Premier League fans on why they love their clubs

Why do we tie our fates to a particular football club?

It may be we were born close to the club's stadium, that a parent passed the torch on, or perhaps because we became enamoured with a certain player as a child.

Or it could simply be that we were delighted when Brian Clough kissed our grandad's head.

As part of a campaign called 'My Club, My Passion', Premier League fans have been sending stories to BBC Sport about how and why they fell in love with their team.

The story about Clough is just one example.

Danielle Sarver Coombs, researcher and co-writer of the Routledge Handbook of Sport Fans and Fandom, says the teams we support provide us with a shared identity.

"It becomes a way to find a kinship, a community that no matter where you are, you could find a pub with other fans of your team," she said.

"In a world that's increasingly lonely, this provides one way that we can have connection and the feeling that we're part of something bigger."

Here are some of your submissions:

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