HYPERION PUBLIC-BARCA vs MANCHESTER CITY

No, it's not Jodie Foster's latest movie title. It's the joint we gather to watch Champions League fútbol (we have to start a crowd-funding campaign or something to get rid of the term "soccer", seriously) and do family therapy, err socialize, after practice and games. It's kinda fun. It would make for a decent sitcom–the 21st century, hipster version of Cheers with a bunch of middle-aged men talking football and drinking beer in a cave as if it really mattered, while postponing their lives for a couple of hours. Heck, if this isn't life, I don't know what is. Well, actually I can think of a couple other things but they don't really fit in this script, so I'll avoid them: this is Hollywood, after all.

So today we watched Barcelona and Manchester City. One of the interesting things of watching soccer in the US is that people actually talk business, work on their computers and debate on tactics while watching the game (or the replays). In Spain you go to a bar to watch and you watch the game. Yes, people talk, but they do it out of the corner of the mouth and looking sort of sideways, lest they miss something. Here we eat, drink, chat and, if we are lucky, will catch the missed chance or the blown call. It must be a carry over from baseball; but hey, it's cool, nobody's perfect. That's why there is always somebody on guard duty, watching intently while the rest of the bunch pore over U-6 tactical sets, Sevens divisional rivalries, hot moms and world affairs (yeah right). As soon as Iniesta makes a crazy move or Neymar catches the ball the sentry will scream: "Hey, check it out!" and heads will turn as in a tennis match... (I know what you fútbol unlovers are thinking, but you are wrong).

I have wondered many times about fútbol's allure. What is it that makes this sport so compelling, so passionate, so ingrained in people's blood? It's a cliché, but you can go anywhere in the world (still outside the US, unfortunately) and speak football. Wars will be paused–and started–because of a football match. Bitter enemies can rally around a commonly loved player or cherished team. The game is so transformational that people who can't play worth a crap will actually blossom into respected coaches and gurus. Only football and acting offer that cathartic potential. 

It was fun today and the tradition will continue. Whenever a good fútbol game happens, men gather around the world–usually with some sort of alcoholic drink at hand (sorry, Saudi Arabia). We talk, we  argue, we laugh, we scream, sometimes we even cry. And we always have fun. Take that, Vladimir Putin!

[Fade out]

FIN