Futbol

For the followers who don’t know me quite as personally as others (yes that includes you, stalkers) I kinda like futbol.  Perhaps the more accurate description is that I nearly worship futbol.  I could begin the argument of why it’s God’s greatest gift to the sporting world but I’d rather just give examples that prove my point.

A couple nights ago was the Gold Cup final between Mexico and USA.  After watching an hour and a half of pregame coverage, a couple moments before kickoff ESPN Dos decided to show a rerun of Sport Center Boxing and NOT show the futbol match.  What actually happened was that the game was being broadcasted over antenna and not on cable.  Of course I did not understand this and strung every vulgar Spanish word I knew into a nonsensical sentence (which my family found extremely funny).  In my fit of rage, I stormed out of the house with the intention to flag down a moto and go anywhere that would have the game.  I walked two blocks and heard the distinct lightning fast excited commentary which can only be from a futbol match.  So what did I do?  I walked into the house of a complete stranger.  While this may be highly unacceptable in the States, this Nica family could not have been happier.  They pulled me up a rocking chair and DEMANDED that I stay and watch the game with them.

A while back I posted that I bought a nice futbol for the steep price of $5.33.  I decided to put it to good use and jogged over to the local pitch.  After being stared and judged on why on earth this gringo is here, some of the younger kids asked if I knew how to play (I do have to say I was a little insulted, hah).  Even though there was an organized game going on, we found a little patch of grass and played for a good hour.

Last example, Sunday was the big third division Nandasmo vs Managua match.  This was a HUGE deal because if my tiny town of 4,000 could beat the big capital city they would be promoted to the second division.  Half of our entire town attended and I certainly wasn’t miss it.  I ran into a guy I met twice before, Jader, and we ended up hanging out for the whole game.  Quick synopsis, we were winning at half time but then Managua leveled after the break.  With 5 minutes left, we scored an AMAZING backwards header but it was disallowed by a bad call.  The crowd erupted into near riot which was scary but I did learn some valuable new vocabulary.  With the final seconds ticking away, we put a last ditch effort cross into the box and Managua handled it.  BOOM PENALTY!  So with zero time left, one of our guys stepped up to the penalty spot and SCORED!  Everyone rushed the field and was cheering, whistling and clapping.  It was an unbelievable experience.

So in short, futbol is more than a game.  It’s a culture which is one that enjoy all aspects of.