Thursday, May 29, 2008

Atleti, Atleti, Atletico Madrid!

It's just completely ridiculous how long it took us to get to a futbol match while we've been here, but my dreams finally came true a few weeks ago. La Liga, the top Spanish league, has two strong teams in Madrid - Real Madrid and the little brother Atletico de Madrid. Tickets to Real Madrid will put one back about 100 euros, so we decided to go to an Atletico match with one of our friends Chris who really loves this team. The game we saw was pretty special as Atletico was trying to clinch a spot in next year's Champions League tournament as well as play their last home game for the season. Estadio de Vincente Calderon was packed to the gill and the fans, well fanatics is more appropriate, were in full effect with jerseys and team scarfs. They sang before, during, and after the game. It was so great! Atletico ended up winning 1-0, were 4th in La Liga, and received a spot in the Champions League. The Champions League is a European tournament that sports each country's best professional teams, so its awesome Atletico will be playing next year. The atmosphere will definitely be missed. There is seriously nothing like it in the States and my camera does no justice to what we saw. A packed stadium with crazy fans chanting their teams songs for hours, an immaculate, huge field, a high quality game with international stars, and some beer is probably the most beautiful thing to these eyes next to the natural beauty of the mountains. It was so great!!

Pics here and vids below

Atleti, Atleti, Atletico Madrid! More Chants!

No comments: