10 Craziest Fanbases in World Football

It can become difficult to understand amidst all the stories about players, managers, agents and money in the modern game, but football is really all about the fans.

Supporters are the lifeblood of the clubs, turning up week in and week out to follow the team no matter what.

Every club will feel that their fans are best, but here are just 10 of the loudest, most passionate and craziest fanbases in the world:

Borussia Dortmund

Their vivid, yellow presence was so apparent throughout their club's run to the 2012/13 Champions League final, where Borussia Dortmund's fans again turned up en masse.

Loud, passionate and seemingly matching the humour of their club's charismatic manager Jurgen Klopp, the Dortmund fans are one of the first things that people mention when they talk about their admiration of German football.

With some of their best players seemingly leaving for pastures new, the whole of football can only hope that Dortmund's fans are present on the big stages for some time yet.

Besiktas

None other than Sir Alex Ferguson told ESPN the Besiktas fans were the loudest he'd ever heard following a Champions League match in Istanbul in 2009, and it is easy to see and hear why.

The Turkish club are regulars in European competition and impress virtually everyone with their constant chanting and singing.

As part of a three-pronged Istanbul hierarchy in Turkish football, they certainly hold their own.

Galatasaray

"Welcome To Hell" read the famous banner years ago, and Galatasaray fans certainly seek to make it hell for visiting teams to Istanbul.

Certain individuals can take this approach too far as seen with the fatal stabbing of two Leeds United fans in 2000, but the mindless actions of a minority can't disguise the passion of the majority.

Galatasaray reached the Champions League quarter-finals in 2013 and were backed by their vociferous fans all the way there.

Fenerbahce

The third of our Turkish trio, Fenerbahce fans have strong rivalries with the other two, most notably Galatasaray.

Since the club's founding in 1907, the fans have developed a strong presence in Turkish and European football, with their attendances frequently the highest in their country.

The Sukru Saracoglu Stadium is rocking on matchdays, with the club frequently setting records for noise.

Celtic and Rangers

As deep-rooted as any rivalry in world football, the "Old Firm Derby" can be a remarkable sight to behold.

Centuries old religious tension explodes from the terraces at either Celtic Park, Ibrox or Hampden Park when the two most successful clubs in Scotland meet, matches that have been put on hold for a few years due to Rangers' insolvency and subsequent demotion to Scottish football's fourth tier in 2012.

They'll be back, though, as will these astonishing spectacles.

Lech Poznan

You know you've made it as supporters when people start copying you, and that's exactly what's happened to Lech Poznan fans ever since a Europa League tie in 2010.

Their "Poznan" celebration as seen above has been adopted by Manchester City fans ever since that fixture three years ago, and as seen in this remarkable footage from an under-12s match (!) they are certainly some of the more passionate supporters around.

The Polish club are seemingly blessed with fanatical followers.

Liverpool

The stories of Liverpool's Kop are legendary, with one of the most famous coming in 1964, when a BBC Panorama reporter studied the behaviour of the fans in much the same way as he would when discovering a new country.

They were different back then, and to this day they retain the mystique and reverence of more than just football fans.

More recently, in this BBC Sport report, Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho claimed that a controversial Luis Garcia goal in a 2005 Champions League semi-final came "from the Anfield Road stand" such was the pressure put on the officials by the fans, whilst Reds supporters set the world sound record for any sport when John Arne Riise scored early in the Carling Cup final in the same year.

Their cheers measured 130.7 decibels, the same as being stood next to a pneumatic drill.

Boca Juniors and River Plate

Regarded as the club of Argentina's working class, Boca Juniors fans are known as "La 12," or "The 12th man," whilst the traditionally more wealthy River Plate are "Los Millionarios."

The most supported club in Argentina, Boca's matches against rivals River are known as the "Superclasico", and often feature supporters letting off fireworks and bouncing in the stands.

According to The Observer newspaper, visiting a Boca-River derby is the No. 1 of 50 sporting things you need to do before you die.