¡Força Barça, hay liga!
This past Sunday I went to Sláinte in Fells Point, Baltimore, to watch El Clasico. In the walk from the parking garage to the bar, I was stopped 3 times by individuals who wanted to comment on my jersey- força Barça! When I entered Sláinte, I immediately saw a handful of patrons in Real Madrid jerseys against the bar. I looked around quickly and much to my disappointment, I saw only one Barça jersey. I was on a mission to meet my friend at the table they got before I missed any more of the game (traffic had caused me to be a little late, missing Madrid’s first goal) so I hurried past the enemy to the safety of the bar upstairs. When I got to the table, I looked around and counted no more than 5 Barça jerseys, though I could tell many more people in the bar were here solely for the game. None of the people around my table were wearing Barcelona gear, though I knew them all well enough to know that’s who they were supporting.
I settle in quickly and pulled out my phone and my notebook. Then, I begin to take in the scene around me. El Clasico is on every TV in the building. Not many people are paying attention to their food, but are fixated on the game instead. The more I observe the patrons watching the game, the more fans I see standing out in the crowd. There are a handful of fans left over from the Aresenal game that played earlier in the morning, and there is now a clear distinction between the Barcelona and Madrid fans, whether they are wearing a jersey or not. Sitting away from the bar itself, I can clearly hear the cheers and boos rumble through the restaurant when each team misses a shot or makes a promising play.
The El Clasico play this weekend was, in both my opinion and that of those in my company, one of the best matches of the season, if not the best, with non stop action for a full 93 minutes resulting in a Barcelona victory. Neck and neck until the end, Lionel Messi scored in the very last minute of the game. Not only did this seal the win for Barcelona, but it was also Messi’s 500th goal for the club and kept Barcelona in the race for first place in La Liga.
Immediately after the game ended, the bar cleared out completely; with about 7 people (bar staff not included) staying in the entire building within 10 minutes after the final whistle.
I was happy to see such a strong turnout for an international soccer match, but I would have liked more fans to have stuck around after the game so that I could talk with them about their experiences watching and following soccer. I was, however, able to talk with a few of the fans sitting nearby me throughout the game. Two were Arsenal fans who brought their significant others (who did not watch soccer, but were there to support their person) The third person was someone who I recognized from UMBC, who agreed to meet with me for an interview later this week.
