My first football match

I have to confess that I’ve never been much interested in watching sports. Odd perhaps, for someone who participates and competes in three separate disciplines, but – aside from catching the odd snippet of a big Euros game or highlights of the Olympics shared on social media – watching other people ‘play’ has just never appealed. But, never one to completely dismiss something without trying it first, I was determined to watch something and so 40TBIF number 8 ended up: Watch a live sporting event.

I figured “live sporting event” was vague enough to give me some leeway in the seasonality of various sports, and with plenty of time to pick something should I have problems choosing what to actually watch. “Luckily” I then went and fell in love with a Wolverhampton Wanderers season ticket holder who’s been attending matches since his childhood & he was more than thrilled to both introduce me to the sport he loves, and to ultimately pick a match and make arrangements for me. Take that, choice paralysis!

On Wednesday 28th August, we drove over to Wolverhampton to watch Wolves play at home vs Burnley. With my youngest tagging along (a football fan in his own right), and football not exactly having the best reputation when it comes to rowdy supporters and out-of-match “shenanigans”, I was a little bit nervous about what to expect. Still, aside from one needlessly aggressive bloke a few seats over shouting abuse at both team’s players, I didn’t at any point feel unwelcome or threatened.

Seated on the back row of the side we were shooting towards in the first half (there’s probably some lingo here I’m missing) I had an excellent view over both our first goal and what appeared to be a near miss that had me jumping up from my seat – and rather embarassingly – nearly landing on my arse when I tried to sit back down and forgot the seats folded up.

I was surprised by how much easier it was to follow the ball in “real life” compared to bits I’ve seen on the TV and indeed how much smaller the pitch seemed; probably doesn’t feel that way when you’re running up and down it, mind you.

I could immediately see why people follow teams and attend matches. The atmosphere in the stadium was electric & contagious, and I felt myself chanting and shouting along even though I didn’t have a bloody clue what was happening half the time (don’t get me started on the offside rule?!) We ended up winning 2-0 and I genuinely enjoyed attending.

I can see me watching more live matches in future, and it’s not lost on me that I started unconsciously writing “we” about halfway through the post like a diehard Wolves fan already. Guess this is what trying new things is all about…