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Type of site | Fanzine/Blog |
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| Founded | 1989 |
| Headquarters | 1 Hodgson's Buildings, Stadium Way, Sunderland, SR5 1 BT |
| URL | https://www.a-love-supreme.com/ |
A Love Supreme (also known as ALS) is a Sunderland AFC fanzine, first published in 1989.
A Love Supreme is an independent fanzine created for the supporters of English football club Sunderland AFC, written by the fans, for fans. The first issue was launched on March 21, 1989, when Sunderland played Chelsea at Roker Park. Since then, ALS have published almost 300 issues of the fanzine, selling over two million copies.
A Love Supreme has been named UK Fanzine of the Year on nine separate occasions by Total Football Magazine, [1] Shoot Magazine [1] the Football Supporters Association [2] and won two awards from The New Football Pools. The 'Best Overall Fanzine' [3] and Best Premier League Publication (Online). [4] ALS has also been named North East Publication of the Year at the North East Press Awards on two occasions [5] and employs several full-time staff.
A Love Supreme has its base and a fan shop opposite the Stadium of Light, where its staff design the magazine, update their website, social media and sell their own range of fan related merchandise.
A Love Supreme also provide fan coach travel to every SAFC away game and have done so since 1998.
BBC, ITV, SKY and Sport Channels from around the globe often shoot footage in ALS. Several interviews in the Sunderland Netflix series Sunderland 'Til I die also took place in the interior of the ALS HQ.
Liverpool FC media channel Redmen TV have used the building too when filming a Jordan Henderson documentary. [6] At ALS they interviewed former Sunderland player Kevin Ball and ALS editor Sobs.
ALS have published 37 SAFC fan related books, including the Mackem Dictionary, written by Paul Swinney. The Dictionary documents common words used in Sunderland/Wearside. It was created to raise funds for the SAFC charity, The Foundation of Light. To promote the book Sunderland AFC created a video featuring several first team players, who went through some of the words in the book. [7]
ALS have been involved in various football related music projects. The first was Ain’t No Stopping Us Now, [8] SAFC's official release when they reached the 1992 FA Cup Final against Liverpool. The song featured the first team squad and was released on A Love Supreme Records.
Next up was Cheer Up Peter Reid in 1996, which sold 40,000 copies and peaked at 41 in the UK charts, [9] and was number one in the NME Indie Charts. [10] The proceeds of Cheer Up Peter Reid were donated to cancer charities. The story became so popular that they appeared on The Big Breakfast with Peter Andre. Then came Niall Quinn's Disco Pants, which ALS self-released on their own record label. It reached number one in the NME Indie Charts. [11] The singles were followed up by the album Mackem Music, which featured the above-mentioned releases and various SAFC related songs from over the years.
ALS have been long time campaigners against racism in football.
In 1989 they handed out 10,000 anti racism stickers to SAFC fans outside Roker Park. In 1992 they released an anti racism t-shirt of which all proceeds went to Show Racism The Red Card. The shirts were modelled by SAFC players Gary Bennett, Phil Gray and Don Goodman.
Gary Bennett was awarded an MBE for services to anti-racism in football [12] [13] and also given freedom to the city of Sunderland. ALS editors accepted an invitation from Sunderland City Council to become ambassadors for Sunderland in 2017 and also sit on the Development Board of the club's charity, The Foundation Of Light. On World Mental Health Day in 2019, A Love Supreme worked in partnership with the Mind charity, who help raise awareness for mental health. The project was called ‘Goals Worth Talking About’ which allowed fans to vote for their team's favourite goal, which was then immortalised as street art in their respective cities. In this case, the goal voted to be recreated was from Carlos Edwards against Burnley in 2007 at the Stadium of Light, which helped seal Sunderland's promotion back to the Premier League was re-created by local artist Frank Styles on the side of ALS HQ. Starting in Sunderland, working south through Leeds, Preston, West Bromwich, Cardiff, Bristol and ending at Leyton Orient, eight pieces of individual art have been produced in locations near the club stadiums. [14]
Many ALS staff and contributors have developed their skills at the fanzine and then gone on to have successful careers in football media. ALS Founder Jeremy Robinson left ALS to report full time on SAFC for the Sunday Sun. Jonathan Wilson contributed to and sold ALS outside Roker Park and went on to write for The Independent, FourFourTwo, The Guardian and The Observer. His books, Inverting the Pyramid and Angels with Dirty Faces both won Best Football Book awards. [15] He has also won FSA Football Writer of the Year in 2012, 2017 and 2021. [16] [17]
Philip Buckingham is now Football News Reporter for TheAthleticUK. Adam Capper left ALS to work in the Media Department at SAFC before joining West Ham United, closely followed by Sam Lightle, who worked in digital media at SAFC and is now at Everton FC. The Sunderland Echo's SAFC reporters Phil Smith and Chris Young also worked at ALS before moving on to the local paper.
