Discurso directo, desde Inglaterra.

A Ofensiva 1906 tem acompanhado de perto a situação que se verifica em Inglaterra e que se prende principalmente com a aquisição de clubes ingleses e com a mais recente proposta na exportação de alguns jogos da Premier League. Temos acompanhado a angústia dos verdadeiros e tradicionais adeptos ingleses, em face a todo este cenário. Ainda ontem Mark Longden, Presidente do IMUSA (Independent Manchester United Association) nos falava em crise.

A crise de ver uma tradição tipicamente britânica ser convertida num modelo do tipo NBA. Os estádios estão cheios, mas o ambiente efervescente vai tendo cada vez menos espaço, tal como observou ainda recentemente e de forma critica Sir Alex Ferguson.

Nestes, quase, seis anos a Ofensiva 1906 tem alertado para a situação nacional e particularmente no Sporting Clube de Portugal. Fomos apelidados como os profetas da desgraça. Os factos estão agora aí, irrefutáveis e de que agora todos falam, desde dirigentes, jornalistas a adeptos, etc.

Antes de transcrevermos o texto de Steven Powell, do Football Supporters Federation, exclusivamente para os adeptos portugueses e mais concretamente para os sportinguistas queríamos enviar os nossos cumprimentos ao próprio Steve, Mark Longden, do I.M.U.S.A. e também do F.S.F. e a Vasco Wackrill e Martin Morris, ambos fundadores do FC United of Manchester.

« (…) Here in England and Wales, and up in Scotland, we’ve learnt that fans must organise to rescue the game we love so much from the sharks. They are only interested in money. They have no passion. It’s hard but we have won some victories. Where the money-men have won, fans have refused to let the traditions they hold so dear die. In some cases like FC United of Manchester and AFC Wimbledon they have created fan-owned clubs to continue the traditions stolen from them.

We struggle and fight every day for our game, in our clubs and working together. It isn’t easy. Rivalries are deep and intense in our game. Can Arsenal work with Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool with Manchester United, Cardiff City with Swansea City? Sporting with Benfica? The answer is, WE MUST.

We can remain rivals in the stadium, but outside we must bury our rivalries and work to save our clubs and our game. We fight on ticket prices, the right to sit or stand and support our teams in safety, for the rights of fans unjustly banned from the stadiums, against the pirates who wish only to make money and have no passion for our game. We struggle against violence, racism and discrimination. We are standing up against the mad plans to take English Premier League games away from our country and invade others. Much is still to be done but the fight will continue until we win back our game.

Fans are starting to work together, not only within the different countries of Europe but across our continent too. Bayern fans showed support for Manchester United fans when they were threatened with takeover by the Australian/American pirate Rupert Murdoch. That was just the start.

This summer in London the first ever European Football Fans’ Congress will take place in London at the stadium of Arsenal FC on Sunday 6 July 2008. The day before the Football Supporters’ Federation of England & Wales will hold its annual Football Fans’ Parliament. We are getting organised, getting stronger, learning to work together. We welcome Sporting fans to join us. We can learn from each other, share our battles and our passion for football.

Our message to the Sporting fans and Ofensiva 1906? BOA SORTE! VIVA O FUTEBOL!
Regards
Steven Powell
http://www.fsf.org.uk/

PS - You probably won’t want to know this but I was at Highbury the night my team Arsenal played Sporting in the old European Fairs Cup in 1969/70, the season we won the trophy. I won’t remind you of the score!” »

Ainda hoje a Ofensiva 1906 é novamente citada num dos sites de maior expressão em Itália (carregue no link). O que comprova que depois de a Ofensiva 1906 se consolidar enquanto um movimento de adeptos, sócios sportinguistas no Sporting e em Portugal este mesmo movimento ganha agora e cada vez mais expressão europeia, o que nos deve orgulhar a todos nós sportinguistas.

Faltam 10 dias (Sábado, 23 de Fevereiro de 2008)

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