Produced in Canada and read in a café over in Lisbon, say hello to TIFO magazine
Produced in Canada and read in a café over in Lisbon, say hello to TIFO magazine
Produced in Canada and read in a café over in Lisbon, say hello to TIFO magazine
We’ve been blessed with brilliant magazines emerging in recent years, all of which have defined their own voice and perspective, thus rightfully earning a place in the AFR bookshelf. The latest to emerge is TIFO magazine and as always, we wanted to know more about the project so we caught up with the brains behind TIFO.
AFR: TIFO is an unusual name for a magazine, how did this choice emerge?
TIFO: The name was decided after brainstorming for several weeks about what we wanted the magazine to represent and once the content [that would be included in our first issue] was confirmed. We decided on TIFO because it encompass’ the values that the football supporter culture represents.
The name is synonymous with enthusiasm. TIFO is originally an Italian word - Fare il Tifo meaning ‘to support’, defining the phenomenon of ardently supporting a sporting team. A TIFO is also any choreographed display, orchestrated by supporters within a stadium or arena, to proclaim adulation for their respective sides.
We followed through with the slogan “Unity of Devotion” (#UnityofDevotion) to emphasize that TIFO, in one way or another, exists within supporters groups globally.
How did the TIFO magazine concept come to life?
We decided that TIFO would dedicate itself to building a product that will be used as an educational tool for the enthusiastic supporter. We teach them [the supporter] about global occurrences that surround the game and in turn, promote specific footballing communities to engage in larger social movements within their respective regions.
TIFO’s team has relationships with football administrations and relevant academic networks globally. This allows us to pair the most relevant contributors to each of our stories both journalistically and visually.
We’ve taken it upon ourselves to create a magazine that will provide timeless information to our readership. TIFO documents the world’s game by providing insights about footballing culture through the creativity, nostalgia and drama surrounding the beautiful game.
Our ultimate goal is to create an encyclopaedic archive of sorts that can be referred to as often as one would like.
How long was the process to produce your first issue?
Issue 1 took no less than seven months to put together. We paid close attention to our magazine’s identity, the content, the aesthetic of the brand’s image and the spread of collaborators.
Were there any memorable moments experienced during the seven month journey?
Highlights are happening on a daily basis as the word spreads! The main “feel good” aspect is definitely the team we’re assembling. Our stories stretch across the world and have gotten us in contact with contributors from literally more than 70 countries to date. We take the concept of covering the world’s game from a global perspective to heart.
Are you able to share with us what the general response has been so far?
The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. We’re believers in the universal law of attraction. We’ll continue to be as enthusiastic and optimistic about our project forevermore solely based on the response we’ve gotten to date.
About the content within the magazine, compliments range from article selections, to photography and artistry. We get plenty of props about the design and aesthetic of the magazine. Our audience appears to be loving our brand image.
What can we look forward to in the near future from TIFO?
We’re preparing the release of our next issue in May, just before the World Cup. We aim to continue to excel and make each and every issue exponentially better than the last.
Secondly, TIFO is taking its initiative to the streets. We will be involved in several on-going football related functions. For instance, we are playing an active role during the ConIFA World Football Cup in Sweden this June, and the Mundiali Antirazzisti (Anti-Racism World Cup) in Italy in July.
Stay updated with all of TIFO’s developments and upcoming releases on Twitter and if you’d like to get hold of issue one, you can do so on their website.
[This was a discussion held by our Managing Editor Dom]
