Paul’s Soccer Stories

Author Paul Gerald shares his adventures from seeing more than 100 games all over England.

Kickoff at Charlton Athletic efl cup

Seeing a Game at Charlton Athletic

July 17, 2021

American travel writer Rick Steves calls his business “Europe Through the Back Door,” and he always encourages people to be “a temporary local.” I have taken this philosophy to heart in my English soccer exploits, and it regularly sends me to places like Charlton Athletic in South East London. If you’re pretty new to English…

open road leading to mountains

Groundhopper Paul Goes on Walkabout

May 27, 2021

I am always up for a journey. In fact, that's kind of how Groundhopper Guides started. I was sitting at The Emirates, watching Arsenal with a friend who had been showing me around the neighborhood and telling me stories, when I thought, "Hey, I should write a book about this." I kept skipping onto the…

BBC narrators Alan Shearer Ian Wright Marine Tottenham FA Cup

2021 FA Cup Third Round Sunday: Scenes and Stories

January 10, 2021

Since we love the FA Cup Third Round here at Groundhopper Guides, we decided to gather up some scenes and stories from this weekend, when Championship and Premier League clubs entered the tournament. We wrote a separate post covering Friday's and Saturday's stories, so we'll start this post with Day 3 of the 2020-21 FA…

BBC narrators Alan Shearer Ian Wright Marine Tottenham FA Cup

2020-21 FA Cup Third Round Sunday: Scenes and Stories

January 10, 2021

Since we love the FA Cup Third Round here at Groundhopper Guides, we decided to gather up some scenes and stories from this weekend, when Championship and Premier League clubs entered the tournament. We wrote a separate post covering Friday's and Saturday's stories, so we'll start this post with Day 3 of the 2020-21 FA…

boreham wood

FA Cup Third Round Saturday: Scenes and Stories

January 9, 2021

As I watched the FA Cup Third Round ties on Saturday, I came across some interesting things that show why I think this weekend is one of the best in the English football calendar. Whether it's the minnows still swimming in the tournament, or the potential for famous giant-killings, the FA Cup Third Round, which…

boreham wood

2020-21 FA Cup Third Round Saturday: Scenes and Stories

January 9, 2021

As I watched the FA Cup Third Round ties on Saturday, I came across some interesting things that show why I think this weekend is one of the best in the English football calendar. (Disclaimer: Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning Groundhopper Guides may receive some compensation if you make a purchase…

UT Vols football fans at Tennessee Volunteers football game Knoxville

I Took an Englishman to a Tennessee Vols Football Game

December 13, 2020

Before I started helping (mostly) Americans see soccer games in England, I was a sportswriter and a travel writer. One of my stories from that time is when I took an Englishman to a Tennessee Vols football game. I am now a veteran of well over 100 English soccer games at more than 60 football…

Chichester City at Tranmere Rovers in the FA Cup: What It’s All About

February 12, 2020

I go all over England, seeing the games, meeting the people, checking out the towns, looking for ... something. Sure, I'm adding clubs to my list, researching places for my book, trying out my hospitality packages -- running the business -- and hoping to catch a good game along the way. But there's something bigger, and…

Going to a Game at Luton Town FC

December 7, 2019

There’s a funny thing that happens when one says the word “Luton” to English people. Almost as a reflexive response, and virtually without fail, they wince, and one of the words they then say is “shithole.” And that’s just about the town; ask them about the football ground, and they look like they might be sick.…

My English Soccer Pin Badge Collection

November 17, 2019

Here is my pin badge collection, as of February 2020, from the English soccer clubs I have visited since 2014--in the order I went to them. As of February 2020, I have seen 126 games at 69 different grounds around England and Wales, including 63 of the 92 league grounds and all of the clubs…

Powered By MemberPress WooCommerce Plus Integration