Maria Petri

Personal life Petri was born on 1 March 1939 to Greek-Cypriot parents, Michael and Eleni, who had immigrated from Akanthou the previous year. She studied French and Spanish at what is now the University of Chichester and worked as a schoolteacher teaching languages in Islington, London. She was reportedly able to speak six languages. She never married.

She quickly gained a reputation for creating her own chants for the players, such as "Come on you Gunners!" Occasionally she would receive sexist comments from fellow fans about her chanting but she would always respond with a chant of "You'll never keep me quiet!"

When Arsenal Ladies were started in 1987, she would also regularly attend their games. During UEFA Women's Euro 2022, one of her chants for Arsenal's and England's Beth Mead went viral. In all, she had supported Arsenal for 72 years. In 2022 she said "I'm now an 82-year-old orphan. Because I don't have any nuclear family, I see Arsenal as my family."

When she died on 22 July 2022, Arsenal published a tribute to her. Arsenal fans and former men's players such as Ian Wright also paid tribute to her. On 23 July, Arsenal wore black armbands during their Florida Cup match against Chelsea as a tribute to her.