Every football club has a unique identity, but when did this begin and why do some have eccentric nicknames?
Club nicknames have long been a prominent tradition of the modern football fabric with every team boasting their exclusive sobriquet.
This can be first traced to Premier League side Arsenal, whose nickname ‘Gunners’ was a reference to the club’s background, having been designed in 1886 by workers from the Royal Arsenal armament factory in Woolwich. The Royal Arsenal produced munitions, weapons and explosives.
This is not different in Africa as Savages FC – the continent’s oldest club as well as Gezira SC, Al Ahly, Hearts of Oak and even Bidvest Wits (now defunct) have their identity culled from their colours, legends, or historic events surrounding their existence.