Yesterday I went to a River Plate game. River Plate is one of the two most popular teams in Buenos Aires. They are housed in a quaint stadium with a capacity of roughly 80,000. This place looks like a prison in comparison to most American stadiums. The reason being that the fans from the opposing teams must be separated by barbed wire in order to prevent scuffles, no alcohol can be served at the games, and fans from opposing sides must enter and exit the stadium at different times (again to prevent brawls).
Home team:
Away team: (See the barb wire)
I knew all of these facts beforehand and consequently did the smart thing (this time) and bought tourist tickets. For about 5 times the price (80 USD) I bought sideline tickets in a 'rich person's section', avoiding potential skirmishes. This worked out pretty well, and I ended up seeing a good game (River lost 1-0).
Actual game:
Fans here are interesting because they actually care. For example, getting up in the middle of a half is unheard of, and talking to friends is frowned upon. The idea is to watch, and support your team (from the day you are born until death).
Hear is a very short clip of what it sounds like to be inside the stadium:
Despite losing, and having to wait 45 minutes after the game for the opposing teams fans to leave the stadium, the River fans still cheered incessantly. The stadium was that loud until the River fans started to exit.
Remember watching several Argentinian world cups ... it used to be late at night when they telecast in India. Those were the Diego Maradona days ... the barbed wire sounds scary, though I can understand the brawls and skirmishes. We have that often in India with cricket games ... people actually spend the whole day watching and cheering the team (without getting any actual work done or even feeling guilty about it!).
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