White Stripes Link To International Soccer Explained
By Edward Cardenas
SOUTHFIELD (97.1 The Ticket) - The White Stripes had a minor radio hit in 2003 with their song "Seven Nation Army," but the song has been a blockbuster in soccer in stadiums and football stadiums around the world since.
Online magazine Slate traced the song's link to sport back to 2003 in a bar in Milan, Italy, where fans of Club Brugge K.V. gathered before a match against A.C. Milan. The song by the Detroit-based duo played on the radio and members of the Blue Army began singing along with the now well-known notes, Da, da-DA-da da DAAH DAAH, and continued their chanting in the stadium during and after the game.
The story stated the fans continued singing the riff back in Belgium, and playing it over the speakers in the stadium.
By 2006 it began to spread to other soccer stadiums and could be heard during the World Cup. Later that yea, it returned to stadiums in the United States with Penn State being among the first to feature the song during the game.
It is now played at sports stadiums in all the major leagues, and many college venues.