Die-hard football fans will side with Diego Maradona who once proclaimed that “football isn’t a game, nor a sport, it’s a religion”. But whilst hundreds of thousands of fans go through thick and thin with their teams and it’s no doubt an integral part of their lives, does employment law agree with this statement?
There is certainly no argument that football fanatics can be extremely dedicated and loyal: You have to be to spend hours battling the elements in freezing, cold stadiums, cheering and screaming until voices are hoarse; trailing teams across the country and beyond; the extreme highs when they’ve bagged a win, the excruciating lows because of missed penalties, fouls, and injuries…
But whilst hundreds of thousands of fans go through thick and thin with their teams and it’s no doubt an integral part of their lives, does employment law agree with Maradona in that this support, this obsession in some cases, represents a religion?
In late 2021, one man made this very argument to an employment tribunal when he insisted that his love for his team, Glasgow Rangers, constitutes a religious belief.
The super fan – Edward McClung – said: “I live my life in accordance with being a Rangers fan. I don’t go to church. I go to Rangers. It’s a belief to me.”
This all came to the fore when McClung says he was denied work by a Celtic fan due to his support of Rangers.
What made this case so controversial is the...
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