fair-weather fan

• fair weather fan

From fair-weather + fan, drawing an analogy between good weather and trouble-free times.

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fair-weather fan (plural fair-weather fans)

1. (sports, idiomatic) A fan who only pays attention to their favorite team when they are performing well.
   • 2001 October 19, Don Oldenburg, “We’ll Always Have Riggins: Tips for the Suffering Redskins Fan”, in The Washington Post‎^[1], Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 1 July 2025:

     But, hey, don't get me wrong. I'm not one of those big-mouth, fair-weather fans who sings "Hail to the Redskins" when they're winning and "To Hell With the Redskins" when they're not.

   • 2011 January 14, Paul Johnson, “Falcons Have an Identity. It’s Called Winning.”, in The New York Times‎^[2], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 1 July 2025:

     We certainly have our share of loyal fans, but an even greater share of fair-weather fans. We’re a busy city, and this may be part of the reason for the apathy. But Boston and New York are pretty busy, too, and while I’m sure they have their fair-weather fans, they also have some of the oldest and most storied sports franchises in America and their fan bases are among the most loyal in the country.

   • 2015 October 16, David Sax, “Confessions of a Bandwagon Fan”, in The New Yorker‎^[3], New York, N.Y.: Condé Nast Publications, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 5 August 2020:

     This last point speaks to a certain ignobility in bandwagon fandom, no doubt. But this is counterbalanced by the fact that fair-weather fans provide a necessary reserve of energy precisely when it’s needed most.