#10 – May 31st 2007

We will, we will…rock them

Up until this past Saturday I could honestly say I had never seen a soccer game, not live, nor on television. I’ve always been a hockey girl, and other than a sincere appreciation for David Beckham’s model-esque appearance, I’ve never taken an interest in this phenomenon known as football to 90% of the world. Fervor began to grow around Uganda last week and soon Natalie, Peter and I discovered that an African League game was taking place in Kampala between Uganda and Nigeria, huge rivals. Both teams are composed of Ugandans and Nigerians who play for professional European teams, all of whom are hugely popular here in Uganda. The three of us decided to get tickets and thus began my first adventure into the crazy world of football.

We woke up early on Saturday to prepare for the big game. Down in Kampala we had a hearty lunch at Mateos, a cool little restaurant that serves delicious local food as well as Western style meals. As we ate we watched hundreds of taxis drive by, their drivers repeatedly beeping the horns, passengers screaming from the windows wearing yellow jerseys, blowing long yellow trumpets and waving their arms wildly. The city was pulsing with excitement for the big match. We were told to get to the stadium early because of the open seating, so we decided to boda there. Thankfully my boda driver was understanding, possibly he realized from my death grip on his shoulder that I would freak out if he went too fast. In essence his boda was a dirt bike. We weaved in and out of traffic, my legs grazing passing vehicles, my eyes stinging from the red dust, my heart beating excessively fast. Every car or boda that past us seemed to be piled with screaming fans, blowing horns and whistles, pumped for the big match.

We arrived at the stadium to even more pandemonium. Thousands of people were already streaming in at 11am, five hours before the game was set to begin! We found some decent seats and settled in for the wait. I had brought a book to keep myself entertained until the game began, but I didn’t even have a moment to take it from my bag. There was so much to look at; face-painted fans, live entertainment, preparations on the field, there wasn’t a moment of boredom. Several big-name Ugandan singers performed, and got the entire 50,000 capacity stadium to its feet, dancing and singing. I’ve never seen anything like it.

The first half of the game was fairly uneventful, with Nigeria scoring the only goal. The noise level in the stadium died down quite a bit, apart from the small section of Nigerian fans. The second half, however, was possibly the most exhilarating sports event I’ve ever witnessed. Long story short, Uganda scored two goals and played (according to my neighbor) better than they ever have, so driven, so fast, so skilled. It was a sight to see, and completely worth the…ahem…$20 ticket. Roughly a thousand times cheaper than going to an NHL game in Canada. To the shock of most in attendance, Uganda won the match, and as the seconds ticked off the end of the game, Natalie, Peter and I were taken aback as everyone started jumping from the stands onto the field! It was slightly scary at first, as we weren’t sure exactly what was going on, but our neighbors ensured us that it was how Ugandans celebrated a win and it would remain peaceful. Nonetheless, the riot police with their batons and guns surrounded the field, ready in case of a problem. Of course, there was none, just hundreds of extremely happy fans streaming in bright yellow across the field, dancing and performing acrobatics. I’ve really never seen anything like it in my life, and I don’t think my descriptions here can properly represent the euphoria in the stadium or the experience of being there.

We had to walk half way home, for about an hour, because traffic was at a stand-still as 50,000 people exited the stadium simultaneously. All the way back to Kampala Ugandans lined the streets, cheering and congratulating everyone that walked past. I’ve never given ‘props’ to so many people. Back in downtown Kampala we went to City Bar, where we ate delicious Chicken Tika Masala with rice and downed a couple of ice cold Nile while we watched the uproar on the streets. Eventually the fervor took hold of us and we too were hooting and hollering. We were invited to sit with a group of Ugandans, mainly local businessmen, who bought us drinks, taught us traditional Ugandan songs and made us feel like part of the celebration. All-in-all, a fantastic evening.

Go Uganda!

~Nicole