For many football fans, winning or losing a game is a matter of life and death. But if you ask the folks around Old Trafford, they’Il tell you that that’s ridiculous. It is far more important than that.
Welcome to Manchester, England. Home to the legendary Manchester United football team. In automotive terms, this would be what Scuderia Ferrari is to Formula One, because love ‘em or hate ‘em, the sport wouldn’t be the same without them.
It’s my first time to watch a match live. Well, one of this league at least. But this is not just any match; this is the most epic rivalry in football history: Manchester United versus Liverpool, which loosely translated is Ali vs Fraser, Prost vs Senna, Ateneo vs La Salle, and Roadrunner vs Coyote all rolled into one.
Yes, I know. It is strange for a motoring journalist to be covering a football match, but I have been invited by Chevrolet Philippines through their global sponsorship program to understand precisely that. Because even though Chevrolet are pulling out of Europe, they are finding new roads in Asia and other emerging markets where football is the fastest growing sport, and using the power of play to make dreams become possibilities.
“Followed passionately by billions of people around the world, football is a well-loved game in many countries including Chevrolet’s emerging markets such as India, Korea, Thailand and other parts of Asia.
In every market, consumers are different but the love of football is universal, transcending geographic, cultural and language barriers. Through play, dreams become possibilities, and through football, Chevrolet reaches the hearts of many fans all over the world.” Stefan Jacoby, Executive VP & President, General Motors International, says in his statement.
And it makes perfect sense, too. Technically speaking, football has a bigger following than any single religion on earth. And while the Pope doesn’t do endorsements, a Manchester United jersey is the next best thing.
But this more than just a logo on a shirt. Locally, Chevrolet has already distributed 17,000 indestructible soccer balls to under privileged kids as part of their commitment to once again use play to make dreams become possibilities. It’s all about working hard and playing harder.
Back outside the stadium, I pinch myself through three layers of clothing just to establish that it isn’t some alcohol and fatty sausage-induced day dream and join the human current that funnels through the historic turnstiles, then climb up the old, cold, concrete staircase along with 77,000 other rabid fans that pour slowly into the stadium.
No game is complete without a hot roast pork roll with gravy
They serve these because they know they are going to make minced meat out of the competition
Within minutes, the stadium fills up like one of those time lapse photographs. There are flags and signs and scarves and faces painted everywhere but you don’t see anything individually, but rather as one huge living thing. I may not be a big football fan, but you needn't be to appreciate the energy and excitement generated by over 77,000 screaming Manchester United fans that seem to move and act as one as the players jog out of the tunnel, the pride of almost a billion fans worldwide at their feet. Literally.
The chanting begins long before kick off and escalates as play begins. It’s an even mix of encouragement for the home team and taunting of the visiting side––all of which have been relegated to a tiny cordoned-off section by police in their high visibility jackets.
A beautiful play and a kick through the legs sees Manchester United score the first goal. The stadium erupts. It’s the kind of eruption that is easier measured on a righter scale than a decibel meter and one that could probably generate enough energy to power up a medium sized country, followed by an hysteria that has strangers hugging strangers without the faintest sign of awkwardness.
There are 2 more goals after that, which ends the game at 3-0 in favor of Manchester United and the crowd are now beyond hysterical. A win is a win in any language, but a 3-0 win against Liverpool is another milestone on a very storied road that just stokes the rivalry even further and keeps the embers burning long enough for the next generation to nurture an even deeper grudge.
Getting a rub down in the dressing room before the big match
Strategy is absolutely everything, so I explain through this sheet, the quickest way to the snack bar
In a perfect world, everyone would have experienced a Grand Prix live at least once in their life (During the V12, V10 or V8 era), a championship fight in Vegas, an Olympic games, or a goal being scored either in a World Cup or on home turf in a premiere league match. These should be on everyone’s bucket list because they are the kind of experiences that remind us of the true spirit of world-class competition when failure was never an option. The kind of work ethic and commitment that can inspire an entire nation. And the kind of passion and belief in one’s self that asks the little dreamer that lives inside each and every one of us the one question that gets us up every morning: What do you play for?
