Today we turn our attentions to the programme published by Tottenham during the 2020/21 season, in the latest of our series of Premier League reviews. The full review is shown below and you can see all of the issues from the season here.
Spurs’ programme remains largely like last season’s programme – being an 84-page perfect-bound edition. Despite having one of the lower net page counts of any issue in the division (after advertising content is removed) this is a programme that still offers some worthwhile reading.
Each issue contains a five-page interview with a current Spurs star, a three-page junior section, and ‘In That Number’ – a one-page interview with a Spurs fan. However, the focus of the original content is very much on historical content and there are several interesting articles.
‘Spurs Firsts’ for example is a recurring feature that looks at the people and occasions that have shaped the club’s history. ‘Back Issue’ highlights Spurs programmes from the past from games against the day’s opponents, with the article including images of the respective issues and notes on the context of the games. ‘The Road to Glory’ celebrates several anniversaries, with Tottenham’s renowned good fortune when the year ends in one! The column reflects on a game from one of these seasons, including an image of the programme cover from the day and some press clippings.
‘Three of a Kind’ invites a former Spurs player to select their three favourites from various categories, including goals, matches and so on, while ‘Where Are They Now?’ investigates what players from the past have been doing since retirement. ‘Legends on Legends’ is a new feature for the 2020/21 season, asking one player who turned out for the club about their memories of great players from their opponents – the Newcastle United issue for example offering the thoughts of Teddy Sheringham on his former England strike-partner Alan Shearer.
The day’s visitors to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium are covered across six dedicated pages. The section includes a brief manager profile, a ten-year record showing the club’s performance, and player pictures with basic biographical detail. The section is heavily oriented towards statistics, showing graphics such as action zones, but there is also a form guide and three ‘Ones to Watch’. This section would certainly benefit from an article or two on the visiting club, to offer some insights beyond the basic detail provided.
The programme does contain a good level of information about all aspects of the club. In addition to the manager column there are three pages of club news, and previous matches are covered across two pages, with stats, line-ups, and pictures. Coverage of Tottenham’s Women’s team is impressive, with two dedicated pages that offer news, stats, and match information. The club’s academy teams are given similar treatment, and there is a further page of stats covering each of the teams, while the first-teams stats section runs to three pages.
The programme is well designed, with the use of the club’s traditional navy and white complemented by flashes of brighter colours in certain sections, and the page layouts are generally unfussy and easy to read. Overall, this is a solid issue from Tottenham, with the focus on offering a range of historical content worthy of note.