A lot to be said for watching World Cups at home
by Steve Davis on Jul 1, 2010 1:59 PM EDT
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It’s a long, long way to South Africa and I am quite well aware that it’s not a trip everybody could make – especially with the boss man trying to figure out where to cut costs. You can’t have people around the office figuring out that the building will not, actually, fall down if you’re not there to hold things together.
So, maybe you couldn’t go to South Africa and support your team in person. I get that.
And I will have to say, being at a World Cup in person is a very special thing. I’ve been lucky enough to cover four of them on site.
Having said all that ….
Let me promise this to you: there is a lot to be said for watching a World Cup from the comforts of your home and / or your local soccer-friendly establishment. You know, enjoying the home field advantage, so to speak.
I’m not just trying to help people feel better here. Read on for the "why ..."
Being at a World Cup on site means getting to just a few matches in almost every case. South Africa is a big country, and the venues are quite formidably spread out. So, you don’t actually get to a lot of matches.
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Actually made that choice
Granted, it was somewhat nudged by my wife, who said “Would you really have more fun there than here, watching with your friends?” She said that in ‘01 or so. I’d been to many games in Dallas in ‘94, and the US-Germany game in ’98. After spending a weekend in Paris with a few strangers, but basically alone in a crowd of other soccer fans, I expect that things wouldn’t be that substantially different were I to have gone in ’02, ’06 or this time.
So I’ve taken vacation days and had friends over and gone to friends houses, and now to pubs with hoards of people, and had a damn fine time right here in Austin.
And haven’t spent nearly as much money:)
My local movie theatre has shown the games on the large screen and it has been more than awesome.
The further we get into the WC the more people show up. It’s like the excitement and tension is building through the attendance at the theatre! This place serves beer, wine, and food from the restaurant next door – if you want. I am going to see as many of the remaining games as I can there. Can’t beat the gigantic screen!
"Are those new tarps? Or did they paint 'em?" Mark Ellis
In the SF bay area.....if you are local to the Bay Area -
Link Here The Vine
It has been really kinda fun!
"Are those new tarps? Or did they paint 'em?" Mark Ellis
Been There During Welt Meisterschaft 2006
I had the pleasure of living in Germany from Aug 2001 to December 2009. i was stationed there (USAF) after leaving South Korea in 2001 (sure wish i had stayed one more year), and got tickets for the USA matches, all the way up to the semi-finals. since i did live there, a whole lot of the cost was cut out (airfare, hotel, etc.), but the entire experience was AWESOME!
i left two of the three group matches disgusted at how we (USA) played, and was seriously thinking about selling the last three match tickets. but i went anyway (had to follow Italy, since they won the USA group), and was amazed. the beginnings of the USA matches were great, as i could not BELIEVE how many Americans had actually traveled to Germany to watch the team. the American fans were the loudest, rowdiest bunch. when we were eliminated and i was following the Italian team because their fans are so much more reserved than ours. the only ones that came close were the Aussie fans.
if you can go to one AND avoid alot of the hidden charges, then do it. something that you will not forget anytime soon.
