Why do Arsenal have the best bloggers?

Ollie Irish

3rd, November 2009

79 Comments

gunnerblog

As a paid-up Spurs fan, it pains me to say it, but in terms of blogging, Arsenal have been Premier League champions for a very long time. Since the dawn of football blogging, in fact.

The quality and depth of Arsenal blogs shames those of all other clubs, including the rest of the so-called ‘big four’. Indeed, if you added up all the decent Chelsea, Liverpool and Man Utd blogs, I doubt even then they could match the might of the Gunners’ online output.

Consider the evidence:

Arseblog (the undisputed gaffer), Le Grove, East Lower, A Cultured Left Foot, Good Playa, Gunnerblog, The Cannon, ClockEnders, Wrighty7, Goonerholic, The Goon, 3rd Gen, Up For Grabs Now

That’s a mere highlights reel of Arsenal blogs (and sorry if I missed yours) – there are many, many more out there, some of them excellent, others frankly not worth the platform they’re written on.

So, how did this happen? Why do Arsenal have so many good, dedicated bloggers? Is it because they’re more self-righteous, more educated, more passionate, more contrary, more pompous, more intelligent?

I have no idea – maybe a combination of the above.

I’d genuinely love to hear your thoughts on this topic, and especially the thoughts of Arsenal bloggers…

Posted in Arsenal, Featured, Opinion

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79 Comments

  1. ParkLane67 says:

    Ollie

    If your a Spurs fan, I’m the Pope!

  2. I totally agree with you.

    I think the main reason to this, is because Arsenal are very often talked negative about in the media. Most of it is just bullsh*t, so the fans have to express themselves via bloggs. And they really have a lot of reason to do exactly that, since so much shit happens to Arsenal.

  3. Jesus says:

    Arsenal fan here and a regular reader of most of these blogs.

    Most of them are alright, but Wrighty7 is a total tit. Also, we have some excellent Youth + Reserves blogs as well such as Young Gun’s and Jeorge Bird’s.

  4. Bob says:

    Don’t forget Vital Arsenal and the mighty Little Dutch.

  5. EngNor says:

    It`s because they have all the experience of working for all the ragbloids.

    COYS!

  6. Nay says:

    Why go anywhere else but here?

  7. Ollie says:

    @ ParkLane67: What, you find it impossible to believe that not all Spurs fans hate Arsenal? Sorry for being rational.

  8. tseuq says:

    The average Arsenal fan is educated. We are the thinking man’s club, after all.

  9. nobleman72 says:

    You’re spot on with Arseblog. Undisputed great. You might be right about the demographic too – no doubt at lot of bloggers are from London and aspiring journalists or have been in the media sometime. Though Young Guns’ J.Sanderson is definitely right up there and I don’t just mean in quality – a northern lad most definitely. And he has just been interviewed on Arsenal FC Blog Podcast from Australia. So you’re right in the fact that it is also far-reaching and diverse. Maybe it’s just because it’s a team which inspires comment, and the majority of it good comment – nice copy.

  10. Ollie says:

    Yeah, Young Guns is excellent also, will add it to the list.

  11. yidtom says:

    More bloggers because arsenal have achieved more over the last 15 years, hence they attract the glory seekers, especially londoners. It seems if your from London you support Arsenal or Chelsea nowadays thanks to sky.
    Not sure why people choose arsenal as they have one F all.
    Im proud to support Spurs and enjoy the rollercoaster ride, and when we win things im sure it feels twice as good for us Yids than it does for them lot up the road.
    Us spurs are football supporters not ‘fans’ we support our team through thick and thin, and dont stamp our feet and boo after a few missed place passes, like the gooners did the first 40 mins of the game!!

    YIDS

  12. Kipmonster says:

    It’s simply because it’s the one avenue Arsenal fans have to hit back at a blatantly Liverpool & ManUre loving, Arsenal hating TV / Radio & Written media !

  13. ParkLane67 says:

    Ollie

    The reason I don’t believe you is because:-

    a) Why do you know so much about A***nal blogs? – You must spend a lot of time there. The only reason I got onto your article is that you managed to get it posted on the Spurs NewsNow page

    b) No real Spurs fan would behave in such a toady, obsequious manner towards the scum.

