futbol

I think it is incredible to see the people of Spain as interested as they are in the game that I have always known as "soccer". From a very young age I had always been a soccer player. While I loved the game and still do, I never associated it with any type of status. In America the prestige that comes along with being a football or basketball player has always seemed to fall short when concerning soccer. This observance is hardly debatable. It wasn't until more recently that the sport has gained any sort of respect, and I feel that this is due to the recent Mens Soccer success in the Olympics. Regardless, soccer is not "America's sport". In Spain, soccer takes on the sort of interest and value that football has in America. I think it's interesting to look at this cultural difference as I am a soccer player who has always had a great deal of love for the sport. I find myself understanding and appreciating the love that Spaniards have for it. When I hear people outside my window screaming and honking car horns during soccer matches, I can't help but feel a small connection to this beautiful country solely through soccer. Conversations I've had with Spaniards regarding soccer have also made clear the importance of soccer in daily life in Madrid, as have the immense reactions one can hear while a soccer game is taking place. Even as I am writing this, I hear people screaming and cheering. It is as if I am in an arena where a game is taking place (although I don't even have a TV to watch the game). It gives me goosebumps to hear people so passionate. I think it is safe to say that the die-hard nature of Spanish soccer fans would go far beyond any popular American sport's fan base. At times it sounds almost dangerous in the streets, guns shooting in the air and overall madness. I wanted to address the different treatment of soccer in Spain as it has been an important observance for me. It makes me miss playing, and has reminded me how much I value it in my own life.