on their big screen as they show a lot of premiership footie (and rugby and any team sport where France are doing well).

[DaveW]

See you manage to draw the same team in the first game when you get promoted. You never know

[Liz]

yes, but at home this time!!
I expect your lot will win but hey, it's better than watching a match against QPR.
It's more fun being the supporter of a little Club than one guaranteed to stay up.

[DaveW]

I think it will be a case of who can keep up with Man City. They can buy anybody they like, the FFP rules don't seem to apply. I can't see any other English club keeping up with them.

Until the manager leaves and then it's a reset, for a while.

[exile]

I have never really supported any team but I have maintained interest in teams close to where I have lived in the UK and to a lesser extent in Germany. I am not sure that that counts as "supporting".

When I was transferred to our Marseilles plant ( long story but essentially parachuted in when the existing incumbent suffered a major stoke) I was asked after some weeks which team did I support? Clearly a trick since those asking knew I lived closer to Lyon than Marseille and the battle of the Olympics!

Fortunately I was able to honestly say:
Well working in Marseille I suppose I should support Olympic Marseille but living rather closer to Lyon perhaps I should support Olympic Lyon; but actually nearly everyone in the village supports St. Etienne.

Honour it seems was satisfied without me having to declare any support whatsoever but I guess if the real background was whether I knew anything about French football, then I guess I passed.

[Liz]

"Exile' was the nom de plume my late father used as a sports journalist in Norfolk after demob. as he came from Wales.
My Mum said she used to duck her head down when she heard people on the bus saying that Exile should go home, his reports were rubbish. He still ended up much higher than that in the newspaper world