SpursPlay a treasure trove for Tottenham Hotspur fans and the club

Although seen as another ploy for cash by some, Tottenham Hotspurs’ new streaming channel SpursPlay is a treasure trove for fans and the club. 

Earlier this week, somewhat lost in the wash from the signing of Richarlison and the endless transfer rumours, Tottenham Hotspur launched their streaming service, SpursPlay, for fans of the club.

And as a fan, I could not be more delighted with the trove of goodies available to learn more about the club I love. Of course, that does not mean the service is perfect.

All is not perfect with SpursPlay

For starters, there is a cost of £45 ($54) for an annual subscription. Given there is no monthly subscription available, this is a barrier to immediate entry for some. Presumably, someone interested can save for a few months and then purchase the service.

There is probably a reason there is no monthly fee: a lack of original programming. While there is some good stuff, like 202 Days and the Legacy Collection – read below – for a long-time fan, the depth may be lacking as you may already own a DVD copy of There is Magic in the Cup. As an American fan, I do not, and I very much look forward to watching.

Indeed, the available full-length games, including last season, the 1991 Cup Final, and even that evening in Amsterdam, make a big difference and are good reasons to sign up. However, the historic match collection is incomplete, and if you look for all the old matches, like the 61 Cup final, they are not there. However, it is a strong start as there is some excellent content.

There is some magic in the Tottenham Stream

Like most fans who have clicked and paid for SpursPlay, I was lured in by the same thing keeping Harry Kane, Heung-min Son, and others at the club, more Antonio Conte. Tottenham knows Conte is pure gold and is likely to continue pressing it.

Conte is unlike Jose Mourinho, where the media is everywhere, good and bad. Instead, Conte is that coach that everyone stops to listen to because if he has something to say, it is focused on football and winning, which is all the man seems to eat, drink, and breathe during a season.

If the 202 Days is not enough, and as good as it is highlighting the up-and-down emotion of the 2021/22 season, it is the depth available that makes SpursPlay worth it for the fan like me, who did not grow up with Tottenham in my life, this is an injection of lily-white.

Although not a Tottenham lifer, I can still appreciate that we all stand on the shoulders of those who came before us and that our collective history is essential.

Cliff Jones talking about the first team to win the Double and being the first English team to win Europe, years and years before I was alive, helps give me a better foundation as a fan. Not that I did not know these facts, but I did not know these people and what those accomplishments meant to them.

More telling were things like Martin Chivers’s horrific knee injury or Ossie Ardiles’s stand for his country, where the club and the fans could have turned on the players but never did.

Thus, as I’m learning more about my club, I’m also learning more about what it means to be a Tottenham fan, including loyalty to our team and people.

Maybe most telling regarding this loyalty was listening to Gary Mabbutt. The former captain was talking about  Danny Thomas missing his penalty against Anderlecht, with his head in his hands after.

Ask yourself, as a fan, would you sing “Harry Kane, he’s one of our own.” if he missed in the UCL finals like those fans sang “There is only one Danny Thomas”? Although we all know Kane does not miss penalties, I hope we’d still sing just as hard if he did.

Add to the history the inside access to all of Tottenham Hotspur, and the value does grow. There are videos on most current players from the women’s and men’s teams. Along with academy matches coming and match replays – depending on contractual obligations in your region – we will get to know the club in a new and different way, even thousands of miles away.

As a fan, I know the money goes to the club, not Nike, Puma, or Adidas, making the spending worth it. Whereas a large percentage of things like kit sales go to manufacturers, when the product is THFC football, there is only one source. I, for one, look forward to the hours of Tottenham football and the people I will see and meet along the way. Do you feel the same?