James' Euro Trip 2010 - Part 7 - The Soccer

Finally, the best part of my trip, the soccer.

I planned on attending 5 matches. I only attended 3. I picked 3 of the matches based on the stadium. One was based on timing, and the other was just because. This is a big long post.

 

Milan x Ajax - San Siro - When I started planning this trip, my immediate thought was, "I want to see the San Siro." Since my first exposure to Italian stadiums in the 1990 World Cup, and my continued exposure in Champions League and various Serie A matches, the San Siro always catches my attention. I also knew it'd be cool to see a Champions League match. Thanks to some great timing, this Champions League match was my first stop.

Acquiring a ticket wasn't a problem. Before attending this match, Milan had already qualified for the next round. They couldn't win the group, and Ajax couldn't catch them. Essentially the match was meaningless. I went to the a local Intesa Sao Paulo Bank, to purchase my ticket. Having never bought a ticket in a bank before I was a little confused. I don't know why banks handle the transaction, but I provided my passport and cash to a teller, and the task was done.

On the day of the match, I was really excited, and I got a weird feeling around noon. In my entire career of watching Champions League matches, kickoff has always been 11:45 AM. Here I was on Champions League day and kick-off was at 20:45. For something so trivial and obvious, I was really weirded out by this. My soccer clock was going crazy. I don't know if any other Yank soccer fans have experienced this, but it definitely ran through my head.

About 3 hours before kick-off, I ran into some Ajax fans at my hotel. The Dutchmen spoke perfect English, and after a brief chat they said it'd be cool if I joined them on the trek to the stadium. They were ready to leave, I ran upstairs to grab my ticket and passport, and when I got back down they were all gone. I was ditched by the Dutch! I decided at that point I wanted Milan to win.

That said, getting to the San Siro from my hotel was an easy 15 minute subway ride. The most interesting part of the ride was at the end, when I departed from the train to see riot police. They were coralling the Ajax fans off to one direction, while Milan fans went a different way. I followed the Milan fans, for the half-mile walk from the Lotto stop on the Rho Fiera line.

Along the walk are tons of food trucks and merchandise trucks.

I thought nothing of the food trucks at first. They were popular, but I had decided before the trip that I would test the concessions in each stadium. More on that Later.

Eventually I got to the magnificent San Siro.

The stadium is huge, and the mesh of metal and concrete from 1926 really is something to behold. It's a beautiful stadium.

I approached my gate, and when I didn't speak Italian, security wanted to escort me to the Ajax fans. Eventaully I told him I love Milan and showed him my passport. He understood I wasn't Dutch, and a special police officer came over and escorted me to my seat. I got a lot of looks, and I don't know why it took a special policeman. Whatever.

At this point, I noticed the San Siro doesn't do concession stands. When it was built, the concept didn't exist. There are bathrooms, stands, and a field. Nothing else. Not even beer is sold inside. I was hungry and thirsty, so that was sort of a bummer. A couple guys walked by selling coca-cola, but I don't do soft drinks.

I was in my seat about 90 minutes before kickoff. I had originally thought I'd walk around the whole stadium, but you can't. There's no concourse. You go right from the outside to the inside. That was alright, because the Ajax and Milan supporters were already there and in full voice.

About 90 minutes before kickoff.

I promised Matt I'd get him a Milan scarf. I bought that one and quickly realized I'd need it to stay warm.

San Siro Wifi is protected.

The Milan Ultras

 

 

The teams eventually made their way out. All of Ajax's roster took the field. For Milan, only the starters warmed up. I was excited Ronaldinho was in. He did a lot of trickery with the ball in front of me. I only caught this moment on camera.

And here is a general video I made, with you the viewer in mind.

The teams disappeared from their warmup, and about 3 minutes later marched out to the Champions League hymn. I had goosebumps, and they wern't from the cold. The fans were going nuts, and the hymn is powerful.

Kickoff...The attendance was reported at 72,000 in a stadium that holds 80,000. That's impressive for a game with no impact. The fog in the picture is from flares set off by the Milan fans.

I closely watched the match and absorbed the atmosphere. My friend, Robert the Bruce of the Riot Squad, once told me the most amusing aspect of watching a match in Italy is watching the home fans react when everything goes wrong. I whole heartedly agree. I never witnessed so many hand gestures in my life. Kids were doing it. Old men that could barely stand were doing it. Everyone did it in unison. It was hilarious, but I had to pretend not to be amused by it, for I could have blown my cover as neutral observer. Sometimes two hands would fly up. Sometimes it was one hand brushing against the chin, flicking some imaginary sweat at the referee.

