When Tottenham allowed masked squid game protectors to roam their stadium for a 6-3 that was beaten by Liverpool in December, the stunt did not go well with a frustrated fan base.
The mood music was that, as they say, “the game has disappeared.” Fans typically praise tradition over modernity; Uniqueness about pop culture; Good, old-fashioned cakes, well, what Netflix-Gimmick.
It is therefore all the more surprising that the day before Genoa drew the same stunt with thunderous success.
Manager Patrick Vieira smiled when the guards welcomed him from the coach. Children shot over the field and imitated the infamous 'Red Light, Green Light' game from the Netflix series. Adults posed in the stands with the guards in front of the stadium fan camera. They had found a way to make it fun.
That is just the tip of the iceberg. Genoa, the oldest club in Italy, is on a mission to combine their rich history with modernity and to make contact with fans in a new way.
It is an exciting company at a time that Italian clubs have to think outside the frameworks. Stages throughout the country are in decline. TV -rights are sharpened for half the SKY, TNT and others price to show the Premier League. For Genoa it is crucial to reconsider the way they make contact with supporters – and catching the eyes of Calcio lovers abroad – crucial.
That is why you get stunt cyclists (including Kriss Kyle) on competition day through the stands of the Stadio Luigi Ferraris for a partnership with Red Bull.
Or how about Rita Ora who models the club's shirt on his 130th birthday and sharing with its 16.1 million Instagram followers?
Even world no. During a match against Roma earlier this season, fans clapped and cheered while the athlete – helpfully a supporter himself – started to take and free kicks.
By joining forces with some of the world's biggest brands, celebrities and sports stars, Genoa helps to reach a new audience, but it takes some guts to take the leap.
Genoa CFC is a club steeped in history. They were initially founded in 1893 as a cricket and athletics club – the first C in their name still tributes to the cricket aspect – but football became the dominant section in 1897 thanks to the work of James Richardson Spensley.
Spensley, a doctor from London who happened to work for the Daily Mail, was the very first manager of the football team and is considered one of the 'fathers of Italian football'. English flags still adorn the stadium as a tribute to the English heritage of the club.
The point is that introducing daring new ideas at a Grand Old Club is a risk, especially if they did not finish in the upper half of the Serie A for almost ten years and were even relegated at that time. Why not repair the football side first? The cynics would ask.
But it has paid off. The fans have bought the atmosphere and, as a club source says, a 'new language' of communicating with them.
The media leaders of the team have given free reign to make a joke and to peel the irreversible layers that football communication can suppress.
As Burnley has become popular for their crazy transfer announcements in England, Genoa also have in Italy.
The signing of Mario Balotelli in the summer was shared with a video of him as a Super Mario character.
The former striker of Manchester City and Liverpool, 34, also modeled their special edition Black Kit in the summer as part of the 'Golden Dark Side of Genoa' campaign to celebrate the various culture of the city.
Another project came in March when Genoa released a fourth kit in honor of the 120th birthday of Boca Juniors, the Argentinian side founded by immigrants from Genoa.
In a football world where change is all around us – think of super stadiums, excessive money, competition extension and VAR – want to hold Genoa to their heritage while embracing the future.
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