Fans of several of the UK’s biggest sides have been forced to confront the brutal reality laid bare by an AI generation of their club’s stereotypical supporter.
On matchdays, the terraces are filled with chants aiming crushing jibes at rivals and insults mocking economic and even physical characteristics of their foes. It’s all fair game in the heat of the battle.
But those barbs cut even deeper when the source is a savage unemotional supercomputer, that has condensed the most clichéd traits of your fanbase into the image of a single person. None are safe.
The supporters who have undoubtedly been ‘done the dirtiest’ are West Ham fans, who have been assessed and amalgamated into the depiction of a man in excess of 300lbs, standing outside of a pub and appearing to wear a Hammers jersey that has been stitched together on its front as if to satisfy the giant stomach it is failing to contain.
East Londoners have every right to feel aggrieved by the image, though the supporter does at least appear to be in good spirits. One would therefore presume the pose was captured before watching Graham Potter’s side at the London Stadium.
On the other end of the spectrum are Arsenal fans, whose apparent penchant for fancy coffee shops, man buns and scarves has seen them codified into a depiction resembling a mid-2010s hipster.
An AI has produced an image of the most stereotypical fan of several of the UK biggest football clubs
Arsenal and Chelsea fans have been given vastly different treatments by the AI, with the money of west London playing a key factor in the image generated of the Blues fan
Manchester United and Newcastle fans have been given a remarkably similar treatment to Hammers supporters, with a AI fan that boasts an impressive gut
The glasses-wearing, latte-holding type must be all too familiar for north London residents where baristas are recognised pillars of their communities and coffee shops more plentiful than public houses.
Manchester United and Newcastle fans have been given a remarkably similar treatment to Hammers supporters, with a AI fan that boasts an impressive gut, though Red Devils fans are apparently more likely to lose their hair.
And the Magpies faithful are apparently commonly spotted outside nondescript corporate spaces, rather than drinking establishments. That recreation seems a blatant error, given the widely known fact that no stadium in the country has more pubs within a mile than St James’ Park.
The wealth of west London is highlighted in the array of gold jewelry around the neck of the too-cool-for-school Chelsea supporter, who has been generated to appear as if they have spent the equivalent of northerner’s monthly wage in a boutique London store.
Perhaps there are some Blues supporters that will not be too offended by their treatment, given the location of the club and its monied recent history.
The fan also appears to be in his early 40s, a tad older than the Arsenal fan but far younger that supporters of West Ham and Man United. Is that a subtle dig at a generation of bandwagoners who jumped onto the Roman Abramovich’s earth-shattering arrival in 2003?
It’s difficult to draw the same conclusion for the image rendered of the Liverpool supporter who is perhaps the youngest of all. A fresh-faced, long-haired, tracksuit-wearing scally certainly ticks a lot of the stereotypical boxes.
However, him being situated in front of some bins in an obviously deprived part of the city feels a touch harsh.
The Magpies faithful are apparently commonly spotted outside nondescript corporate spaces, rather than drinking establishments
A fresh-faced, long-haired, tracksuit-wearing scally certainly ticks a lot of the stereotypical boxes for a Liverpool fan
Aston Villa, Sheffield United and Leeds fans can rejoice because they have received the most generous of depictions
The Celtic fan is shown in raptures, in front of a pub, of course, with the greatest visible signifiers of the club he supports
Elsewhere, Aston Villa, Sheffield United and Leeds fans can rejoice because they have received the most generous of depictions. The Villans supporter wears a broad smile as he stands, arms outstretched, in front of a shabby-looking house, but presumably his house all the same.
The Blades supporter, a generation younger, adopts the same pose as a South Yorkshire street extends behind him and the Leeds fans looks like he’s been captured right before a scrap. Perhaps the less said about that the better.
Unfortunately, the last two treatments seem slightly generic. Similar to his north London counterpart – only with less detail – the Spurs fan is depicted taking a photo of himself while holding what looks to be a vegetable smoothie. Okay, perhaps there is some biting commentary in that one also.
Finally, the Celtic fan is shown in raptures, in front of a pub, of course, with the greatest visible signifiers of the club he supports. Maybe that too offers a window into the information gleaned from the all-seeing computer that processed countless images and videos of clubs up and down the land to come to its results.
