[Elvis]

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/football ... ac4ac.html

Commentary: When some guests are pests, Dome is no longer home

(Michael Reilly is an assistant sports editor for the Post-Dispatch.)



Remember the old days — way back in the 1990s — when you went to a game and you were surrounded by like-minded fans? When someone rooting for the opponent was kind of a novelty? Chalk up another casualty of the Internet.

St. Louis fans suffered mightily this weekend at the hands of their Chicago counterparts, first as the Blackhawks beat the Blues and then as the Bears routed the Rams. At Scottrade Center and the Edward Jones Dome, it appeared about half the crowd was rooting for the visitors.

And when I say rooting, I don't mean polite applause. I'm talking a "We are going to take over your stadium and rub your face in it" level of support. The Internet and the secondary ticket market have made it possible for visiting fans to invade any venue in the country. It's changing the whole experience of attending a game, and not for the better.

As someone who regularly goes to watch the Rams, I'm used to a certain amount of this. I've had some pleasant conversations with visiting fans sitting next to me. But if the group is big enough, as the Chicago contingent was Sunday, they can have you surrounded. And then they're like sharks smelling blood and going into a feeding frenzy of obnoxious behavior. "Yeah, baby, yeah! All day long, baby! All day! Let's go, Bears! Let's go, Bears! Let's go, Bears!!!" They are twice as exuberant as they would ever be at a home game, high-fiving after routine tackles and screaming in your ears on touchdowns.

Something about being in another team's stadium creates an overwhelming desire in these people to make their presence felt. They yell and chant outside the Dome, in the stairwells, in line at the concession stands. It comes across as a type of mating call to see if others of their species are nearby. The louder the response the bolder they become.

Of course, this situation isn't unique to St. Louis. Any team with a "national following" — Steelers, Patriots, Packers, etc. — unleashes hordes of fans in road games. (Funny how these "national following" teams all seem to trail strings of championships. Might as well call them bandwagon teams.) For that matter, fans of the baseball Cardinals seem to outnumber home fans in some ballparks, such as Colorado and Arizona. No doubt that has contributed to the sense that people in other cities are sick and tired of the Cardinals.

The common denominator in all of this is the ease of going online to buy tickets, often (if not most of the time in cities like Dallas) tickets held by home fans who would rather make a profit and watch on TV than go out to support their teams. I don't get it. If you're enough of a fan to have season tickets, why would you sell them and forgo the chance to watch your team against a big rival? I can see how some people here and there would be unable to go, but not 20,000 or more.

Although it's way too late, it's a shame there's no code of behavior for visiting fans. Thirty years ago, I saw the Cardinals play in New York and Philadelphia. I don't recall making any show of support beyond applauding when they scored a run. I wish it were still like that. It would never occur to me to carry on in another city's stadium as if I owned the place. It's just plain rude.

Today, visiting fans try to drown out their hosts, stand up and block their view, and taunt them if they appear to be leaving early. It's astonishing that there aren't more fights in the stands. No wonder Carolina quarterback Cam Newton felt compelled to tear down a Packers banner last week. I'm sure many fans across the NFL who have suffered through a Packers invasion loved it. I know I did.

There was a time when scoreboards read "Home" and "Guests." In some places they still do. If only these guests would stay home.

[Ramfan46]

What a whiny bitch. The Dome got taken over and the Rams got thumped by the Bears. Don't mention the fact that 30k of 50k were Bears fans. No one to blame but those great STL football fans we've been hearing about.

[OldSchool]

What a whiny bitch. The Dome got taken over and the Rams got thumped by the Bears. Don't mention the fact that 30k of 50k were Bears fans. No one to blame but those great STL football fans we've been hearing about.

This is the reality of the situation and they have nobody to blame but themselves. But don't tell them that they're victims!

[Hacksaw]

Dude looks bummed / PO'd while trying to enjoy his AB soda. I wonder what happened next..

[bluecoconuts]

If you don't like it then buy tickets.

However I don't like opposing fans acting like assholes in away arenas either, I think it's a little disrespectful. Cheer, but don't be a dick about it. Most fans at Staples are pretty good, but I've noticed Chicago and Montreal fans typically act like douchebags too. My girlfriend was wearing a Kings hat at a Blues game at Scottrade Center and a Blues fan poored beer on her just because she was wearing a Kings hat, so sometimes the home fans are asking for it.

Just enjoy the game, and let others enjoy their team as well.

[SoCalRam78]

Dude looks bummed / PO'd while trying to enjoy his AB soda. I wonder what happened next..

Conversation non starter. Guy can't even recognized a quality beer. Try something in a craft variety doofus.

[moklerman]

Beer snobs are just so cool.

[Elvis]

At first i thought this guy looked like heckler guy from the BofA meeting. But now that i've checked, i owe Budweiser guy an apology...

[ramfaninsd]

fans and alcohol are why i don't go anymore. last time i attended a game drunk chargers fans at the Q harassed an az cardinals couple non stop (they took it well though). they got the last laugh though as wide right richey missed wide right yet again.

[sloramfan]

i'll tell you what I saw...

3 of the 6 people in the photo were wearing bears gear...

go rams

slo