Arsenal's greatest ever chants

Arsenal fans

Arsenal’s greatest ever chants 

Arsenal fans have been in top form in the last 12 months, churning out hit chant after hit chant with catchy and creative lyrics. 

The infectious ‘Saka and Emile Smith-Rowe’ chant made its debut on the terraces at the start of last season and has been followed by some certified bangers. 

Three new signings have already been christened with the ultimate honour this term. 

Oleksandr Zinchenko grabbed an assist on his debut against Crystal Palace and heard his name sung to the tune of ‘Gold’ by Spandau Ballet. 

It was William Saliba’s turn next, with fans turning The Champs ‘Tequila’ into a brilliantly simple serenade for the centre back. 

But the Gabriel Jesus ‘hymn’ surely tops the lot – Lonnie Donegan’s ‘My Oldman’s a Dustman’ converted into a genius tribute to the Brazilian. 

The lyrics are below for those unaware: 


Ohhhhhh Mik Arteta called him,  

Said, ‘now’s your time to shine,’  

Coz I’m collecting Gabi’s,  

And Gunner (gonna) make you mine.  

They say he walks on water,  

Then turns it into wine,  

Oh I believe in Jesus,  

The Arsenal number nine! 


All four are instant hits, but what about the timeless classics that have reverberated around the Emirates and Highbury for generations? 

Here’s our list of Arsenal’s greatest ever chants, in no particular order: 

What do you think of Tottenham? 

Sometimes the best chants are the least complicated, and any dig at Spurs is always going to go down well. 

This chant is one of the most famous and easily applicable to contexts outside of football, as one cheeky student proved in 2016.


What do you think of Tottenham, 

Sh*t, 

What do you think of sh*t Tottenham,  

Thank you,  

That's alright, 

We hate Tottenham,  

We hate Tottenham,  

We hate Tottenham,  

We hate Tottenham,  

We hate Tottenham,  

We hate Tottenham,  

We are the Tottenham haters... 

She wore a yellow ribbon… 

A true classic of the genre, there are rumours that the song originated back in the 1950s, but only truly came to prominence in the late 70s, when Arsenal reached back-to-back-to-back FA Cup finals. 

The Gunners ran out in their yellow away kit on all three occasions, and the tune, which is based on a US war poem by George A Norton, entitled “Round Her Neck She Wears a Yeller Ribbon”, has been a fan favourite ever since. 


She wore, she wore, 

She wore a yellow ribbon, 

She wore a yellow ribbon in the merry month of May. 

And when, I asked, Oh why she wore her ribbon? 

She said it’s for The Arsenal and we’re going to Wembley. 

Wembley, Wembley, 

We’re the famous Arsenal and we’re going to Wembley. 

We’re the North Bank… 

This well-known back-and-forth is most often sung by the North Bank and the Clock End – but the west stand and east stand occasionally join in for the big matches. 

And in a tribute to the former stadium, ‘Highbury’ is still retained as the final lyric even after the move to the Emirates. 


We're the North Bank, 

We're the North Bank, 

We're the North Bank Highbury! 

We're the Clock End, 

We're the Clock End, 

We're the Clock End Highbury! 

1-0 to the Arsenal… 

The George Graham era was infamous for a particularly stingy defence and the story goes that at half-time in the 1994 Cup Winners’ Cup semi-final against PSG, a new chant was born. 

Ian Wright had given the Gunners a slender lead and both the second leg and final in Copenhagen finished by the same scoreline, cementing its place in the Arsenal chorus book. 


One-nil to the Arsenal, 

One-nil to the Arsenal, 

One-nil to the Arsenal, 

One-nil to the Arsenal... 

49 undefeated… 

Arsenal still hold the record for the longest unbeaten run in the Premier League, when Arsene Wenger’s men failed to lose between May 2003 and October 2004. 

Needless to say this included an entire season without defeat and the Invincibles will forever be remembered by these lyrics: 


49 49 undefeated

49 49 I say

49 49 undefeated

Playing football the Arsenal way… 

Ooh to be a Gooner… 

A breath-takingly basic chant is one of the most popular and punchy, summing up the pleasure of being an Arsenal fan in five simple words. 


Oooh to, oooh to be, 

Oooh to, oooh to be, 

Oooh to, ooh to be, 

Oooh to be a Goo-ner! 

And it’s Arsenal, Arsenal FC… 

Not exclusively an Arsenal chant, but one of the only clubs who could make a solid argument for the veracity of the final line. 
Fans can argue they sing it louder and prouder than any other too. 

And it's Arsenal,  

Arsenal FC,  

We're by far the greatest team,  

The world has ever seen... 

We all follow the Arsenal… 

There is contention over the origin of the bracketed addition to this last chant, with some arguing it came from a sign on the M1 that read ‘The North and Leicester’. 

More likely, however, is the FA Cup 3rd Round against Sheffield Wednesday in 1979, when there were a total of four replays all held in Leicester due to unprecedented snow. 

Arsenal progressed against the third division side at the fifth attempt, winning 2-0, and went on to lift the Cup against Manchester United in the final. 


We all follow the Arsenal, 

Over land and sea, (and Leicester!) 

We all follow the Arsenal, 

Onto victory! 

Image Credit: Getty Images

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