Even though Scunthorpe United is desperate to return to the EFL and become a league club once again, you’d be hard-pressed to find a fan of the Iron who hasn’t enjoyed the club’s non-league journey at times. Sure, plenty of opinions on why the club shouldn’t even be there in the first place will be shared, but overall, it’s a level of football that has served up intense levels of enjoyment and enabled the club to rebuild and come again.
With plenty to shout about this season and the club looking to secure a special promotion as it continues on its journey back to its rightful place in the EFL, Scunthorpe United are finally back, and something big is brewing. Iron fans can now look forward to a brighter future, that’s for sure. Of course, nothing has been accomplished yet. Still, the signs are there, and the non-league game has essentially enabled the club’s fans to rediscover their love for football and enjoy watching Scunthorpe United again after a turbulent period.
While there is still plenty of room for growth, Scunthorpe United fans no longer envy their EFL rivals and hope they will lose by backing their opponents in sports betting. Instead, the Scunthorpe faithful can now firmly focus on their resurgent club and enjoy everything non-league football offers. In fact, for many fans, non-league football is the best there is. While that view might divide opinion, below are some key reasons why it’s a familiar feeling among the Iron faithful, particularly those disillusioned with the modern game.
Fans matter
If a fan doesn’t turn up one week in the Premier League, another supporter will take their seat. Likewise, fans are spending extortionate sums of money on tickets and merchandise to fund clubs run by wealthy owners. Essentially, they’re customers more than they are supporters. In the non-league game, though, the fans are the lifeblood of their clubs. Without them, their beloved teams would die. Therefore, fans matter at this particular level and are a key part of the clubs they support. As Scunthorpe fans will have seen in recent times, fans are treated differently in the non-league game.
More affordable
Another aspect of Premier League football that many fans struggle to warm to is the extortionate ticket prices. As mentioned, fans are spending vast sums of money on tickets. In the non-league world, though, tickets are far more affordable, making attending a fixture far more accessible to a broader audience. Food and drink are also more reasonably priced, making it an affordable day out for people to experience overall.
Community focus
Non-league clubs are also a considerable part of their local communities. They bring people together as they’re sometimes the most prominent organizations in a town, there are events to attend and money being raised, and many locals also volunteer at their beloved football clubs and help out whenever and wherever they can. With non-league football providing a real sense of community, there is something incredibly charming about it.
A real connection
While fans of massive clubs are usually ignored by their world-famous players and staff when they’re getting off team coaches, or they bump into them while out and about in town, non-league fans can get up close and personal with the players and coaches they support, be it in the bar at full-time or before the game through a pre-match chat. It’s what makes the non-league game so unique for many fans.
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