WIE is a Welling United fanzine that was originally established in 1992 at the height of the fanzine explosion in English football. Given that Welling United are a small and, until relatively recently, a family run club access to the hierarchy was easy, so WIE was never intended to be a campaigning-type fanzine. There just wasn’t the need. So, we started the fanzine as something that the fans could own, contribute to and feel part of the wider football culture.

Issue 32, published in August 2000, was intended to be the last WIE. Indeed, it was until the club fell foul of the tax man in 2010, which saw the return of the fanzine as our little bit to help raise funds to save the club. And that was it, WIE was back to stay-ish purely to help spread the word about the club. We also believe that a good quality fanzine adds to the whole experience of attending a football match. There was a hiatus during the 2019/20 season in which we didn’t produce a single issue, but the plan is to return again for the 2021/22 season when we’re allowed to attend football again.

WIE has been lucky to have a small but loyal bunch of regular contributors. We only wish there were more of them. WIE has a loyal readership too. The print run isn’t big, but we like to think that WIE reaches a high percentage of Welling United supporters.