My first real exposure to soccer occurred when I worked at Yahoo! and helped to create and manage the official FIFA World Cup website for the Korea Japan tournament. I don’t imagine my Chicago childhood experience would run quite the same in 2023, but other than friends that played on our school team at St. Ignatius College Prep, my friends and I ran the cycle —- Baseball, Football and Basketball.
So, I’ll save the lengthy tales of the site build and interactions for sometime down the line. Suffice it to say that I gained an appreciation for the game and began to casually follow. Fast forward to this media career and raising a daughter who loves the game.
Good, short introduction, right?
Sunday night I got to experience a home game for Angel City FC against the rival San Diego Wave with my girls. We got to BMO Stadium about an hour before kickoff and got to our seats to watch warmups. The game marked the introduction of USWNT star Julie Ertz to Angel City, and she received a hero’s welcome during pre-game (and many subsequent in-game touches). I gotta say — we were mesmerized by the pre-game work put in by the goalies as they constantly peppered with balls. It seemed the equivalent of a full practice.
Drums and chants and songs made for an electric atmosphere in the sold out 22,000-seat stadium. Groans with each foul call. Cheers on each rush. And existential crises following the two goal allowed.
Anyway, it was a tough 2-0 loss to Alex Morgan and the Wave. The offensive attacks and numerous corner kicks failed to dent the scoreboard.
But, despite the loss, there were loud roars for the squad as they exited the field, and the music and chants continued. Civility and positivity ruled the day. Can’t say I heard an unkind word uttered during the day. Cheers and chants, no smack-talk. It was jarring given the stuff Smith & I talk about so frequently on FOX Sports Radio.
A great night with the kids and conversations and laughs — in-stadium music plus our usual playlists makes for a cool thread. We met a gentleman standing in line for popcorn (that ain’t no joke!) who’d brought his kids and grandkids to the game. He’d yet to see a moment of action as he’d been put on food duty. But he was loving every minute of it, as were the groups of kids cheering for their favorites or holding up signs.
Reset and restored … though the direct sunlight came hard for my face after Saturday’s sunburnt beginnings. Follow me on TikTok @harmonrants to check the out and the future content madness.
Find your wins —- create some - shake it up.
