Javier Hernández’s recent move to West Ham United has everyone excited, from club to player to fans. Chicharito expressed his delight to be back in England when the transfer news hit last week, and now Hammers fans are returning the favor.
In a video sourced to Twitter user @block141whufc, a group of West Ham fans were seen in a bar singing a song about their newest striker. If the song sounds oddly familiar, it’s because you’ve heard it more times than you could have ever wanted to: it’s “La Bamba,” only with the titular lyrics replaced with “Chicharito.”
Creating catchy songs isn’t anything new for soccer fans. Crowds can often be heard belting out new tunes in stadiums across the world, either about their favorite players, in solidarity with social issues (see: Liverpool’s “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” which has been adopted by clubs around the world as a sign of solidarity), or just for a good old laugh. Plainly put, singing and soccer go hand in hand.
Earlier this year, the fans of San Lorenzo De Almagro adopted Luis Fonsi’s “Despacito” as their song of choice, with thousands joining in to sing their own club version of the anthem. The “remix” was even approved by Fonsi himself.
Back when Argentinian midfielder Maxi Rodriguez played for Premier League side Liverpool, fans of the Reds came up with a snappy little chant for the diminuitive winger:
And who can forget the Mexican fans singing the legendary mariachi song, Cielito Lindo during the last FIFA World Cup?
Chants and crowds have been in the news lately for all of the wrong reasons–courtesy of the infamous “puto chant–so it’s a nice change of pace to remember all the fun and joy that could also come from a group of rabid soccer fans.