Sports have always played a part in bringing people together.
Badminton's 1992 Thomas Cup, Football's 1980 Munich Olympic qualification and Lee Chong Wei's three Olympic Finals were all moments that brought people together in Malaysia regardless of their backgrounds.
On the international front, it has bridged gaps that include ceasefires, peace between warring factions, easing of racial tensions and more importantly bringing communities together.
Johor Darul Ta'zim FC (JDT) have indirectly done the same in Johor and pushed the Bangsa Johor agenda to the front. Coined in 1920, the 'Bangsa Johor' term is a common ground for the various races and ethnicity in Johor.
"My great-grandfather Sultan Sir Ibrahim in 1920 made the clarion call Bangsa Johor to unite the various races in Johor under one flag for greater cooperation, harmony and peaceful existence," His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim Ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar, Sultan of Johor commented in an interview with the Star in August, 2016.
JDT owner HRH Major General Tunku Ismail Ibni Sultan Ibrahim, a passionate football fan and heir to the Crown, could be seen as killing two birds with one stone considering the scales JDT have already reached.
1. Bring back Johor's glory days and build a football Empire like never before.
2. Unite an entire state through football.
The Southern Tigers have even come up with #JDTFamily and #JDTforAll hashtags, which syncs with the 'Bangsa Johor' purpose.
The fan base of JDT speaks for itself.
While domestic football has predominantly had a significantly large Malay following, JDT appears to attract a multi-racial following.
A regular sight is the Chinese and Indians donning the JDT jerseys, attending matches and possessing season passes. Even the Boys of Straits, Yayasan JDT and other components of the club have good representation.
There hasn't been a racism issue at the JDT stadium, be it among the fans or towards the players, unlike racism allegations at a certain Klang Valley-based 'Giant' towards their own player.
HRH Tunku Ismail even took matters a step further by disbanding race-based football association in Johor in 2017 and went on to say: "We are more than a club. JDT have become an exemplary component in introducing unity in the state. Regardless of your faith and your skin colour, you are Bangsa Johor and JDT symbolises that."
The concept is also portrayed by the seat colours at the state-of-the-art Sultan Ibrahim Stadium launched in February this year, where having several red seats at the very top and blue seats all around was an idea of the Crown Prince of Johor to symbolise that those supporting JDT may come from different backgrounds but are seen as one when they are part of the club.
Staying true to efforts in building a community, JDT announced plans of building a public gym while HRH Tunku Ismail is spearheading an initiative to build a Youth Centre in each of the 10 Johor districts. Both with an aim of bringing the people together regardless of backgrounds, race or religion.
Former journalist Vijhay is Head of Content at Johor Darul Ta'zim FC following stints with Malay Mail, Sports247.my, FourFourTwo Malaysia and FOX Malaysia. You may have also heard him on BFM Football or watched him on Media Prima's football programmes. Vijhay can be reached at @vijhayvick on Twitter.
