Paul’s Soccer Stories
Some More Thoughts on This Whole “Soccer” Situation
Once again, I shall wade into dangerous cultural waters. But this whole thing about Americans calling the world’s most popular game “soccer” just keeps coming up in lots of ways, and I have some more thoughts on it. First, as I have explained before, the word "soccer" originated in England and was fairly widely used…
My Night in The Den:
Seeing a Game at Millwall FC
I stepped off the train, onto the platform, and into what I assumed would be the usual London-area train station: people coming and going, lively street down below, if I’m lucky a coffee shop on the platform. This is particularly true as I had only come one stop from bustling London Bridge, and just a…
Seeing a Game at Bristol City FC
Seems to me that seeing a game at Bristol City FC is like arriving at the intersection of small-town, community football and the modern age. This is meant as a compliment on both accounts, by the way. I love the family feel at these smaller clubs, especially on the level where I saw it across…
Me and Fulham: A Like Story
Like most Americans, when I started getting into watching English soccer, I basically knew four things: There is a thing called the Premier League, in which play Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea and … some others. They sing at games, which is really cool. There is also a World Cup. I should pick a team…
My Latest English Soccer Tour – 8 games in 14 days – Was The Best One Yet
I suppose I’m getting pretty good at going to England to watch soccer games — which I should be, now that I’ve seen more than 100 of them at more than 60 different clubs. In fact, on this 2017 trip -- during which I turned 51 -- I hit my 50th different club, which now…
Seeing a Game at Forest Green Rovers FC
When I heard there was an English football club called Forest Green Rovers, I knew I had to go there. The way I discovered their existence made it even more pressing to get there: They made the Football League in 2017, for the first time in their 130-year history! And their home town, Nailsworth, thus…
Watching a Game at West Bromwich Albion
I have now had two great times watching games at West Bromwich Albion, and I think I am going to start encouraging more people to go there -- especially as they are back in the Premier League. It’s such a terrific stadium for one thing, and a tremendous set of fans. My first time there, I…
Me and the Blades: A Sheffield Sensation
There would now appear to be two English clubs where I have come to be known as the Yank with the camera and the blog. All I have ever wanted to do is go to interesting places, have interesting experiences, meet interesting people, and then tell the story. I could add to that, in the…
Lucky Boy: Seeing a Game at AFC Bournemouth
All I wanted for my 51st birthday in 2017 was a ticket to see a game at AFC Bournemouth. You might not think that’s a hard thing to get. In fact, assuming you're American, there’s a decent chance you only recently found out that Bournemouth exists; they spent several years in the Premier League before…
Agony and Ecstasy:
The 2017 Steel City Derby
Perhaps the reason we go to football games is because we just might have an experience people will talk about for generations. We sit through countless forgettable affairs because someday we’re going to see a world-class game-winner, or a stunning upset, or a penalty kick hit a season-saving post, or some seismic shift in the…