Peter Oliver now works for RTL, but he formerly worked for ALS before joining the entertainment brand. In 2021 Peter returned to Sunderland to speak to the younger generation about his career. [18]
Sunderland Association Football Club is an English professional football club based in the city of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear. Formed in 1879, Sunderland play in the Championship, the second tier of English football. The club has won six top-flight titles in the First Division, and has finished runners-up five times. The club has also won the FA Cup twice and been runners-up twice, as well as winning the FA Charity Shield in 1936 and being finalists the following year. Sunderland have also been Football League Cup finalists in 1985 and 2014.
Peter Reid is an English football manager, pundit and former player.
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John Harvey was a Scottish footballer who played for Sunderland and Newcastle United as an inside right.
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The Friendship Trophy is a football match, contested on an irregular basis by just two teams: Norwich City and Sunderland. The match dates back to the camaraderie forged between fans of the two clubs at the time of the 1985 Football League Cup Final that they contested. Norwich City won the 1985 Football League Cup Final, however at the end of the First Division Season, both teams were relegated to the Second Division.
Mackem and Canary mingled and drank happily together. “The Sunderland supporters were magnificent and everyone seemed to mix, it was light-hearted and very nice,” judged Norwich manager Ken Brown after his team had lifted the trophy thanks to a Gordon Chisholm own goal. On the London Underground, Norwich fans sang “we won the cup”, while Sunderland’s retorted with: “we scored the goal”.
The Foundation of Light is a Registered Charity in the United Kingdom, and is the independent charitable foundation of professional football club Sunderland A.F.C. It is the biggest football charity in the UK.
The 2018–19 season was Sunderland's 140th season in existence, and their first season in the third tier of English football since 1987, after relegation from the Championship the previous season. Along with competing in League One, the club also participated in the FA Cup and EFL Cup as well as the EFL Trophy. The season covered the period from 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019.
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The 2019–20 Sunderland A.F.C. season was the club's 141st season in existence, and their second consecutive season in the third tier of English football, after relegation from the Championship in the 2017–18 season. Along with competing in League One, the club participated in the FA Cup and EFL Cup as well as the EFL Trophy. The season covers the period from 1 July 2019 to 30 June 2020. On 3 April, the English Football League decided to postpone all football until safe to do so due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and on 9 June, clubs voted to curtail the season, meaning the final table would be calculated by a points-per-game method with the play-offs being played behind closed doors.
Charles Harry Finlayson Methven is an English public relations consultant, journalist and publisher. He has also been an English football club executive, including at Sunderland AFC where he was a part-owner. In June 2023, he was part of a takeover deal at Charlton Athletic.
Sunderland A.F.C. supporters are the followers of Sunderland A.F.C. an English professional football club based in the city of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear. Sunderland A.F.C. were formed in 1879 and joined The Football League for the 1890–91 season. They experienced an immediate period of success with five league titles in a decade between 1892 and 1902, and added subsequent titles in 1913 and 1936. Supporters of the club, and people from Sunderland in general, are traditionally called Mackems, but during their near century long tenure at Roker Park they were also referred to as Rokerites and Rokermen.
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