My Favorite Villa Community: Twitter

Welcome to My Favourite Villa… a new series from the staff at 7500 to Holte! With no sport on as everyone stays at home amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, we’re sharing our favorite Villa teams, moments, players, kits, and anything else we can think of.

As a Gen-z kid, I grew up amidst the rapid popularization of social media. Sites like Reddit, Instagram, and Twitter take up a fair amount of time in my day and checking them often is a priority as they are one of my primary sources of entertainment. Most important of that bunch is Twitter; something about the bite-sized thoughts and the ability to hear from a variety of different people draws me in. Twitter also uniquely connects me to something that I love, Aston Villa, in a way that’s influenced me as a supporter. For example, I receive Twitter notifications from five different accounts, the first of which is my significant other and the rest are connected to Aston Villa.

Aston Villa Twitter provides a sense of community, a very large and opinionated one. This community has dramatically shaped my fandom and keeps me connected to the club, although I live roughly 3,622 miles away from Villa Park. I live out matches through other perspectives when accounts post videos of fans chanting or highlights from the grounds. I am able to celebrate a victory properly when my timeline is filled with Villa content after decisive moments and I know that I will have a forum to commiserate with like-minded individuals after a tough loss. I have also stoked rivalries like those with the Baggies, the Bluenoses, and the Dogheads through Twitter engagement. Although I am so far away from Birmingham, when I pop on Twitter it makes me feel a connection to the city itself.

Throughout the year, I lean on Villa twitter to be there for me through the most exciting Aston Villa moments and most dull. During the summer I theorized with others about the arrivals that never materialized. After the West Brom playoff win I jumped on Twitter with glee to crow about the stunning shootout victory. I’ve learned about Villa legends who came and went before I was born from people who were there. I even was able to secure a contributing position at this site through finding it on Twitter.

For me, Twitter is the local pub. It is where I can talk about the club that we all care so fondly about. It’s a place which I can relax in and enjoy a conversation. It is a space in which I can interact with so many of the Villans which make this club great. Aston Villa Twitter is one of the reasons I love Aston Villa.