Milan eventually lost 2-0 to a much more energetic and motivated Ajax. I was thrilled to see that Robinho and Ronaldinho were hustling, but the rest of the team wasn't. Ibrahimovic came on late, but couldn't get anything going. Highlights are here. Ajax's goals were pretty nice.

Hey to my LARS friends!

After the match, I streamed out of the stadium with everyone else. I took the subway home, but not before I ate the most glorious panini I've ever had in my life. I wish I could have taken a picture of it, but my hands were too cold for me to care about that.

 

Munich x St. Pauli - Allianz Arena

This was another match I picked because of the venue. Built in 2005, Allianz Arena is new. It's been accliamed as an architecutral triumph, and a great place to see a match. Since I knew my first stop would be Milan, Munich was a logical choice for easy travel and match number 2.

I wish the story of how I got a ticket was more interesting, but I just went on the viagogo website, which is like ticketmaster, and bought a ticket. The ticket was mine about a month before I left. I just had to pick it up at will call.

As I've told before, public transportation in Munich is incredible. Getting to the stadium is incredibly easy, especially since the Arena is marked with a soccer ball on all the subway signs. I planned to arrive about 2 hours before kickoff, but the trains were so smooth, I was there about 3 hours before kickoff. That meant I had to freeze outside for a while. It was cripplingly cold.A consistent breeze didn't help.

The Arena is on the outskirts of the city, so it doesn't necessarily feel like part of the city. It's a very clean and polished environment. I'm sure that more growth around the stadium in upcoming years will make it seem a little less desolate. That said, it's huge and magnificent.

Here's my ticket.

After freezing outside for a while, the gates opened. I really needed to get warm, and decided to get some hot chocolate at a concession stand. Despite being "indoors" it was still freezing, and I was crushed to learn I couldn't buy hot chocolate with money. Buying any concessions in the Arena requires the purchase of an Arena card pre-loaded with cash. That's B.S. so I walked around and found the Arena restaurant, which was perfect! The restaurant was warm, and i was seated with a gentleman who went to UCSD for grad school. We chatted soccer, my fingers regained function, and all was good.

Upon entering, every fan was given a ticket for free glauwhine, a hot spicy wine that's served at Christmas time. I was very happy to drink that down as I pondered if free alcohol would ever happen at an American sporting event. Definitely not.

I made it out to the stands as warm-ups were ending. The lineups were announced and the match started.

Here's my stadium video...

Hail Hail...

A cool tilt-shift photo I got with my camera...

St. Pauli is a small team that miraculously ascended to the Bundesliga. They were never in the match, as Munich handled the game pretty easily, 3-0. However, the 7,000 traveling St. Pauli fans definitely made way more noise than the Munich fans. Despite being on the opposite side of the stadium from me, I could hear the St. Pauli songs much more clearly than those of the Munich Ultras who were below me. I honestly have to say the Bayern Munich fans are a "sing when you're winning" bunch. They cheered during goals, but not much else.

After the match, the stadium turned red to celebrate a Bayern Munich win.

I almost forgot. The bathrooms at Allianz Arena are deplorable. Even though the stadium is 5 years old, I find Dodger Stadium's amenities to be more pleasant. The walls were covered in grafitti, the floors were covered in overflowing toilet leftovers, and there weren't enough stalls or space to make things comfortable. I don't know how this happened, but I was surprised. Third world stuff.

After the match, I went and had a drink at a bar near my hotel. These old men and Betty were discussing the match. I could tell because I recognized player names and soccer words.

Inglostadt x 1860 Munich - I'm skipping match 3, because it deserves it's own post.

Lausanne x Palermo - Europa League -  Olympic Stadium. Both teams had already been elimated from the Europa League before I left on my trip. That didn't deter me from wanting to see the match. What stopped me was the $50.00 ticket, and 8 degree temperature. I don't regret skipping that match. I would have been miserable.

Sampdoria x Genoa - Estadio Luigi Ferraris - I picked this match because I have always loved seeing Stadio Luigi Ferraris on TV. It's old architecture from 1911 is charming, and  it's situated right in a neighborhood. Not only was I going to see a match there, but I was going to see the Derby d'el Lantera. Both teams use that stadium as their home, and the fan intensity is supposed to be amazing. In the few days leading up to the match, I saw flags and scarves of both teams adorning shops, cars, homes, and people. There was an electric feeling in the air.

I was extremely lucky to get a ticket. The host of my bed and breakfast, Anna, is in a family of Sampdoria supporters. I scanned her a copy of my passport and a signed note authorizing her to buy a ticket in my name. I was so happy when she presented this to me. It cost 60 Euros.

Tragically, Genoa had freak snow storms which lead to the match's postponement. This was announced just one hour before I was going to leave for it. I was genuinely bummed. Someday, I'll return.