Paul’s Soccer Stories
A Groundhopping Gallery From the First Month of the Season
The 2019-20 English soccer season is about a month old, and while we pause for an international break, here are some images and videos from people I've been helping go groundhopping. Since the 2019-20 schedule was announced and tickets went on sale, I have heard from well over 400 people looking for consultation, trip planning,…
Seeing a Game at Reading FC
Update: This post was written in May, 2014, and is largely unchanged. Leicester City are still in the Premier League, and Reading are still in the Championship for the 2021-22 season. I have always referred to the first day of any trip to England or Europe as my Zombie Day. That’s because I arrive at…
Attending a Game at Arsenal
(Editor's Note: This post was written in 2014, but it still gives a good sense of attending a game at Arsenal. I updated a few things in April, 2022.) For the longest time, I thought going to a soccer game in England was this mysterious thing that you had to be somehow "connected" to be…
East Anglian Derby: Norwich City vs Ipswich Town
I love a derby day. It’s the peak experience of watching English soccer. And the East Anglian Derby featuring Norwich City vs Ipswich Town is a lesser know example (outside of England anyway) of a proper rivalry. This post was written in 2019, when Norwich and Ipswich were in the Championship, and has been left…
My Non-Game at Barnet FC
(Originally posted in November 2016, when Barnet were in League Two. For the 2021-22 season, they are in the National League. I still haven't been back!) Whenever I plan a trip to England to watch soccer, I try to pick a time when there will be plenty of games. I look for full league weekends…
England v Scotland, World Cup Qualifier 2016
In this throwback from 2016, I attended an international match at Wembley, the England v Scotland World Cup Qualifier, which frankly turned out to be the least interesting aspect of the whole evening. I’ve got this theory that one of the main reasons for the existence of soccer – indeed, sports in general – is…
In the FA Cup at Boreham Wood FC
You know you have arrived in the lower reaches of English soccer when you’re on the train and realize you’re following a player to the game, like I did at Boreham Wood. Such was the case when my friend David and I hopped on a ThamesLink from Tulse Hill in South London back in November…
English Soccer Game Day:
Nottingham Forest vs. Fulham
If you knew nothing of English soccer, and you happened to come into contact with Nottingham Forest Football Club today, you might come to think their history began in about 1977 and essentially ended sometime around 1990. And these days, you might further conclude, fans of the club get together once a week or so…
English Soccer Game Day: West Ham’s New Home
As I have traveled around England these last few years, going to 100 games and counting, I have noticed a trend which I recognize from the America of my youth. England is busily tearing down, or “rebuilding,” their old grounds in the middle of their towns, and replacing them – sometimes nearby, but often out…
English Soccer Tour, From Portland to Bristol
It’s pretty remarkable, and gratitude-inducing, to note that what was once extraordinary in my life has settled into something of a routine. This occurred to me as I approached UK Customs at Heathrow Airport. What I used to think, and probably still should, is “Holy crap, I'm in the UK to see soccer!” Instead I…