The search for Fulham utopia
Written by Sammy James on 26th August 2024
The new season often brings a sense of optimism to all fans across the country. Barring a few obvious exceptions, I imagine most fans in the 92 will hope that this can “be their year”.
Watching Fulham on Saturday however, I really did get the feeling that for the first time under the Khan ownership, matters both on and off the pitch are starting to click into place.
Obviously on the pitch it’s been a pretty seismic week. Best part of £60m spent on Joachim Andersen from Crystal Palace and Sander Berge from Burnley. The transfer market has massively inflated in the past few years, but this is still a huge demonstration of intent for a club our size.
Last night, Gary Lineker on Match Of The Day commented that Fulham are “having a right go at it” – proof that even outside of the Fulham bubble we live in, people are taking notice of our ambition in the transfer market.
Off the pitch, we got the first glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel on the new Riverside Stand, with a smattering of fans occupying the central sections for the first time. It was far from full, which was as expected, as the club have said the stand won’t be fully open until December.
After five years of construction, getting this stand finished will be a huge moment for the club. Not just for the financial benefit it will bring, but also for the team to experience the feeling of a full stadium backing it. The benefit to the local community will also be huge, and we also saw this weekend that the much heralded river path was open to the general public.
In the past few weeks there have also been a few nice touches from the club. The replica kit and drinks voucher sent out to season ticket holders was the kind of loyalty reward that all fans appreciate, and even offering £1 pints before 2pm was something that many people I know took advantage of.
The latter might have been in order to avoid huge queues from the new digital ticketing system, but even so initiatives like this are small steps that will help replace recent fractures between fans and the club. Tickets were also reasonably priced for the game, although prices for the next home game against West Ham potentially demonstrate that this is unfortunately a one-off.
While we are not there yet, it does feel like we are building towards a new peak for Fulham. A brilliant manager, big signings, a talented team that feels at home in the Premier League and improved facilities that fans can enjoy.
It’s not perfect, and resting on your laurels often leads to a swift and brutal downfall, but I’m happy to give credit where credit’s due. It’s been a good summer in all departments and I am excited about what the future holds as a Fulham fan.
