There Were Nine Russian Drones in the Air": The Crystal Palace Chant Heard Around Europe
Football chants have long been the heartbeat of the terraces — equal parts comedy, chaos, and social commentary. On October 2, 2025, Crystal Palace fans took that to new heights with a chant that’s still echoing across social media: “There were nine Russian drones in the air, and Jean-Philippe Mateta shot them down.”
Sung in Poland during their Europa Conference League clash against Dynamo Kyiv, the chant quickly went viral after Football Away Days posted the video on X (formerly Twitter). What started as a moment of gallows humor from traveling Palace fans turned into a talking point about how football supporters weave real-world events, satire, and national tension into song.
A Chant Born from Absurdity and Timing
The song riffs on the old England fan classic “Ten German Bombers” — a chant dating back decades, often criticized for its wartime tone. By replacing “German bombers” with “Russian drones,” Palace fans reimagined it for a new geopolitical era, with a comedic twist. In their version, striker Jean-Philippe Mateta becomes a folk hero, single-handedly “shooting down” the drones like a wartime ace.
It’s the kind of humor you only find in football. A heavy topic — war — turns into a surreal punchline delivered by thousands in unison. For those on the terraces, it wasn’t a political statement so much as a spontaneous spark of wit and defiance. Still, the timing of the chant — during a match involving Dynamo Kyiv, a Ukrainian club displaced by conflict — made it impossible to ignore its political edge.
Football, Politics, and the Thin Line Between Them
Football governing bodies like UEFA have long tried to keep politics out of the game. Their regulations forbid “provocative messages of a political, ideological, or offensive nature” inside stadiums. Yet as history shows, the terraces have always been a mirror of what’s happening in the world beyond the pitch.
In this case, the “nine Russian drones” chant blurred that boundary perfectly — not overt propaganda, but a clear nod to the ongoing war and Ukraine’s resilience. It echoed similar fan acts across Europe: Celtic fans waving Palestinian flags, Galatasaray supporters raising humanitarian banners, or Italian ultras unveiling anti-war displays. Football, even when it tries to stay neutral, can’t help but reflect the passions of its people.
“There were nine Russian drones in the air, and Jean-Philippe Mateta shot them down.”
— Sung by Crystal Palace supporters, Poland, October 2025
UEFA has reportedly monitored the footage, though no official statement or sanction has been announced. For most observers, the chant felt less like a provocation and more like a surreal mix of football folklore and current affairs — a testament to how quick-witted supporters can transform headlines into terrace anthems.
The Palace Fan Mentality: Humor, Heart, and Defiance
Palace fans have built a reputation as some of the most creative and boisterous in English football. Their home end at Selhurst Park — driven by the Holmesdale Fanatics — is known for banners, coordinated songs, and an atmosphere more reminiscent of continental ultras than traditional Premier League crowds.
This mix of humor and pride isn’t new. Palace supporters have sung through heartbreaks, relegation scraps, and cup runs alike, using chants to turn emotion into energy. The Mateta “Russian drones” song simply fit into that lineage — playful, defiant, and proudly offbeat.
One Palace fan posted online afterward: “Only our lot could turn global warfare into a football chant — and somehow make it funny.” It’s true. In an era of sanitized matchday experiences, Palace’s away support reminded everyone that spontaneous, unfiltered chanting is still alive and well.
Away Days: Where Chant Legends Are Born
To understand why this chant resonated, you have to understand the magic of away days. Traveling supporters are often the most dedicated — braving distance, weather, and ticket costs for the sheer love of being part of something communal. It’s where inside jokes, new songs, and moments of madness are born.
When Crystal Palace played Dynamo Kyiv in Poland, hundreds of Eagles fans filled the away section, waving flags and singing from start to finish. Many had traveled over 1,000 miles to see their team play in a neutral venue. The atmosphere was charged, not hostile — more a carnival of shared absurdity than anything else.
It’s moments like these that define football fandom. From “We lose every week” to “We’re not going down, we don’t give a f***,” humor and heart have always powered English terraces. The “nine Russian drones” chant now joins that proud tradition — equal parts satire and support, sung with full lungs and no apologies.
Comparisons: When Other Clubs Went Viral
Crystal Palace aren’t the first club to see their chants explode online. Wrexham fans gained fame with witty Hollywood-inspired songs after Ryan Reynolds’ takeover. Arsenal supporters remixed pop hits into player tributes (“Super Mik Arteta”), while Leeds United fans turned self-deprecation into anthems. But what set Palace apart in Poland was the speed and cleverness of the moment — a chant improvised, recorded, and shared worldwide within hours.
For many neutrals, it was a reminder of why English fans are considered the masters of terrace wit: taking current events, rewriting them in rhyme, and singing them loud enough to trend online.
Why It Matters
Beneath the laughter, there’s something deeper here. Football chants are part of a living oral culture — spontaneous, democratic, and endlessly evolving. They capture emotion in real time. The “nine Russian drones” chant is a snapshot of 2025: war on the news, football in Poland, and fans finding a way to laugh in the chaos.
It may offend some and amuse others, but that’s the nature of football expression. Chants aren’t crafted in PR rooms; they’re born in the stands — messy, funny, and raw. And for all the talk about modern football losing its soul, Crystal Palace’s supporters just proved the terraces still have plenty to say.
Final Whistle
Whether you find it brilliant or borderline, there’s no denying the impact of this chant. In one night, a few hundred Palace fans managed to capture the absurd spirit of football — humor under pressure, unity through sound, and a reminder that supporters are storytellers in their own right.
For now, “There were nine Russian drones in the air” belongs to Crystal Palace folklore — a viral moment that shows football chants are still the purest, funniest, and sometimes most subversive form of fan expression on Earth.
Sources: Football Away Days (X), Sportbible, Guardian Football, Crystal Palace FC fan forums.