    Quit pretending Gooner, you’re fooling no-one!

  14. goonermichael says:

    Don’t have a go at Wrighty7 he’s good

  15. Steve says:

    Of course on the other end of the scale you have sites like ‘Arsenal Truth’ which is to Truth the same as Peter Mandelson is to mortgage applications.

    The only site that can actually find fault for taking 16 points from the last 18…

    every time I read that garbage it makes my teeth ache

  16. Jim M says:

    I think the fact that Arseblog was one of the first football blogs to get really popular is a factor so others followed on. No other team has a blog like that.

  17. Ollie says:

    @ ParkLane67: I know a lot about blogs, cause, er, I’m a blogger. Imagine a car mechanic who drives a Ferrari but knows nothing about Porsches, for example. You’re the sort of one-eyed fan I have little time for. I’ve been a Spurs fan since 1981, for the record.

  18. DAVSPURS says:

    Total bollocks when i learn to put my full stops and improve my grammer then Davspurs is the dogs bollocks. We must be better we have more to moan about while you Arsoles just moan at the end of the season when you look in the cupboard and there a big fat newt all that running passing breading hot kids just to win fuck all .We moan till we get to Wembley . already booked me ticket.Your goooooooner win newt .NO 1 RANTER DAVSPURS

  19. ritesh says:

    That’s a cool one, especially from a Tottenham fan, and at this stage.

    I believe the club represents a set of values to which people adhere. To adhere to this set, those people must themselves share those values. Since Arsenal is a very “learned” team in terms of players, manager, board, and ancillary services, the fans have to share the standard, hence the quality of the blogs.

    Mind you there are some exceptions like Palmer though.

  20. Maggie Mbanefo says:

    Arsenal Vision is also very good. Head honcho Mean Lean talks good waffle and even better sense.

  21. Sameer Shah says:

    Agreed with Maggie, ArsenalVision is excellent. Up their with the very best.

    The fact that it’s not on your list proves what a strong set of bloggers The Arse has. Even the foreign ones like 7am Kickoff (American) and ArsenalFCBlog (Aussie) are top notch.

  22. ParkLane67 says:

    If you know your history, you don’t go toadying up to the enemy. For the record, I’ve been a Spurs fan since my Dad took me to the home of football in ’61 and I’ve got both eyes fully working and I also know a Gooner when I smell one and Ollie ……. You’re a Gooner!

  23. Because when blogging was created after the first world war, they bribed all the others. Or maybe when blogging was created at the turn of the 90s they bought out the top table for their own interests.

    Nice effort with the links though, should push you up that wikio ranking.

  24. SW15 Gooner says:

    The arsecast every Friday is simply quality and pure comedy

  25. Steve says:

    lol – only a spurs fan could smell with their eyes…

  26. Ollie says:

    ParkLane67, I think it’s probably best if you pipe down – you’re not exactly giving a good impression on our behalf. In fact, you’re helping to prove my point.

  27. ParkLane67 says:

    Ollie

    If you don’t want real Spurs fans reading your asinine rubbish, why do you set up your tags so that NewsNow picks it up as a Spurs post?

  28. Omar says:

    As an Arsenal fan I must say that I enjoy reading all the blogs from the US every morning in Google Reader. My two favorites are Arseblog and Untold Arsenal. My two worst blogs are LeGrove and Arsenal News Review.

    1. Arseblog and Untold Arsenal
    2. A culture left foot
    3. GoodPlaya
    4. Goonerholic
    5. Wright7
    6. Jeorge Birds’s Arsenal – Very imformative about the youth system
    6. Young Guns – Very informative about the youth System
    7. Goonerboy and Gunnerblog

  29. Simon Says says:

    Gunnerblog is better than Arseblog imo. I read both, but Gunnerblog actually attends the game and doesn’t chat rubbish about drinking to much to pad it out slightly.

    Gunnerblog FTFW!

