Photographer Kirsten Allen’s ongoing photo series delves into the matchday life of Tottenham Hotspur supporters, offering an intimate look at the journeys of male fans in N17. Through her photographs, Allen documents the paths these supporters tread from the local pubs on the Tottenham High Road to White Hart Lane (now known as the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium), exploring the rites of passage that define their transformation from boys to men. “My club is everything. It’s my community, how I plan every day of the year and the methodology I use to realise my dreams,” enthuses Allen. “At its core this project investigates the road boys take to become men, and the potential of footballs powers to change the world.”  This sentiment resonates throughout the series, which not only celebrates the masculine camaraderie but also highlights the profound influence of the sport’s broader community.

Lower Block: Tell us a bit about yourself, where are you originally from?

Kirsten Allen: I moved to Wales as a kid and grew up on a tiny island far away from football stadiums. I now live on the ‘golden road’ which means I can walk out of my front door and directly to the Tottenham turnstiles in a straight line. 

I’m Tottenham til I die and into the afterlife. Unfortunately I wasn’t Spurs from birth but when we found each other it was meant to be and I went from zero to ultra overnight. Everything felt right but the club’s propensity to go up in a ball of flames especially appealed. 

LB: What does the club mean to you? Any particular idols past or present?

KA: My club is everything. It’s my community, how I plan every day of the year and the methodology I use to realise my dreams. The Lionesses are my idols, they continue to change what is possible for women and girls and gave me the best day of my life. Let’s also not forget Sonny (Tottenham’s South Korean attacker, Son Heung-min), everyone should try to be more like Sonny. 

LB: What drew you towards football and the culture around it?

KA: My first formative football experience was my dad taking me to Goodison as a kid. The Toffees weren’t my team but my memories of singing songs on the coach as we wound our way over the Welsh hills, the red bricks rising into the sky and the warmth of the crowd are still vivid. Watching England and throwing pints in the air then made me realise I needed football every day of my life and became the gateway into finding my club. 

LB: What inspired you to take photographs around football culture?

KA: My camera is the tool I use to understand the world and construct my own reality; it’s a balancing act between witnessing events whilst manipulating them in order to express a narrative. My aim is to one day have built a collection of images that will live rather than simply exist and to have contributed something positive to society. My presence as a woman talking photographs within the male-dominated spaces of football is an act in itself. 

Following football is like living inside an unscripted soap opera and watching it unfold in real time means there’s no way to prepare for what comes next. Trying to capture these moments as they pass by whilst processing your surroundings is a sport in itself and a bit of an addiction. There’s a grave in my head filled with all the shots I missed but there’s nothing better than getting one you wanted. 

LB: Tell us a bit about your project… What are you trying to capture?   

KA: These photos are taken from an ongoing project under the working title TRAINING GROUND [Blokes at worship / blokes at war]. At its core it investigates the road boys take to become men as they traverse the streets from pub to stadia, and the potential of footballs powers to change the world. It’s interesting to me what drives the impulse to click the shutter and I had to figure it out by shooting many rolls of film. 

LB: Do you have a favourite photograph from this project that you feel best captures this?

KA: The image that is currently most integral to the project shows a man and his (I think) son engaged in post-match conversation at Banana karaoke. Framed by others and lost in the moment together it speaks to the pathway laid out before them and the journey they take passing down chants and passing pint glasses as a football fan. There’s an accepted theory that more people change their religion than their club, so the crest on their chests will be one of the most constant factors in their lives. 

LB: Has anyone in particular influences your work artistically?

KA: In terms of football photography, Martin Andersen’s timeless series ‘Can’t Smile Without You’ beautifully captures the fervour and grit of being a football fan whilst invoking its spiritual depths. Gerry Cranham was an incredible creator of images, his compositions frozen in fleeting moments sometimes need to be seen to be believed. I also love the series ‘England at Home’ by Jack Flemming which conveys the spectrum of emotions inflicted whilst following a team.

LB: While we have you, anything else you’d like to add?

KA: Can everyone please call out discriminatory and abusive behaviour within football! There are now really amazing systems in place both online and in stadiums and it makes a huge difference in ensuring the magic of football is available to everyone.

LB: Too right.

You can follow Kirsten and her project on Instagram and photographic prints are available on request.

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