My First Experience with Futbol Mexicano

On Sunday, September 13^th I was invited to attend a Pumas soccer game. I had declared myself a Chivas fan a few years ago for several reasons, but being a fan of watching just about any sport, of course I was game. I mean, put me in any stadium filled with loyal, cheering fans and I love jumping on board. I’d probably even like the Dodgers if I were at the Dodger Stadium. Wait, no, I wouldn’t go THAT far. I have become quite attached to soccer as I’ve watched El Tri, Mexico’s National Soccer Team, continue to charge toward the World Cup next summer. I knew that watching a soccer game in Mexico was going to be filled with cultural tidbits and quite a learning experience. Little did I know HOW much of a learning experience it was going to be…

It turns out that the Pumas are Mexico’s version of the Oakland Raiders. That’s the best comparison I can give them. According to most of the people I’ve talked to, the Pumas’ games are quite violent and crude. When I told people I had gone to a Pumas game they looked at me, wide-eyed, like, “Why?” This is the place where you don’t dare wear a jersey from another team because it might be taken off of you and burned. This is also a place that stops selling beer at 1:15 because the fans get too out of hand. When someone makes a goal, get out your umbrella because it starts raining beer. When someone from the other team does something you don’t like, yell whatever you want at him, even if you’re 8 years old. I’d never seen more middle fingers thrown up by people less than 12 years old than I did at this game. And the words that came out of their mouths! I wanted to ask them, “You kiss your mother with that mouth?!?!” Then, I remembered where I was and I realized I was the only one that found this behavior remotely shocking. Now, I’ve never been to a Raiders game, but this is how I imagine them to be.

The Pumas ended up losing 2-1 to Pachuca. Boo. I did end up making it out of the stadium in one piece with just a sprinkle of beer in my hair from the one goal that they made. I enjoyed the experience and learned A LOT. Most of it I won’t share on this blog because of its offensive nature, but you can imagine. Just being in the stadium (The Olympic Stadim) and witnessing the game first hand was amazing. I do look forward to my next game… whether it be Pumas or Chivas, we’ll see.

¡Viva México!