Is it time for Arsenal to change their mascot? Or not?

Do Arsenal need a new mascot?

Most football fan will recognise Gunnersaurus as the timid larger-than-life dinosaur who has been with the gunners since 1994. Truth be said, there are a considerable amount of mascots out there who are deemed a whole lot more entertaining and worthwhile than this lovable giant. All you need to do is have a look at the infographic of the best mascots of all time to see that there are more eccentric mascots in the world, but it’s not always about exciting the fans and causing controversy, the meaning of the mascot is the reason why Arsenal shouldn’t change their big green character.

Captain Arsenal

Before I progress with the article, I think this needs to be covered first. Arsenal has already teased the idea that they could be acquiring a new mascot, but even as an Arsenal fan, I feel that this is a horrible mistake. A tacky middle-aged man dressed up as a superhero is something very cringe-worthy to watch. He has been supposedly employed to appear before matches but instead of wowing their audience like most superheroes do, he instead looking rather embarrassing in an ill-fitted hero suit and mask and it hasn’t deemed well with the Arsenal fans either. It unsure what this means for the lovable Gunnersaurus, but I know and I think everyone else knows, is that character won’t go down as the best mascots of all time.

There’s No Need For Change

So he may not be the most exciting mascot but it’s what he represents; which for me is slowly being diminished in football scene. He shows prosperity, serenity and is a role model to the younger Gunners. He constantly provides the laughs as he’s impossible to miss whilst driving around in open-top cars or psyching our John Terry with weird pre-match handshakes. His presence is always seen as he stoically observes each minute silence or decides to join the team in training. This is why Arsenal shouldn’t change their mascot, the dinosaur emulates what a football fan should be, rather than the violent hooliganism we seeing more and more in society now days and he’s a mascot for the kids.

That’s exactly where Gunnersaurus came from too; he was created by a young 11-year-old Peter Lovell. Arsenal had a competition for the younger generation to design their new mascot and the winner came from Lovell’s two loves- his club Arsenal and the release of Jurassic Park and since then the mascot has accompanied the team on recent trips around the globe. He featured in the teams’ 2014 New York trip, where he held court at the Arsenal America-hosted pep rally and has routinely delighted fans as schools, festivals, hospitals, and even weddings. He’s truly a mascot dedicated to the fans and for that should not be changed, thanks to his creator, he was even at Lovell’s wedding in 2013, being a surprise gift engineered by his wife and his best man. He will always be Arsenal’s funny and charismatic dinosaur