There have been so many distractions over the past year and half: so many delays, new rules and regulations created and changed from week to week, and constant schedule juggling. And I am really only talking about the sport of football...
As tournaments go, I have always looked forward to the World Cup and the European Championships. That is, until a few years ago when suddenly it seemed that matches were being played almost daily during the week, and almost non-stop through the whole year. Club schedules were crammed into International fixtures, and it all started becoming a bit too much.
For a time, I thought it was just me becoming less enthused by the sport. But, as I talked with friends and other fans, I realized that many people felt the same way: the business side of things was starting to take a bit out of the passionate side of the game. Today is not the day for me to share my opinions on broadcasting rights, money hungry club owners, or the creative governing body who never stops looking for ways to monetize the events. Today I am simply looking at the personal side of things, specifically the EM 2021. (note - because this tournament was scheduled for the year of 2020 but was postponed until this summer for obvious reasons, I find it kind of confusing and fascinating how we refer to the event. Germany tends to call it Euro 2021, which accurately reflects the year that the event takes place, but English press still tends to refer to Euro 2020, which has already had me looking at the calendar dates and forgetting what year we are in more than once.)
Truthfully, I was fairly nonplussed last year when it was decided to postpone the event. Club football had already been delayed for months and it was tricky enough to get all the fixtures completed before taking a 4 week break before starting the new season. At the time, I was pretty focused on the team I support, and was just glad that they were able to finish the season. (There was a brief uncertainty last spring when no one knew just what the was hell was going to happen.)
Because last year was such an uncertain time, I fully supported decisions to cancel or postpone events where large crowds would be getting together. This was particularly significant for me with regard to an event like the Euros; a lot of the thrill comes from the supporting fans cheering from the streets and from the stands in whichever country is hosting the event. Since that was not possible last year, it made sense to wait until such time that it would be possible.
The first six months of this year have been very challenging for many reasons, but those of us who are avid fans got very used to sitting at home alone watching a game played in an empty stadium. It was kind of a surreal experience, especially since social contact was so limited. There was no standing around outside the pub during the half time to discuss with fellow fans why your team was playing really well, or really poorly, as in the case of Arsenal.
Part of me was greatly relieved to have the club seasons completed, and I had actually forgotten for a moment that this would be a summer of football with the Euros. This year has its own distractions, some of which are not quite the same as last year. On the other hand, there are a couple of similarities, including the opportunity to finally, finally venture back outside and interact with others.
It is hard to believe that here in Frankfurt, cafes, pubs, and restaurants have only been reopened for about 4 weeks. Thanks to some decent (if not a little too warm) weather, people have been heading back outdoors simply for that necessary change of scenery after a six month hiatus.
Not everyone has the same comfort level yet, myself included. Sure, I am glad to stand around outside chatting with a few friends while we enjoy a few beers. Sitting in a crowded patio with hundreds of people watching a soccer match, however, is not necessarily something I was quite sure I was ready to do.
As a result, I have tended to stay at home (perhaps better said, avoid the pub) during the first matches, particularly the matches involving Germany. Because of my proximity to the pub, I could certainly hear the people sitting outside watching the games. Germany played France in their first game, which happened to be on a Tuesday evening. I had just finished my language class, and figured I would tune in and watch from the comfort of my living room.
The tournament was already 4 days old, and we had already experienced the dramatic events of the Danish match. For reasons that I have already stated, I was not quite yet in the spirit of the event, but I was following the match highlights each day. I am rather thankful that I was not watching the Denmark-Finland match live, but I am very touched at how the players, the clubs, the fans, and the world have responded.
From my living room that Tuesday evening, I found myself muting my TV in order to hear the fans sitting outside next door. The particularly vocal fans sounded a bit different, they whooped in ways that I had not heard before, and it took me a few minutes longer before I realized that a large group of French fans were sitting at the pub, and quite a bit more lively, especially as they defeated Germany 1-0.
One of the interesting things that comes with living on a street where there are plenty of cafes and pubs during football matches is that the feeds tend to go at different rates. Thus, you might be sitting at home watching the exact same match as everyone else, but everyone else's feed is 30 seconds faster than yours.
As you can imagine, this means that you hear the goal (or the near miss) before you actually see it. This can be both irritating and humorous. It is like a badly dubbed movie, but after awhile, you kind of get used to it.
What is taking some getting used to is seeing fans in the stadiums again after such a long period. I must say that it is probably the highlight of the tournament for me so far, finally seeing fans getting to enjoy and support their teams. I certainly have missed this.
The French were not quite as vocal a few days later when they drew with Hungary, while Germany got a good result against Portugal. I am somewhat neutral in this tournament, so am simply following along, and seeing what happens.
This past Wednesday, despite knowing that Germany had their final group phase match, I ventured to the pub to visit with a couple of friends. As I arrived, they asked me if my plan was similar to theirs: come for a few early beers, then return home for the 9pm kick off.
That was my intention.
Perhaps it was the simply the nice weather, or the fact that we had a place which was a little further away from the other crowded tables, allowing for us to keep within our comfort zones, but I stayed for the entire match. I even had one beer too many, though that was perfectly allowed since I had Thursday and Friday off.
I guess it was my first experience being around a considerably larger group of people since this whole thing has gone on. While I did notice that most people were following the game on the screen, I could sense that most everyone was just happy to be out and about again. Finally.
I was curious how I was going to react to those first times when we are able to move around with fewer restrictions. I enjoyed being outside, seeing people, more importantly, seeing people enjoy themselves, and hopefully this can all continue.
From a tournament perspective, I kind of prefer when the event takes place just in one country, but accept that this was a special year, where the matches are played in venues all over Europe. Perhaps the timing was right: we have all gone through this shit together, and we still have a ways to go as a society.
But, a little footy helps bring things back together, and reminds us of the things to be thankful for in life, however small.
I am still not fanatical about this EM, but will certainly be looking forward to the next matches that start again this afternoon.
Whether you watch from the comfort of your living room, or out in the thick of things, stay safe and enjoy it.
See you out there
bryan
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