Here Is Why APOEL Fans Wore Orange Against Ajax In Champions League Play-Offs

If you watched the UEFA Champions League play-off match between APOEL and Ajax, you might have wondered why the supporters of the Cyprus club were wearing orange, even though the colors of APOEL are actually blue-yellow,. Let us find out why.

Orange Has Been A Traditional Ultra Color Since The 1990s

The reason for APOEL fans to wear orange was not because to show solidarity with the Dutch fans or because they played against a Dutch team (Netherlands is famous for wearing orange), but because the orange look has a long tradition at Nicosia. In the 1990s, APOEL's ultras turned their black bomber jackets to the left to present the orange lining.

In fact, the first game they sported the orange jackets was during the first-round game of the 1992–93 championship against AEL Limassol in Makario Stadium. Since then, supporter groups like the PAN.SY.FI (and most ultras as well as fans) wear orange jackets (or T-shirts).

The colour orange has a special meaning in the ultra and hooligan scene. Because violence and excesses play an important role for many a football fan, the fans are attracted to Stanley Kubrick's cinematic masterpiece "Clockwork Orange".

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The fans of Eintracht Frankfurt also regularly call for an "Orange Day", on which fans (mostly for away games) should play in orange.

The official APOEL store is called Orange Shop, interestingly.

Which other quite odd traditions of supporters do you know? Share your thoughts in the comments below.