Welcome to the latest instalment in our 'For Football's Sake' series, looking at some of the daft and silly things in football that really wind us up.
We started off tackling the whole issue of fans leaving football games early as well as providing some strong views on the use of statistics in football.
Then came a piece in April, moaning about harsh punishments given to players for celebrations that are deemed "excessive" - which drove plenty of engagement and debate.
After a couple of months away, we're back in the game and although we're on a break from the football season, there's still plenty of moaning to be done, and so this time the focus is on half-and-half scarves - one of the most annoying things in in the current climate when it comes to pet hates in football.
First and foremost, it's clear that scarves are a key part of the match-going experience and have been for as long as we can all remember.
Advert
Along with wearing your team's shirt, a football scarf is another primary way of showing support for your team. I've personally had plenty of football scarves over the years and tying it around your neck as you head towards the stadium absolutely gets you in the zone before a crunch clash.
Without fail, more or less every club has someone outside the home ground trying to flog the knitted accessory, drenched in your club's colours.
But the trend has been stepped up another gear completely in recent times, with half-and-half scarves being introduced and becoming a symbol of everything wrong with modern football.
Image: PA
Advert
To balance things out, I'll start off my saying that there are a few situations and scenarios where a half-and-half scarf is borderline acceptable. The main demographic that half-and-half scarf sellers are targeting is predominantly tourists, and casual fans seeking a memento to remember a game they attended.
To be fair, though it's not my cup of tea, I can see why a neutral would invest in a half-and-half scarf if they had the pleasure of watching the Milan derby or El Clasico in the stands. And for someone abroad, being sat in the stands for a high-profile Premier League clash is in the same bracket, I guess.
Then there's cup finals at Wembley, where some fans will mark the occasion by paying a fiver for a scarf containing 50 per cent of you teams colours, and 50 per cent of the colours associated with the team you are hoping to pip to the trophy. International fixtures are also a common ground for the old half-and-half scarf collections, as was the case when Scotland and England locked horns in a World Cup qualifier a week ago. There is a purpose for these souvenirs in games such as charity matches, and in an effort to show solidarity.
Image: PA
Advert
But the continued presence of half-and-half scarves at football games in general is wrong on so many levels. I die a little inside when I see an an average match-going fan wearing the colours of two teams around their neck.
Back in November 2015, BBC Trending took a look at the topic of half-and-half shirts and why there was/is so much animosity attached to it. From where I'm at, the principle is the same as with half-and-half scarves.
As part of the investigation, the BBC spoke to Claire Dolan, a partner in the Arena Scarves company that are based in Leicester and she stressed that that half-and-half scarves, which the business has delved into in terms of both rugby and football products, are merely evidence of the changing culture and even calling criticism of it as showing an "outdated" view on football and fan bases.
"We started doing them for international rugby, and it spread into English football. Our competitors picked up on it," she said.
Advert
"Fans should get into the 21st Century. The old days of it being quite so tribal... we need to get away from that."
While Claire is right in the sense that football and its culture has changed, and the demand for items like half-and-half scarves is there, I'm not having her last point.
Image: PA
Advert
I'm much more inclined to agree with John Williams, an expert in the sociology of football at the University of Leicester, who has hit the nail on the head.
"It makes people look like consumers, the opposite of how most football fans like to think of themselves. Most fans still think support is an accident of birth," he said in his contribution to the BBC Trending feature.
Where you are a born or the influence of a parent connects you with a particular club. No matter how poorly they perform, you can't shake that.
"The idea that that's no longer important and that can just choose a second club is really difficult."
As football fans, rivalry is rife for us. We all have that one team who we completely and utterly detest, and long for getting the better of. Yet that bitter rivalry is diminished considerably with the existence of these half-and-half jokes at the ground prior to the game. Manchester derbies, North London derbies, Merseyside derbies, and even Manchester United-Liverpool, a fixture fuelled by such hatred, have all fell into the scarf monstrosity and it makes me sick that there are people who are at the game wearing the colours both teams. It's a true football crime.
Image: PA
It's absolutely fine to have a soft spot for another team. For a couple of years, despite being a staunch Manchester City fan since birth, I developed an interest in Serie A side Roma and after setting up a Twitter account delivering news and opinions on the Giallorossi, I began to watch their games on a regular basis and an affection did indeed form.
However, that association went straight out of the window when City and Roma were both paired in the same Champions League group a couple of years back.
And that's why half-and-half scarves annoy me so much, because you are a effectively endorsing the other team. I'm not arsed in the slightest about having West Brom's badge and colours on a scarf for a cup final just because they are the other team - I'm all about my team and my team only. You can still remember the game without having the opposition plastered on your scarf. That's the way it should be.
Image: PA
Chelsea made the decision to ban half-and-half scarf sales outside their ground in August 2016 and I'd love nothing more than other clubs to follow suit.
If you agree with my thoughts on 'friendship' scarves, give us a shout and I'll think about putting a petition out there to put an end to half-and-half scarves.
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: Football