Cultural Immersion & Sports

By Elizabeth Gregory

Some of the most memorable moments abroad for me come from when I really got out there and dug myself into the local culture. Sure it's fun to sightsee, but being a tourist isn't always the best way to get an accurate picture of the true slice of life in a foreign country. Today's blog from me is one of those moments.

During my semester in Spain, a few of us girls decided to attend a professional soccer game. I can't even remember what team Granada was playing. What I can remember is the fact that it was football season back home and the thought of attending a sporting event as popular as American football seemed to make us a little less homesick. I must admit though, for me, nothing beats football back home.

Anyway...about 6 of us headed down to the stadium. We lucked out. It turned out that one day a week was Ladies' Day (we got in for half price). We quickly discovered that this was a marketing ploy to attract more females to watch the game in person. I think we saw 2 other girls in the entire stadium. Most of the spectators were old men. Although I don't regularly watch soccer, I knew enough from when I used to play to follow the game pretty well. Early into the game, our focus turned away from the field and towards the old men in the stands (especially in our section). This was due to the fact that after every play, they would curse, swear, holler at, and insult the mother of every player on the field. It really didn't matter if anyone made a good play, basically if a goal was not scored by Granada, a series of profanities would ensue. I learned more Spanish curse words that day. I felt bad for the players though. At first they looked bound and determined to show these men that they were great athletes. However, as the game went on, they began to play sloppy and looked very discouraged.

We left before the end of the game, afraid of what potential riot could follow a loss (or victory). After all, who hasn't heard horror stories of people being stampeded to death at soccer matches in Europe (England especially)? We went to dinner together that night and reflected on how much we learned that day. When we thought things through, it wasn't all that different than any other sporting event, just much more cursing, and much less cheering.