  30. Andy Merrett says:

    Please don’t feed the trolls.

  31. London says:

    Ollie you have listed the main Arsenal blogs but what are the principal spud blogs. I could only find ‘”Dear Mr Levy” ‘Supporting Tottenham, it’s like purgatory”‘ I thought it was a well written blog, good sense of humour with some interesting comments and no censorship, Christ, they even let me on after Saturday, ooops sorry to bring it up. Lol

  32. Bruce says:

    Maybe that is the reason they are so quiet at the Emirates?

  33. JimB says:

    What a loda of garbage!

    I’m sure that there are one or two decent Arsenal bloggers out there. But I haven’t come across any. Most of them are as smug, ignorant and inarticulate as you would expect of the kind of dim-witted johnny-come-latelies who follow the Sky 4.

  34. London says:

    You lot used to sing your heads off defiantly every time you came to our place but over the years you have become quieter and quieter, you were a shadow of your former selves on Saturday, a spent force, a beaten fan base, resigned to your inevitable defeat.

  35. anon says:

    another site that promots arsenal is avenell Road

  36. Harry Hotspur says:

    Funniest thing since Sickapedia.
    Should this be billed as a Top Ten of dull reads?
    Yes it should.

  37. Jonny Potatoes says:

    Gunnerblog is shit. That cunt GS takes an eternity to update it. ;-)

  38. anon says:

    Tottenham fans act like animals and cant think rationally

  39. nin says:

    Shut it fatty.

  40. Jonny Potatoes says:

    and all the people that post on Gunnerblog are right freaks. Ones got an orange willy, one has a huge nose like pinocchio, one is ginger and theres one who only ever eats lentils. Hes my favourite. Hes lovely.

    Watch out for Stringy,. Hes a bit of a cunt.

  41. commentator says:

    ollie thanx so much for doing this list. Im a big arsenal fan but i never really knew which blog to go to because there are so many. Also everyone is right about the youth blogs. Some of them are fantastic

  42. alex says:

    they’re the biggest bloggers because they’re the biggest complainers. ever since henry left with the trophies, its always been about when they were going to “find their touch again” ha! sad…

  43. Jesus says:

    Myles Palmer is not an Arsenal blogger.

    He’s a ridiculous, self-opinionated fucktard who doesn’t even allow comments on his blog because everyone would just diss him. He claims to have thorough, inside knowledge of the way the club works when he’s a clueless dimwit. I have half a mind to write to his web host claiming he supports child porn just to have him shut down.

    As for you Ollie, its amazing how you vacillate from Anti-Arsenal to Pro-Arsenal rhetoric. You’re an enigma.

  44. Omar says:

    Jesus,

    I am in total agreement with you. Myles Palmer is shit.

  45. peterburns says:

    I quite like the Gooner Talk blog, as well as Young Guns.

  46. Johan says:

    that motherfucker never gives arsenal any credit.He even said “i just write about arsenal i am not a fan” so why the fuck do you keep writing about them.

  47. Big gun says:

    Tsk tsk, jealousy makes people nasty eh…

  48. […] Gooners, Rajanya Blogger 3 11 2009 Manchester United boleh menguasai Premiership dalam dua dekade terakhir, tapi sejak dunia blog merambah sepak bola, Arsenal adalah juaranya. Gooners sangat aktif, kreatif, unik, tidak asal copy paste, dan diselingi konten menarik mulai analisa, kritikan, dan opini tentang perjalanan skuad Arsene Wenger di dunia blog. Whoallthepies menulis Why do Arsenal have the best bloggers? […]

  49. Laugh out loud says:

    Haha, With Spuds now arguing amongst themselves it’s finally 100% official. NO ONE including you fucking spuds likes Tottenham fans!
    Ollie just about gaved you bell ends a bit of respect for proving your not all arrogant pricks we all come to know you as,but how you turned on your own because he doesn’t share the same one eyed views as he put it, is shameful!

    FOYS!

    Up the Hammers!

