The Church of Futbol

I was watching a soccer game on TV the other day. I also happened to be broiling some chicken at the same time, but that’s beside the point, though it will play a role later in this story. It was a Major League Soccer (MLS) game, to be exact, so it was an American match, with American commentators. At one point, a player in blue charged down the field towards the opponent’s goal, made a brilliant cross pass in front of the net to his waiting teammate on the opposite side of the pitch, who, with a slight extension of his foot, made an easy tip into the net for the score past the scrambling goalkeeper.

 It was a great goal. In fact, I was so distracted, I burned the chicken.

 But that didn’t matter. Chicken is just chicken, after all, and I love watching soccer, so it was worth it. It would be an understatement to say that I’m a terrible player, but I think it’s a beautiful sport, even if it is a “below international standards” league in the United States.

 Much to my displeasure, though, the commentators did not share my enthusiasm.

 “Well, there’s a goal,” one of them said. “A fine goal, well done.”

 That’s my big beef with soccer in the United States. No one really gets excited about it. I wish everyone could listen to an Argentine commentator, for once, when someone scores a goal. Now there’s excitement.

 “GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL! GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!”

 A goal might as well be the most exciting thing that has ever happened to them. It’s like they’ve won $1 billion. U.S. dollars, that is, since they’re still worth more than pesos, for the time being. Regardless, their reactions would be indistinguishable.

 When you travel to Argentina, their unbridled enthusiasm for the game is something you will immediately notice. Though the country is officially Roman Catholic, they really only follow one religion: futbol (the sport’s real name, outside of North America, at least). Their place of worship is the stadium, or wherever they can grab a seat next to a blaring TV. Their gods are Maradona and Messi.

 If you’re in Buenos Aires in particular, you should know a few things. The city has a whopping 24 professional clubs, the highest concentration of teams for one sport within any one metropolis in the world. Of these, there are five major clubs, two of which have achieved legendary status around the globe. You’ll encounter them during your visit, somehow, be it on the streets when you see a fan donning their colors, or perhaps at a game, if you’re lucky enough.

 They are the Boca Juniors and River Plate.

 Boca, as the name suggests, is based in the southern barrio (“neighborhood”) of La Boca. They played their first match in 1905, and based their color scheme, blue and yellow, oddly enough on the flag of Sweden. At the time, La Boca was a major port for Buenos Aires, and the club’s early players, during a little game of footie, pledged to adopt the colors of the next boat that sailed into the harbor. The boat was Swedish. The rest is history.

 River Plate hails from the far northern barrio of Núñez. Though they first set up shop in La Boca in 1901, they gradually moved north over the years, along with the city’s wealthy residents (who were fleeing poverty and yellow fever to the south), making a brief stop in the barrio of Palermo before landing at their current location. River’s colors are black, red, and white. Unlike Boca, there is no real rhyme or reason to it.

 As you may have guessed at this point, Boca and River are eternal rivals. They play several times a year in an epic match known as the Superclásico. As of summer 2008, the series is remarkably close, with 114 wins for Boca, 102 for River, and 100 draws. As if the evenly contested play on the field was not enough, the grudge also transcends the pitch on socioeconomic levels. Boca is considered to be a gritty, blue-collar, working class team, while River is seen as a club for the higher echelons of society, given their aforementioned flight from the poorer southern barrios.

 One of the best things you can do with your time in Buenos Aires is attend a game for one of these teams. Boca plays at La Bombanera, a 57,000-seat facility in La Boca, complete with a museum dedicated to the history of the team, while River squares off in El Monumental, an even larger, 65,000-seat stadium in Núñez. You can buy tickets at the stadiums, or as part of one of the many soccer tours run by hostels and hotels throughout the city.  

 If you choose to support a certain club, just be sure to wear the appropriate colors. Nothing would be more embarrassing than showing up sporting blue and yellow at a River game. Perhaps consider fact-dropping some of the history we have included here, too, if you want to impress people. You can also attend a game as a neutral fan. Contrary to popular belief, there are people in Argentina who just don’t really care for either club. You’ll blend right in.

 Then, of course, there are the people who just don’t like futbol. We have heard legends of their existence, but allow me to reemphasize—it’s only legend.