Tottenham Hotspur F.C. supporters

There is a long-standing rivalry with Arsenal, and the North London derby is considered the most important of their matches by the fans.

Tottenham Hotspur has an active fanbase that forms organisations to support the team and interact with other members.

They have published fanzines and established an online presence in fansites, forums and blogs dedicated to the club.

The support for Tottenham Hotspur traditionally comes from the North London area and the nearby home counties such as Hertfordshire and parts of Essex.

[6][4] The fanbase is also predominantly male, with around 11–13% of its supporters female in the 2007/2008 surveys, which is below the average of 15% for Premier League clubs.

[19] It is ranked sixth of the major Premier League clubs on selected social networks, but has grown rapidly, adding four times more followers in China's Weibo than Arsenal in 2018.

[30] The decision in 1935 to hold a friendly match between Nazi Germany and England at White Hart Lane therefore led to protests from the Jewish communities.

[30] Tottenham Hotspur were formed by a group of schoolboys, and those who attended their matches in the early days were likely to be friends and families.

Within a few years the home matches of the club drew crowds of up to 4,000, although these were non-paying spectators as they played on public ground at that time.

Tottenham moved to an enclosed ground at Northumberland Park where they can charge an entrance fee in 1888, and joined the Southern League in 1896.

[38] A United League match against Arsenal in 1898 drew 14,000 spectators, and such high attendances necessitated a move to a larger ground.

In the first few years of the 20th century, the home attendances for Southern League matches usually numbered 7,000 to 10,000, but may reach over 30,000 for some cup ties.

[39] Their 1901 FA Cup Final against Sheffield United played at Crystal Palace had 110,820 spectators, at that time a record for a football match.

[45] In the 2017–18 season, when Tottenham used the 90,000-capacity Wembley Stadium as its home ground, it had the second highest average attendance in the Premier League at nearly 68,000.

[65] LOTS failed to stop the redevelopment, but managed to keep a small part of The Shelf (referred to by fans as The Ledge, which lasted until the stadium became all-seater).

[80][81] In the 2011–12 season, The Fighting Cock set up an informal grouping, the 1882 Movement, to support the team and improve the atmosphere in the stadium.

Then manager of Spurs, Bill Nicholson, wrote in his autobiography: A new sound was heard in English football in the 1961–2 season.

The song is usually sung with raised outstretched arms and moving fingers, typically starting slower for a couple of verses before getting faster and with hand-clapping.

[103] Fans often use familiar tunes popularly sung at various football grounds as chants, but with lyrics tailored to the club.

Most commonly, new chants are created for players; for example, popular chants in the later part of 2010s include chants for Dele Alli set to the tune of Billy Ray Cyrus' "Achy Breaky Heart",[104] Moussa Sissoko using White Stripes' "Seven Nation Army",[105] Christian Eriksen with Black Lace's "Agadoo",[106] Danny Rose with Boney M.'s "Daddy Cool",[107] Harry Kane as "One of Our Own" (Beach Boys' "Sloop John B"),[108] as well as one for the manager Mauricio Pochettino sung to the tune of "Magic" by Pilot.

[109] Many songs have been used over many decades as chants; for example "Guantanamera" which has been used for numerous players including Paul Gascoigne ("There's only one Paul Gascoigne") and Gary Stevens ("There's only two Gary Stevens" since there were two players of the same name active at the same time), and "Land of Hope and Glory" (most recently used for Eric Dier).

[119] Some fans view adopting "Yid" as a way of reclaiming the word as a badge of honour and pride, helping defuse its power as an insult.

[129] Some Jewish fans of the club, however, have written in support of its use, including Simon Schama, Frank Furedi, Gerald Jacobs and David Aaronovitch.

[134] and the Metropolitan Police no longer regards the chanting of "Yid" by Tottenham fans an arrestable offence.

[137] This rivalry intensified in 1919 when Arsenal were unexpectedly promoted to the First Division, taking a place that Tottenham believed should be theirs.

[139] They also have rivalries with fellow London clubs Chelsea and West Ham United, albeit on a less intense level.

[142] A survey in 2018 indicates that most Tottenham fans considered Arsenal their biggest rival, followed by Chelsea and West Ham, however, fans of Arsenal, Chelsea and West Ham all regarded Tottenham their biggest Premier League rival.

For example, in 1897, Spurs fans upset by a goal given resulting from what appeared to be a handball attacked three Luton players, and the Northumberland Park ground was then closed for two weeks by the FA as punishment.

[39] The first incidence just before the 1970s period to receive significant press attention, dubbed The Battle of Flitwick, occurred in September 1969.

[152][153] The worst occurrence of hooliganism, however, was the rioting by Spurs fans in Rotterdam at the 1974 UEFA Cup Final against Feyenoord before and during the match.