I’ve been thinking a lot about soccer lately…*
I had the chance to finally catch my first Columbus Crew. The fact that I never attend a professional soccer match before Wednesday was a little weird. I played soccer in Junior High. It was one of my favorite sports at camp. Hell, I was a licensed OHSAA Soccer referee for three years. So, when I saw that the Crew was home on Wednesday and I could get discounted tickets. I was there.
I left work after my last scheduled meeting of the day and headed to Crew Stadium. The parking lot environment was similar to Football. There was tailgating, bags were being thrown and just a general sense of community. I thought it was really cool.
I managed my way through the stadium to get to my seats. I had the first row ON THE MID FIELD LINE. I was basically on the ground level. I literally had the best seats in the house. The TV camera was directly across the field from me. I checked the highlights and I saw myself a couple of times. Unfortunately, the only way to watch the game at home was pay-per-view.
I was surprised about the amount of support I saw at the game. Lots of cheering fans dressed in the yellow and black. The stadium wasn’t full, but it was rocking. The game ended with a 2-2 tie, which was good considering we were a man down most of the game, thanks to an early red card.