My introduction to the incredible world of English football came with FIFA 08, and from that time forward my team was Nottingham Forest. Can't say exactly why, the team just clicked with me for whatever reason. Maybe it was the badge, or the fact that Robin Hood lives there. I think. Anyway, I bought the shirt, put up the poster in the living room, learned a few chants, added City Ground to the bucket list, got them promoted in FIFA and PES (if only it were that easy), watched and followed whenever I could. Hey, I even learned to hate Derby... maybe just a bit.
But man, it's tough supporting a Championship side all the way from the United States of America. For starters, you rarely get to see any matches, unless it's a YouTube recap or something like that. I go to my local English pub at 7:00 am (West Coast baby, we wake up early over here) and it's chock full of United and Arsenal fans rooting for their team: chanting, yelling, screaming at the TV. And here I am, checking the Forest result on my phone and hoping the battery doesn't die. At this point I don't think I'll ever get to experience true euphoria, unless every other Championship side decides to play with one foot tied to their waist.
Premier League exposure is at an all-time high here in the States. You can have a semi-literate conversation about the EPL and sports fans will actually know what you are talking about. It's truly amazing. But then comes the dreaded moment when the question is asked: "Who's your team? Liverpool? United?" I respond and it's like I have foam coming out of my mouth. "Who?!?" I feel like that hipster who only listens to super-obscure indie bands because Weezer isn't cool enough.
It's certainly not because Forest are incapable of winning, even though they seemingly are incapable of winning at the moment. Hell, I was a Giants fan for thirty years before they won anything in SF so I know what it's like. But if my team loses, dammit, I want to see them lose. Their misery should become mine, that's half of what being a sports fan is about.
I dunno, maybe I should just suck it up and stick to reading hostile long-distance match reports and watching two-day old .gifs of my team getting scored on. Or maybe I should support Chelsea, that way when they start winning again I can say was there for the "lean times".
But man, it's tough supporting a Championship side all the way from the United States of America. For starters, you rarely get to see any matches, unless it's a YouTube recap or something like that. I go to my local English pub at 7:00 am (West Coast baby, we wake up early over here) and it's chock full of United and Arsenal fans rooting for their team: chanting, yelling, screaming at the TV. And here I am, checking the Forest result on my phone and hoping the battery doesn't die. At this point I don't think I'll ever get to experience true euphoria, unless every other Championship side decides to play with one foot tied to their waist.
Premier League exposure is at an all-time high here in the States. You can have a semi-literate conversation about the EPL and sports fans will actually know what you are talking about. It's truly amazing. But then comes the dreaded moment when the question is asked: "Who's your team? Liverpool? United?" I respond and it's like I have foam coming out of my mouth. "Who?!?" I feel like that hipster who only listens to super-obscure indie bands because Weezer isn't cool enough.
It's certainly not because Forest are incapable of winning, even though they seemingly are incapable of winning at the moment. Hell, I was a Giants fan for thirty years before they won anything in SF so I know what it's like. But if my team loses, dammit, I want to see them lose. Their misery should become mine, that's half of what being a sports fan is about.
I dunno, maybe I should just suck it up and stick to reading hostile long-distance match reports and watching two-day old .gifs of my team getting scored on. Or maybe I should support Chelsea, that way when they start winning again I can say was there for the "lean times".
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