Speaking up and making an impact: 11 reasons to get involved with Union FS
Leicester City fan group Union FS celebrates its 10th birthday at the end of the year.
In those ten years, Leicester City have been crowned Football League, Premier League, FA Cup and Community Shield winners – but despite that, many feel there is still plenty to be improved on the terraces of Filbert Way.
Union FS are one group who have been consistent in encouraging vocal supporters to congregate in a bid to enhance the atmosphere in LE2.
Based in the SK1, the group try and back the team vocally for 90 minutes whilst producing visual displays in the form of flags, scarves and tifos. The last full-stand display came on the opening day of the season against Coventry City, with the next coming against Watford this weekend.
Along with a constant presence on matchdays, Union FS are strong advocates for supporters’ rights. They also organise an annual donation drive for The Bridge (a homelessness charity in Leicester), an annual football tournament in aid of LOROS, along with backing struggling city centre pubs when required.
But why do they do it? Why do they spend their Sundays clearing sore throats after shouting for 90 minutes? Why spend their spare time creating tifos? Why do they go out of their way to shout about all the good things in Leicester? Well, I thought we should ask them. I spoke to Union FS members and asked them to tell me why they’re so proud to be associated with the group…
Cal, 23
For me, one of the first things that got me involved with UFS is the desire to make the atmosphere better around the ground.
Joining likeminded fans to back the team as well as travelling in numbers away from home, whether that be in the UK or around Europe.
It’s a great feeling to know you are doing something to improve your own matchday experience.
Semper, 30
Being part of this group allows us to be part of a collective. I feel like it allows us to put questions to the club that we feel the fanbase deserves answers to.
We do a fantastic job in pushing local pride, be that through tifos or flag designs and celebrating local history. We try and shop local where we can and we shout about the positives of this City at every chance we get.
We fight for a vocal support so that my kids can enjoy football the way I know it.
Jack, 28
Being part of this group is pretty much the only reason I still go to football. The friendships we’ve formed over the past 10 years are for life, and they’re so much more important than just the 90 minutes on the pitch.
I also think we make a positive difference in all that we do, be that in the stands, foodbanks, supporting the homeless on Leicester’s streets, safe standing, supporting LOROS, helping local pubs through COVID – these are the campaigns I’m so proud of.
Liam, 35
Walking into a packed pub at 9am with 70 of your mates may not be for everyone, but that’s what keeps me coming back. The camaraderie and feeling like, as a collective, you can make a difference to things, be that atmosphere or fan culture in general.
Josh, 27
I’d been on the periphery of the group for a long time. I got stuck in a matchday routine where I had accepted that the atmosphere was never going to change and, to be honest, I no longer enjoyed going.
Then lockdown happened and that changed everything. No atmospheres, PPV TV, the Super League. All these things made me realise how truly important fans are to clubs like Leicester. My move to SK1 has made my matchday experience infinitely better, so if you’re on the fence about getting involved, I’d wholeheartedly recommend it.
Zhang, 24
When I went to my first game in Shanghai, the atmosphere from the ‘active’ fans really impressed me. I came to Leicester to study and I happened to see a UFS sticker on the street by chance. I love going to football and, to be honest, sitting down in silence during the match is pretty boring for me. That’s not how I enjoy football, so I decided to get involved with UFS. Being in the section makes me feel like I’m part of the team, like I’m the twelfth man.
Ben, 29
The biggest thrill I get out of it is that I’m part of this friendship group of dozens of people, we’re all so different, with different political beliefs, jobs, ages, races – but we all come together for one common goal, and we’ve all got each other’s backs when it comes to the things in life that really matter.
Simon, 55
I was brought up on the Filbert Street terraces – it was my weekly dose of adrenalin. But then that football experience quickly became sanitised.
Then, during a home game in 2015, I saw a foil on my seat which I held up as the Post Horn Gallop played. When I saw the pictures of that fox head the next day, I was exhilarated by football again.
I then joined the group, which was co-founded by an ex-student of mine, and I’ve never looked back. My team, LCFC, is not a choice, I’m stuck with it. But now, being part of this group gives me a chance, in a small way, to shape its present and future – and that’s something to be proud of.
Sam, 32
I have recently been diagnosed with a life-changing condition that will affect me for the rest of my life and, while my treatment is progressing well, I wouldn’t have got to this point if it wasn’t for the support I’d received – a lot of it from mates in this group that I’ve grown so close to in the past 10 years.
Harry, 28
I can say with great pride that we’ve made a tangible impact on the club. I’ve been involved in organising tifos that inspire players and thousands of my fellow supporters which delivers a message which hopefully resonates long after full time.
Thanks to the SK1 section heavily lobbied by UFS, LCFC home games are now meaningfully different then they would be otherwise. Through being part of UFS, I’ve been able to change my club in a way that I sincerely believe is for the better.
Rob, 53
I don’t fit the ‘normal’ demographic of the group but that doesn’t stop me. Sitting in SK3 became a little stale and I yearned for something a bit more like my upbringing at Filbert Street.
Me and my lad have moved into SK1 and it’s great to be with likeminded people who are going to back the team for the full 90 minutes.
If you want to help the atmosphere on Filbert Way, there is still space to relocate into the SK1 section. This will give you an opportunity to join like-minded fans who want to make a difference to the ‘matchday experience’.
Along than that, you’ll be joining a group of lads and lasses with one common goal – to help shout about our fantastic City at every chance.
If you want to get involved, send a message to the group on social media and they’ll get in touch.
12 Days of Christmas at The Bridge
For the past 10 years, The Bridge Homelessness to Hope has served a 3-course Christmas Dinner with all the trimmings to hundreds of people in Leicester who are experiencing homelessness.
This year, they want to go one better and offer their guests (service users) not just one day of celebrations but 12 days of festive events over the month of December.
If you’re enjoying The Fosse Way, please consider donating to The Bridge’s Christmas appeal:
