U-S-Hate?

Is the U-S-A chant common at Melee Super Majors nationalistic?

Super Smash Bros. Melee is a sixteen year old game, and during its time as a competitive game the crowds at some of Melee's biggest tournaments have created a few traditions. There's the 'Ay!' during chaingrabs, chanting of player's names, and some friendly smack talk between regions.

However among these traditions, there's one that sticks out especially to the international community, and that's the 'U-S-A' chant  that usually accomodates a good Mang0 set.

Everyone knows Mang0 is a patriot, he's always rocked Captain America tank tops in his early days, calls his fans the 'Mang0 Nation', and has one of the most American tattoos one can imagine.

It comes as no suprise that Mang0 loved the USA chants that broke out during his set against Armada at the first Genesis. It was the first time the community, both West and East coasts, rallied behind Mang0 to cheer him to victory against the Swedish Smash God Armada in one of the first high level examples of international play.

But in the recent past, Armada has talked about how he finds the chant a little annoying, and can sometimes make him feel a little unwelcome in the tense atmosphere of tournament play. The community has had debates in the past, where some people have stated that it takes a dig at Armada who has traveled over a thousand miles just to compete. 

But on the other side, Mang0 rocks the USA! tag and has an eagle on his chest, the guy certainly loves to be a patriot and represent his country. The U-S-A chant is a common rally cry for all sorts of crowds around the country, it ranges from a symbolic level of patriotism during hard times, or it can be a group of drunk college kids just trying to be rowdy. But its origin in Smash seems to be of some dispute.

A lot of the conversation in the community seems to revolve around the intention of the people doing the actual chanting, and neglect the aspect of interpretation. 

Ultimately, the chanting has interfered with Armada's midgame mindset in the past, while it has also reminded Mang0 that he's not just playing for himself, sometimes he carries the hopes of thousands of American esport fans who take pride in their country's abilities in Melee.

In other esports in America, the international scenes are dominated by other countries like Korea in League of Legends and the Swedes have had some of the best Counter-Strike teams of all time. 

So it's nice to see America do well in one of the most technically demanding and intricate fighting games of all time. Countries in the FIFA Premier league cheer for their country in common league play, but ultimately it's totally different from demeaning another country. 

From my perspective the 'U-S-A' chants at major tournaments for Smash are just a fun way for the American fans to show their compassion and gratitude for their players. Especially nowadays where it seems pretty clearly that Armada is the best player in the world, the chant serves as a rallying cry for hope and determination when players like Mang0 step up to the plate to take on the Swedes. 

Ultimately I don't think that anyone should take the chant too seriously, it's just a fun way for American crowds to root on their favorite player and their country in a 16 year old game that is just starting to see the international scene really show up.