Pitchside Interviews - Natasha Edwards
Our second Pitchside interview is with our friends Natasha Edwards. As a longtime Chelsea fan, Natasha tells us about her experiences with football and her love for the game.
What football team do you support?
The only team in London, Chelsea!
What is your earliest memory of the game?
I always remember my Mom watching Chelsea on the tele, but my first memory of going to a game has to be walking up the stairs in the Matthew Harding Stand, and smelling that wonderful smell of earth and grass.... one of the best smells in the world! Every time I walk up those stairs and smell that smell, I feel like I’m home.
What excites you most about the game?
The football community, going to the games just makes you feel apart of a family. It really is true that football has a tribal mentality and it’s really wonderful when there are 43,000 of you all screaming for the same thing!
What has your experience been as a woman of colour football fan??
It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster! I think being a woman AND a POC has been quite hard. Racism and sexism is still very much present in football and navigating it can be extremely tricky. A lot of people who go to the games believe that they are “old school” and that their rights to say what they want are being taken away. They either don’t realise, or don’t want to realise that people are fed up of being offended and that’s not taking away their right, but rather giving us the right just to be! You definitely still get men who totally ignore any football knowledge you may have as a woman, but a man saying the same thing you just said... GENIUS!
How does your passion for the game impact your style?
I definitely like to be comfortable but stylish at football! Sadly you don’t find very much for women to wear that fits our shape. Uncomfortable necklines, horrible material! It’s really hard to find football gear for us! Clothes that represented the seasons would be amazing too... as football fans we are in stadiums from August-May so finding clothes that can be stylish AND worn throughout the year is even more difficult!
What is your favourite football chant/song you wish you could wear on a t-shirt?
I think t-shirts catered to my favourite team would be amazing! Maybe some player chants on shirts. I know someone that would love a shirt with Who Let The Drog Out on it! You Don’t Know What You’re Doing is another great one, especially with the catastrophe that is VAR!