Declan Rice in Red and White: Arsenal Away Fans Debut Catchy New Chant at Bournemouth

Jan 6

Arsenal’s traveling support have added a new banger to their songbook — and it started on the road.

It’s official – Arsenal’s traveling support have added a new banger to their songbook. During the Gunners’ recent away win at Bournemouth, fans unveiled a chant for Declan Rice that’s as catchy as it is celebratory. If you’ve seen clips of Gooners bouncing to a chorus about Rice and “I like it, aha aha,” you’ve witnessed the birth of this new terrace anthem.

Let’s break down what happened, why it’s got everyone buzzing, and how it fits into the broader fan chant culture.

Bournemouth Brace Sparks a Song

Arsenal’s trip to the Vitality Stadium turned into the Declan Rice show. Despite pre-match injury doubts, Rice not only played — he scored a brace in a tight win, and the away end responded in kind. As soon as Rice’s second hit the net, the traveling fans erupted into a rhythmic chant in his honor.

You could feel Rice’s bond with supporters level up in real time. Few things endear a player to fans like match-winning heroics followed by his name ringing out in song.

Chant Lyrics

The words are simple but impossibly catchy. Here’s the chant that echoed from the away end at Bournemouth:

“Declan Rice in red and white, I like it, aha aha!” 🎶

Repeat that a few times (with gusto) and you’ve got the idea. The magic is in the repetition — it’s the kind of one-line earworm everyone can latch onto.

A Throwback Tune with a Twist

If that “aha aha” hook sounds familiar, it should. The chant borrows its melody from a pop culture earworm — the Baha Men era hook many fans recognize as “I like it, aha aha,” popularized in party-pop territory. In true terrace fashion, Arsenal fans have taken a widely recognizable tune and given it a North London twist.

Football supporters have been repurposing pop songs forever: recognizable melody = instant participation. That’s why this chant lands so fast. It’s upbeat, a little goofy, and ridiculously easy to sing at full volume.

The Away-End Effect: New Chants Start on the Road

There’s something about away days that brings out the most creative (and loud) side of supporters. Cram a few thousand die-hards into the away section, add a long trip and the buzz of a big result, and you’ve got the perfect lab for new songs.

It didn’t take long for this one to travel beyond the Vitality either — once a chant hits, social media does the rest.

From the Stands to Social Media: Immediate Buzz

In 2026, no chant stays in the stadium. Within hours of full-time, clips of Arsenal fans singing “Declan Rice in red and white, I like it, aha aha!” were everywhere — reels, fan accounts, group chats, the whole lot.

This is the modern chant lifecycle: born in the away end, amplified online, and then adopted at home games once everyone knows the words.

Rice’s Rapid Rise in Fan Favour

Chants don’t just pop up for any player — they’re a signal of real affection. Declan Rice has only been at Arsenal a short time, but moments like Bournemouth accelerate that fan connection fast. This chant is basically the supporters saying: “You’re one of us — and we love it.”

And for a player who arrived with massive expectations, hearing his name sung with that kind of joy is a strong sign he’s already carved out his place in the fan culture.

Related Chants & Stories

If you’re into how songs start (and how fast they spread), you’ll like these too:

Note: If you want, I can also add SEO fields (slug, title tag, meta description, excerpt, and suggested keywords) in a separate copy/paste block.

Jennifer Halstead