A PASSIONATE video shows a Brighton fan launching into a heartfelt explanation about what it really means to be a true supporter of a football club.
Alex Jordan issued his impassioned rant about the true meaning of following your team in response to an American who questioned why someone would support a side who will “never win the league“.
The 32-year-old responded after an American claimed that the MLS is better than any fotballing league in Europe due to the amount of clubs who win trophies and reach finals.
The presenter in the video says: “So, I’m gonna tell you why the MLS is better than any other European league in the world and then you guys s**t all over me in the comments. Sound good? Let’s get started.
“One simple stat proves that the MLS is better than any other league in the world, it’s called parity. In the last 26 seasons, 19 teams have played in the final and 15 teams have won the MLS Cup.
“Genuinely, what’s the point of supporting a team like Brentford knowing that you will never have a chance at winning the league? And don’t bring up Leicester because they literally had 5000/1 odds.”
In a direct response to this video, Alex said: “Because it’s about family and community.
“It’s about growing up as a Brighton fan when all of your friends supported Arsenal, Liverpool, Man United, Chelsea.
“It’s about being with your family when your dad took this photo of the Goldstone Ground at the last ever game as we were on the brink of losing our club.
“It’s about all the years as a season ticket holder at the Withdean which was an athletics track with a pitch in the middle of it.
“It’s about the community, this is me, this is the people that we sat with for all of our time at the Withdean.”
Alex gestures to a photo behind him on-screen, sat alongside a crowd of Brighton and Hove Albion supporters.
He continues: “At the time we went protesting on marches down the beach and we wrote songs and we got ourselves a new ground.
“It’s about the potentially once in a lifetime trips to Wembley with your family where your mum brings along the scarf that she wore in 1983 at the Man United semi-final.
“It’s about my dad, my cousin, my best mate, my brother in-law, myself taking my father in-law to his first ever game as a man who never leaves his little village.
“A little farmer seeing the most people that he’s ever seen in one place in his life and loving it.
“It’s about my soon-to-be-wife first referring to Brighton as ‘us’ and ‘we’.
“It’s about family, it’s about community and we would change none of it. If it’s just about winning for you then you’re here for the wrong reason.”
The video was uploaded to social media on Wednesday and has received more than 140,000 likes and over 1,800 comments from users left emboldened by Alex’s speech.
One user wrote: “Americans don’t get it.”
Another commented: “We as Americans don’t get to benefit from the community aspect of English football, so it makes little sense for us not to support a big club.”
However, a third said: “The greatest trick English football ever pulled off was convincing fans that being uncompetitive is romantic.”
MLS side LA Galaxy replied: “Amen, Alex, respect.”
Brighton and Hove Albion also responded by commenting: “Good old Sussex by the sea,” to which Alex replied “Stand or fall.”
Speaking today voice actor artist Alex said: “I’ve been a Brighton fan as long as I can remember. My first games were at the Goldstone Ground.
“My family and I were there at the last game when the club was facing extinction. My parents used to live right around the corner from the ground.
“At the end of that last game, we went onto the pitch with all the other fans and took home our memento of the ground; a small chunk of turf that we kept alive for as long as we could.
“With the guidance of chairman and local hero Dick Knight, we found a home at Withdean, an athletics track with a pitch in the middle and portacabins for dressing rooms.
“Our opening match was a beautiful sunny day and an incredible 6-0 victory over Mansfield Town. This was the most secure I’d ever known the club and, in my eyes, we’d made it.
“Success is relative.
“We made friends with those around us in the South Stand and for the vast majority, those faces never changed for our whole time there.
“We have a hard and fast rule in my family: never, under any condition, leave before the whistle. You’re there to support your team and you do so until the game is totally over and done, regardless of the scoreline.
“I like to think this mentality is something I have learned from football and my family that carries into my everyday life and relationships with those around me. You never leave until the whistle is blown.
“The club has become a beacon of pride in Sussex. The club embodies a lot of what is best in us, from its community outreach programmes that make the sport accessible to all, to it’s firm stance on acceptance and anti-homophobia.
“I am so happy to see so many new people that have found or re-found their love for the club in recent years. The more the merrier, I say. Open those doors wide and say come one, come all.
“When I was growing up, I didn’t know another kid that supported Brighton outside those that I knew on match days. Now I see kids all across Sussex and beyond wearing the kit!
“Equally, I understand why some people might seek out ‘higher-performing’ clubs. I do not personally hold ill-will to fans that are often referred to as ‘glory-hunters’.
“There are many that do not have a particularly strong family or community bond to a football club and so they go looking for someone to support. They seek out community.
“Naturally, it is often the case that the easiest communities to find will be those with the greatest success and highest profile.
“I do believe that if you’re looking for someone to support then there may be some communities who will feel the impact of your support more than others.
“If dark days may come and you fall through the football ladder, do not abandon them.
“Your flag is now tied to the mast and that community has welcomed you in. You’re in this together now, come rain or shine.
“That’s what football is all about really. It’s about family and community.
“After all, what would be the point of winning if there was nobody to celebrate with.”
