Soccer, or football as it's know around the globe, is the most popular sport worldwide. Now, I honestly don’t know much about sports in general, but I always say soccer is my favorite sport when the subject is brought up.
I used to play as a kid and played for a year in high school (not very well, but I tried). In the summer of 2014, I traveled to England, France, and Germany for a study abroad trip. While in Germany, we spent a lot of time watching the World Cup. In the five days we were there, we watched matches every night at a bar around the corner from our hotel, and there, I learned as much about the game as I could. On our last night, Germany competed against Portugal to move on to the next game. All week, our group talked about going to watch the game. We couldn’t wait!
After dinner, we traveled to a park where they displayed the match on giant screens for everyone to watch. My new friends and I bought our drinks, Deutschland jerseys, and other festive apparel and souvenirs. We got there a little late, but Germany was already in the lead. I don’t remember the score, but to me, that wasn’t important. I was having the time of my life. The crowd had an amazing energy, and with each goal made by the German team, the energy and excitement grew.
3…2…1—GERMANY WINS. I have never experienced a more excited group of people. Music started blasting, and everyone began dancing, cheering, and chanting with excitement.
Hours and many drinks later, the crowd thinned out, but there was still just as much energy as earlier in the night.
The experience was incredible. Everyone in the crowd was welcoming. I thought it was amazing that an event like the World Cup could bring so many people together. At some point, a camera crew came over to me and my friends and some other local people whom we had just met. They asked us a few questions, then asked if we would like to be on television. Of course we said yes! Once the cameras were rolling, they spoke about Germany winning the game and introduced us as “the Americans” when, suddenly, cold beer was poured over me and a few others. It was so embarrassing! Of course, I was never going to see these people ever again in my life, but we had to spend the rest of our time at the park and our ride home soaked and smelly.
Even drenched in beer and knowing I was only going to get an hour of sleep before we had to leave for the airport, I still had an amazing time.
If you ever have the chance to visit a country where their team is playing in the World Cup, I highly encourage you to go find where everyone is watching the game and have a great time. You will not regret it!
