From football to cricket, there are numerous teams that fans can support. Staying awake at night to watch matches is an example of a method in which people showcase their loyalty to the clubs and teams that they support. ‘The Football Dugout’ is Goa’s biggest community of passionate football supporters that hold screening of various football matches throughout Goa that unite the supporters of clubs and teams.
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| A poster advertising the screening of a football match |
The mastermind behind this initiative, Conrad Barreto is a passionate fan of a club playing in the English Premiere League called Liverpool. He met several like-minded people on Facebook and began a group called Liverpool FC Goa to unite fans, this group currently has a strength exceeding 700 members. Apart from showcasing their support digitally, the group decided to meet together for watching the games. Conrad felt inspired at one of the screenings to allow the supporters of their rivals to join them too. Being aware of the passion that Goa has for football, he had a vision which would culminate in an atmosphere that is similar to stadiums.
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| The logo of 'The Football Dugout' |
He succeeded in creating an environment which brought fans of diverse leagues together, thus creating the venture called 'The Football Dugout'. This community was established not only to connect football fans across Goa and India, but to encourage debates with like-minded individuals on a regular basis while simultaneously growing as a community that watches games together. The passion of this football centric community evolved into something more significant, members of this community began adding their close friends, who come from various parts of India and also around the globe.
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| The Facebook page of 'The Football Dugout' |
This group currently has more than 24,000 members across India, they also have members that live in the U.K and others parts of the world that attend games, meet players, share their experiences online and etc. This group also inspires people to travel to meet their idols. This group is kept alive 24x7 due to engaging and lively chats and updates by fans. Their first screening was the match between Manchester Utd and Liverpool. The largest screening of the passionate supporters of 'The Football Dugout' was the 2014 World Cup Final which was attended by more than thousand fans. They set up a screening for the recent Champions League Final between Liverpool and Real Madrid, which received a crowd of more than 600.
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| Football screenings held 'The Football Dugout' |
They have been successful in developing a fan culture in Goa. Despite establishing a fan culture in Goa, they faced a lot of challenges during their early days. A lot of fans would get upset during debates and accuse the admins of partiality towards a specific team, unaware that the admins of “The Football Dugout” support different teams. Since the group wanted to uphold the views of every supporter, they never judged anyone according to the teams they supported. As Conrad believes that healthy discussions are crucial to keep the passion and rivalry alive, this group reinforces these beliefs without discriminating anyone, as their focus remains on creating a football fan.
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| The lively chats of 'The Football Dugout's' Facebook group |
Their challenges were not restricted solely to the group as plenty of effort, hard work and time goes behind creating an excellent viewing experience. Seeing the huge rush for games, several people began offering their places. When the crowds were massive, several people pitched in financially to create a memorable experience. Over the years all of these efforts helped them grow as a community. The passion of the masterminds behind 'The Football Dugout' should be adequate to rid Goa of many problems.
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| The massive rush for a screening held by 'The Football Dugout' |
A simple example of this passion in solving one of Goa’s environmental problems is to avoid the usage of plastics whenever people visit the marketplace. My readers who hail from diverse parts of India and the world can utilise this passion to expose the people that distort religion to create conflicts. The problem in such cases is not religion itself but forcing diverse interpretations of religion and sowing seeds of hatred between communities.
While Nupur Sharma has stoked controversy recently, the retaliation of the Muslim community in various parts of India shouldn’t be justified. Blind hatred is never the answer to resolve issues, this hatred manifests in a section of Goans and people of the world that exist to aggravate the issues of insiders vs outsiders. Though this aspect should be considered by people, they should scrutinise such matters as it has the potential to create societies which nurture hatred more than love.