  50. Lettraggad says:

    Good question being an Arsenalfan I read most of the blogs you mentioned. I’ve always wondered if United fans and Spursfan had the same number of quality blogs.. but havent really been arsed to google it. strangely enough this blog is one of the blogs Ive encountered a couple of time.. You seem to be way more sensible than the rest of the tots and judging by some .. less articulate comments above that very much the case. As many have commented the british media is very anti arsenal and its near impossible to read any of the crap they print as its Biased unfactual .. well crap. So the blogs have quite a few followers And we really do have some excellent blogs. I spend so much time on these blogs and off course inciting violance on teamtak .. that I really should start my own blog. Maybe i will.

  51. […] before I go a shout out to Who Ate All The Pies for the mention, the cheque is in the […]

  52. Jack Scurvy says:

    You forgot mine, you spud wanker. Just kidding… but it is indeed odd. Why is it that Arsenal have such … hold on… being distracted by the birds to the right of the comment box… ok, back. What was the question?

  53. As a writer of another Arsenal blog (sad not to make it on the list *whimper*) I think the answer to your question is quite simple…

    Arseblog paved the way many years ago and got Arsenal fans accustomed to how a blog works and how great they can be and many, many people have been inspired and followed suit. Because people were reading his blog it means there is already an audience and those same people are likely to be happy reading more sources as opposed to saying “just one blog for me thanks!”

    Arsenal’s blogging community as a whole started with Arseblog many years ago and it will be a little time yet before other clubs’ communities start to be as strong. It will happen, no doubt, but that is the reason why Arsenal are ahead of the pack in this field.

  54. thanks for putting me on your list, it was quite a surprise considering the sheer number of arsenal blogs.

    I write thegoonblog.com and I have to admit it was the Arseblogger that inspired me, great blog, hilarious and to be honest he has shaped the blogging world with his deal with oleole.com. Would be great to see other teams blogs popping up more though, good luck with yours.

  55. […] other news, a shout out to whoateallthepies who list Third-Gen (or ‘3rd Gen’ to those in the know) among the top Arsenal blogs […]

  56. Jammathon says:

    Jammathon from Third-Gen here (listed as ‘3rd Gen’ in the blog) – cheers for listing my blog in such illustrious company. While the reasons given by the other bloggers as to why Arsenal is so blogged about (London demographic, Arseblogger getting the ball rolling), I think one other reason has been Arsenal’s style of play. I’m not here to wax lyrical about our ‘attacking awesomeness’ sucking fans into blogging, but more the intricacy of their style leaves a lot of room for analysis which many writers, myself included, lap up.

    Interesting article, and cheers!
    -Jammathon.

    Third-Gen.

  57. Pete says:

    Agreed with Andy entirely – it is a bit of a case of following an idea already put out there.

    Arseblog was around a long time before most other football blogs, and was followed by other quality blogs such as Gunnerblog and Goodplaya. Since then, the rest of us Arsenal fans who felt we had an opinion we wanted to share saw an opportunity and started ours up.

    Football is all about debate, otherwise all those pub and terrace conversations wouldn’t happen, so seeing a decent blog always inspires others to write on the same subject.

    I’m sure if there were three decent Oldham blogs out there, other Oldham fans would chime in.

    We’re all fans, we all like to have our say, I guess.

  58. bk says:

    a gooner diary is the best out there.a really good read

  59. As an Arsenal blogger myself, I can only speculate on others’ reasons. However, like a previous commenter wrote, I think it does have something to do with the supporter base. Arsenal, especially outside of the UK, in the last 10 years have attracted supporters because of their style of play. I’m in New York City and began following the club in 1998 initially because of Dennis Bergkamp. For me, I see Arsenal as playing “thinking-man’s football.” The quality of writing I see on some Arsenal blogs, like A Cultured Left Foot, for example, is better than most stuff I see from college students. I did read somewhere that Arsenal were the most blogged about sports team in the world, and that’s not hard to believe. I think that it is the combination of attracting certain kinds of supporters, those who really love the intricacies of the game, and their inspiring play (or uninspiring failures), which has caused many to want to take up their pen (or keyboard). Either way, it is clear that there is something about Arsenal which inspires supporters to want to talk and write about them. Also, the sheer number and magnitude of the Arsenal blogosphere is such that there is a lot of chaff but the cream of the crop of Arsenal blogs is like a community. Regular readers know each bloggers’ opinions on certain players and their overall temperament as a supporter and dialogues are carried on in comments sections. Als on the part of the readers, without whom there would be no blogs, it’s a bid by supporters spread all over the globe to feel a sense of community as an Arsenal supporter.

