In the world football family, Europe's top leagues seem to be superior to the top leagues of other continents in all aspects, among which Real Madrid, Bayern, Manchester City, Paris, Inter Milan and other world-class giants are even more radiant. In comparison, the Super League, the "sixth largest league in the world", seems to be a little overshadowed. In fact, there is a European football team that can be called "the most inspirational football team on the surface", they only have 282 people in the town, but they play in the top league of Europe, and the overall level does not seem to be worse than that of the Chinese Super League.
Lochgol, a team from Europe's top league, the Northern Ireland Premier League, is the "most inspirational football team on the planet". Founded in 1967, Lochgol is 57 years old today, winning the Northern Ireland Premier League title in 2010. It is worth mentioning that this team is very special because the town where this team is located has a very small population, with a population of only 282 people. Last season, Lochgol finished 7th in the Northern Ireland Premier League with 39 points, 20 points out of the relegation zone and completed relegation. This season the team is still fighting in the Northern Ireland Super League.
Although the local population of Lochgol is sparse, the team plays very tenaciously and can be considered the "most inspirational football team on the surface". The data shows that Lochgol is now home to the smallest club in the top league of world football. Previously, Faroe Islands Super League team EB Stremor had 320 people in their village, but that number was higher than 282. Although there are only 282 people in Lochgol, this does not affect the love of football among the locals.
Among Lochgore's supporters is a 100-year-old man named Wesley. Financial resources are also very limited due to the small population. The second grandstand at the team's home stadium had been short of money to build, and the old man volunteered to help raise money at the age of 97 by completing 100 laps at home. Instead of bragging, Wesley actually spent 1 year completing 100 laps around the stadium, which he later raised £27,000, which was also used to build the stands.
In fact, the Northern Ireland Premier League is not one of the top five leagues in Europe, but some of its clubs have a long history. Founded in 1886, Linfield has won the Northern Ireland Super League 56 times and the Ireland Cup and Northern Ireland Cup 44 times. Although they don't look as famous as the teams in the five major leagues, they also started very early, and their actual level will not be lower than that of the Chinese Super League teams, and they are even expected to wrestle with Harbour and Shenhua.
It can be seen that both the team's performance and the old man's persistence are very inspirational. This season, Lochgol is still fighting in Europe's top league, Northern Ireland Super League, with 7 games, 1 win, 2 draws and 4 losses, temporarily ranking 11th in the league. The team may not be as brilliant as Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester City, Arsenal, Bayern and other world-class giants, but from their own conditions, it is very inspirational to be able to play in the top leagues of Europe. Maybe they can also fight if they meet a Chinese Super League team. Do you think Lochgor is inspirational?