Prawn sandwich brigade

Last updated

In England, "prawn sandwich brigade" is a derogatory term for the people who attend association football matches primarily to enjoy luxury boxes and corporate hospitality, rather than support a team or enjoy the sport. [1]

The term originated from a media comment by Manchester United captain Roy Keane who felt certain sections of the crowd had not been vocal enough in their support, and at times too quick to criticise minor mistakes, during the Champions League game against Dynamo Kyiv in November 2000: [2]

Away from home our fans are fantastic, I'd call them the hardcore fans. But at home they have a few drinks and probably the prawn sandwiches, and they don't realise what's going on out on the pitch.

The term is often attributed to a direct Keane quote; in fact the term originated in the print media in reaction to Keane's comments.

The 2009 film The Damned United depicts Brian Clough castigating the directors of Derby County F.C. for luxuriating in corporate hospitality suites with "prawn sandwiches", but failing to understand the game of football. The scene is set in 1973, but Clough's tirade in the film was probably inspired by Roy Keane's comments of 2000.

Related Research Articles

Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. Association football club from East Sussex

Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club, commonly referred to simply as Brighton, is an English professional football club based in the city of Brighton and Hove. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system. The club's home ground is the 31,800-capacity Falmer Stadium, situated in Falmer to the north east of the city.

Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The football club was founded in 1865. Forest has played home matches at the City Ground since 1898, and competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league system.

Brian Clough English footballer and manager

Brian Howard Clough was an English football player and manager, being one of only four managers to have won the English league while managing two different clubs. He played as a striker and remains one of the Football League's highest goalscorers, but career as a footballer was ended by a serious injury. As a manager, Clough was closely associated with Peter Taylor, who served as his assistant manager at several clubs in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. They achieved great success at Derby County and Nottingham Forest. He is also remembered for giving frequent radio and television interviews in which he made controversial remarks about players, other managers and the overall state of the game.

Rio Ferdinand English former association football player

Rio Gavin Ferdinand is an English former professional footballer who played as a centre-back, and is now a television pundit for BT Sport. He played 81 times for the England national team between 1997 and 2011, and was a member of three FIFA World Cup squads. He is one of the most decorated English footballers of all time and regarded by many as one of England's greatest ever players.

Roy Keane Irish footballer

Roy Maurice Keane is an Irish football pundit, manager and former professional player. He is the joint most successful Irish footballer of all time, having won 19 major trophies in his club career, 17 of which came during his time at English club Manchester United. Regarded as one of the best midfielders of his generation, he was named by Pelé in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players in 2004. Noted for his hardened and brash demeanour, he was ranked at No. 11 on The Times' list of the 50 "hardest" footballers in history in 2007. Keane was inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame in 2021.

Robbie Keane Irish footballer

Robert David Keane is an Irish professional football coach and former player who played as a forward. Keane served as captain of the Republic of Ireland from March 2006 until his international retirement in August 2016. Keane is the most capped player and is the top goalscorer in the team's history. He was most recently the assistant manager of Middlesbrough.

Rafael Benítez Spanish association football player and manager

Rafael Benítez Maudes is a Spanish professional football manager and former player who most recently managed Premier League club Everton.

Alan Smith (footballer, born 1980) English footballer

Alan Smith is an English football coach and retired professional footballer who last played for Notts County. He has also represented the England national team, winning 19 caps. Smith was known for his aggressive on pitch mentality and high pressing style of football.

Robbie Savage Welsh footballer and pundit (born 1974)

Robert William Savage is a Welsh former professional footballer who played as a midfielder, now a football pundit and director of football at North West Counties League Premier Division club Macclesfield.

Nigel Clough English football manager and former player

Nigel Howard Clough is an English professional football manager and former player who is currently the manager of Mansfield Town. Playing predominantly as a forward, but later in his career used as a midfielder, Clough was capped by England 14 times in the early 1990s.

Roy Carroll Northern Irish professional footballer

Roy Eric Carroll is a Northern Irish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper. He is best known for his spells at Wigan Athletic, Manchester United and Olympiacos. He has also represented Northern Ireland 45 times at full international level, gaining his first cap in 1997, aged 19.

Stanislav Varga is a former football player from Slovakia and currently manager of MFK Dukla Banská Bystrica.

Neill Collins

Neill William Collins is a Scottish football manager and former player who is the head coach of USL Championship side Tampa Bay Rowdies.

Stephen Brian Hodge is an English retired footballer who played as a midfielder. He enjoyed a high-profile club and international career in the 1980s and 1990s, the high point being reaching the 1986 World Cup quarter final against Argentina.

Alf-Inge Rasdal Håland is a Norwegian former professional footballer who played as a right-back or midfielder.

Andrew Paul D'Urso is an English former football referee in the Football League. D'Urso is based in Billericay, Essex and is a member of the Barking & Dagenham Referees Society. He retired at the end of the 2014–15 season.

Derby County F.C. Association football club in England

Derby County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football, but, after being relegated in April 2022, will compete in League One in the 2022–23 season. Derby has played its home matches at Pride Park Stadium since 1997.

Stephen Robert Bower is an English football commentator, one of the main voices for BBC TV's Match of the Day, culminating in being part of the commentary teams for the 2010, 2014, and 2018 FIFA World Cups. Bower commentated on New Zealand's historic draw with Italy and Argentina's 4–1 win over South Korea amongst others.

<i>The Damned United</i> 2009 film

The Damned United is a 2009 British sports drama film directed by Tom Hooper and adapted by Peter Morgan from David Peace's bestselling 2006 novel The Damned Utd - a largely fictional book based on the author's interpretation of Brian Clough's ill-fated tenure as football manager of Leeds United in 1974. Produced by BBC Films and Left Bank Pictures with additional funding from Screen Yorkshire and Columbia Pictures, Sony Pictures Releasing International served as distributor.

Martin ONeill Northern Irish professional football manager former player

Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill, is an Irish professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder.

References

  1. Warshaw, Andrew (22 October 2004). "Prawn sandwich, sir?". uefa.com. Archived from the original on 25 October 2004.
  2. "BBC SPORT | CHAMPIONS LEAGUE | Angry Keane slates Man Utd fans". BBC News. 2000-11-09. Retrieved 2012-01-05.