Soccer

During my mission I fell in love with the "Beautiful Game"! I don't know quit how it happened but it did and I spent many a day in some bars in some Spanish towns watching the La Liga. I honestly think it occurred because the work was so slow and to stay sane you needed to take a rest every once in a while. So the logical place to rest was a park bench or in a bar.

I found that "futbol" is much more than a game. It is a male soap opera! It's is a geopolitcal conflict! It is a religious fervor that strikes peoples innermost souls! It has rivalries that transcends anything I have seen in the U.S. (with the exception on the Red Sox vs the yankees)!

So how does one keep in touch with the sport?

I'm what they call a "Euro Snob" because I prefer European Futbol to anything that is U.S. or South American.

Well I have found a web site that has kept me up to speed on my fix! Eurosport.com

In Spain everyone has a team they like then there are two main teams Real Madrid and Barcelona. Every person that you meet will ask you which team you support. (de que equipo eres?) They want to hear if you support Barca or Real. These games between them are referred to "The Classic" or El Clasico. It is like the superbowl but only much much bigger.

Well this month Real will play Barca 5 times!!!! Once for regular league play, twice for the Kings Cup (This is a tournament in Spain that every futbol club participates in. It is a round robin tournament that matches teams against teams. When it is all over the winning team earns the Kings cup.), and twice for the Champions League (Champions league is a round robin tournament where they select the top 4 in every European league and play to see who is best. The winner of the European side will then face the winner of the American side.)(This is why everyone is freaking out about Real Salt Lake. They are in the finals for the American side).

My friends in Spain have informed me that the country is going nuts. So here is to Futbol "the beautiful game" and la Liga. I only wish I was their watching but thanks to Eurosport I have a foot on the ground here and one in Espana!