  60. Bakes says:

    What the f**k is “Arseblog”? Sounds like your all gay to me.

  61. 'holic says:

    Heh at Chambo for heh’ing at Bakes.

    Thanks for the mention, Waatp.

  62. Dan says:

    At Wikio we publish a monthly list of the top UK and Irish sports blogs in the country. Arseblog is 1st right now and we have noticed an abundance of Arsenal blogs compared to other clubs – please do submit your blogs if you do not see them in the list, no matter which team you follow. The “submit a blog” button is on the right.

    http://www.wikio.co.uk/blogs/top/sport

  63. Mark says:

    Le Grove is shite btw.
    As a gooner I always avoid that blog. That shit is full of negativity.

  64. Vittal says:

    One reason I feel this so because, the commentators, the referees, other managers and also the governing bodies(FA, UEFA) have been against Arsenal. We are criticized a lot from all these people and also have been treated unfairly by these people. As a result, I feel that the Arsenal fans have tried to get their emotions out to the world. What they feel, what was the right thing, why we are dealt with in such a way, why the people who deal with in such ways are c*nts, etc ,etc. This has made a large number of Arsenal fans to start blogging and produce high quality blogs over time.

  65. Tim says:

    It’s our historic pain to offset the media and the FA. For 25 years we’ve not received the credit we merit – and blogs help right that balance.

    The literacy of our bloggers is also of paramount importance.

    RVP crocked today…I write with a heave heart. Arseblogger is a genius and a really nice bloke. As are East Lower and many of the others.

  66. gg says:

    le grove is the worst. full of arselickers sucking anti foreigner anti irish geoffs balls

  67. Larry Goons says:

    I think its because of the general class of arsenal supporters. Seriously, this is no chest beating thing. For a long while, I sat on the fence regarding supporting any of the EPL sides — I had my prefered teams (pool, newcastle (kevin keegan era), arsenal, chelsea (from gullitt era), even spurs was Ok by me) .. Later with increased online presence, I began to notice a clear class amongst arsenal fans, and this eventually compelled me to become a full fledged arsenal fan about 6 years ago.

    Arsenal does classy and educated fans .. I think more than most other EPL clubs. I reckon that is what is translating to more

  68. Larry Goons says:

    I think its because of the general class of arsenal supporters. Seriously, this is no chest beating thing. For a long while, I sat on the fence regarding supporting any of the EPL sides — I had my prefered teams (pool, newcastle (kevin keegan era), arsenal, chelsea (from gullitt era), even spurs was Ok by me) .. Later with increased online presence, I began to notice a clear class amongst arsenal fans, and this eventually compelled me to become a full fledged arsenal fan about 6 years ago.

    Arsenal does classy and educated fans .. I think more than most other EPL clubs. I reckon that is what is translating to more arsenal bloggers, in my humble opinion.

  69. nice info..thanks for your info..

  70. really cool, a blog that can be role models for soccer fans who want a variety with others,

  71. Ray says:

    I think the media has a lot to do with it, the amount of bollocks they talk often leads us Gooners to express a no-nonsense view through blogging.

  72. nicola baird says:

    What a generous blogger you are featuring the Gunners’ blogs. I’ve recently done an interview with the manager at the well known and revamped home pub Highbury Barn which may interest some of the readers of this post. Thanks. http://islingtonfacesblog.com/2014/02/19/tony-bedwell-highbury-barn-pub-manager/

  73. Jomki says:

    Obviously Arsenal Make better stories and have a consistent high status rank. Who wouldn’t enjoy the funny wenger in wenger out stories and being an almost did it team..

  74. J says:

    Because they have to win at something?

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