Lost in the Wilds of UK Sports: Flight to Chicago

After attending 17 sporting events in 15 days in three countries it was time to go home. Here were my stats:

I attended 12 games in England, 3 in Scotland and 2 in Finland.

I attended 10 soccer matches consisting of 4 English Premier League, 2 Champions League, 1 Europa League, 1 Scottish Premier League and 2 Carling Cup.
I attended 2 rugby matches – 1 in the Guinness Premiership and 1 in the Magners League.
I attended 2 county cricket matches – both Division I and Division II.
I attended 2 NHL games – the first regular season NHL games in Finland.
I attended 1 NBA game – probably the least exciting from a global standpoint.

My flight was scheduled for 2:40 pm so once again I packed up my stuff, said bye to Big Chris and took the underground to London’s Heathrow airport. The trip was a great experience but it was time to get home to Nicole.

NBA in London: Jazz vs. Bulls

I extended my trip one day in order to attend the Chicago Bulls pre-season game versus the Utah Jazz at the O2 Arena on Tuesday night. In all practicality I probably should have flown back to Chicago instead, since I did attend the Minnesota Timberwolves and Boston Celtics pre-season game two years ago at the O2 Arena.

The O2 Arena is located in zone 2 for underground purposes but is at the end of the zone. The station to get off at is North Greenwich.

Obtaining Tickets
I had looked up on ticketmaster.co.uk before the game and saw that the cheapest seats (£35) were sold out. Thus, I was hoping to find a ticket for that amount or less. When I approached the box office there was a man who had a £35 pound seat. This was promising since I would have to pay more if I bought a ticket from the box office. He offered the ticket for £35 at first but then dropped his price to £30 immediately after I hesitated. I probably could have bought the ticket for cheaper but decided not to negotiate. The guy ended up buying me a beer in the arena after I told him my ticket buying strategy. He was thankful I did not cut his price any lower.

Pre Game Dining
There are at least 20 restaurants within the O2 Arena, but are technically outside of the arena. I definitely recommend eating there if you are heading to the arena as most of the restaurants are crowded and have a good atmosphere. I chose to eat at S&M (stands for Sausage and Mash) Great British Pub – I figured my last meal in England should be English. After eating dinner, I went over to the pub that was the most crowded – the Slug and Lettuce.

The Game
Luol Deng was playing in front of a home crowd. However, it was James Johnson who sent the crowd home in a frenzy after he made the game winning shot at the buzzer to give the Bulls the 102-101 victory.

This was the second time I saw the Bulls and Jazz play a neutral site pre-season game. Last year I saw both teams play at Assembly Hall on the campus of the University of Illinois in Champaign, IL.

Post Game Dining
After the game I was hungry so decided to grab an appetizer at one of the many restaurants at the O2 Arena. I walked into Thai Silk since they had a £2 glass of wine or pint of beer special. I did not notice many other specials from the other restaurants post game.

I made sure I left the O2 Arena soon enough so I would not miss the tube going back to Lambeth North. I did not want to repeat my mistake of staying out too late and the only option being taking an expensive cab or the bus a long distance.

Birmingham Tuesday Morning

Since I napped most of Monday afternoon, I spent Tuesday morning touring Birmingham. I walked through the Bull Ring Markets (one of Birmingham’s biggest tourist attractions) and Victoria Square. My train was scheduled to depart Birmingham New Street at 12:10 pm and arrive London Euston at 1:34 pm.

I made it back to Big Chris’ house without incident this time. I walked directly from Waterloo station to his house learning from my mistake last Thursday. Rather than relax at Big Chris’ I took the train over to London Mick’s house in Battersea for one last visit before flying to Chicago Wednesday afternoon.

EPL: Blackburn Rovers at Arsenal

My flight from Helsinki was on time and we landed shortly before 9:10 am. In order to meet the Arsenal boys for brunch I hopped on the underground from Heathrow and got off at the Charing Cross tube stop.

Pre Game Dining
Breakfast was scheduled for 10:45 am at the National Gallery Restaurant by Trafalgar Square. I arrived on time as more Arsenal boys showed up in the subsequent minutes. Breakfast was a much better experience than lunch two weeks ago.

Doubleheader Possibility
During breakfast we discussed the possibility of attending both the Arsenal and Chelsea matches that day. In fact, there were actually three EPL games in London on Sunday. West Ham United’s match was moved from Saturday to Sunday to accommodate Fulham’s Europa League match that I attended on Thursday night.

My original plan had been to attend both the Arsenal and Chelsea doubleheader on Sunday. However, multiple risks caused me to rethink this strategy.

1) Ticket Availability: Chelsea’s match was not just any match. It was versus Liverpool – a touch ticket to buy. By the time I arrived at Stamford Bridge there may not be any tickets available. Plus I already used up all of my “Chelsea luck” when I arrived late and got a free ticket to the match versus Tottenham.
2) Cost: Chelsea’s match was versus Liverpool and I did not have a ticket already. Todd, who I attended the Fulham game with Thursday night, stated that tickets on craiglist.org were hovering around £100 for the match. A price that was too high considering I was already attending the Arsenal match. If it was the only match of the day I would never let me price deter me.
3) Arsenal Boys: In my two EPL matches at the Emirates I was unable to go out after the game. This time I had all night to hang out. I decided I would have a much better time hanging out with the Arsenal boys after the game in one of the pubs by Emirates Stadium than going to the Chelsea match
4) Timing: As already stated the Arsenal match started at 1:30 pm – meaning the earliest the game would be over would be 3:15 pm. Chelsea’s match with Liverpool kicked off at 4 pm so there would be a maximum of 45 minutes to get from Arsenal to Chelsea. In order to get there I would need to either:

A) Find a cab immediately after the Arsenal match ended – estimated cost £25 to £30. But trying to find a taxi around Emirates Stadium as 60,000 people are leaving would not be easy.
B) Leave a few minutes early and hope the tube (describe route) would get you there on time.

Leaving Early
In either case, I would most likely need to leave the Arsenal match early or arrive to Chelsea late – a no-no for the Ultimate Sports Fan. While I agree with leaving games early, I do not agree with leaving one game early to get to another game. The reason I agree with leaving games early is that you may have a prior obligation such as dinner with the wife and/or family or another high priority engagement that does not allow you to attend the entire game. I feel attending and leaving early is more important than not attending at all.

In the end the final whistle was not blown until 3:25 pm – meaning there was only 35 minutes to get to Stamford Bridge – most likely an impossible feat.

The Game
Arsenal started out slowly, falling behind to Blackburn 1-0 in the 4th minute and 2-1 in the 30th minute. However, Arsenal scored five unanswered goals to defeat Blackburn 6-2 in the highest scoring game I have seen all trip. The fans were abuzz with the fact that Thierry Henry was in attendance at Emirates Stadium.

Post Game “Dining”
I use “dining” because as I wrote about my experience in Scotland is that I now understand why the Gastropub was invented in the United Kingdom. Some of the pubs around the stadiums do not have any food – only chips. This was the case Sunday afternoon as we went out after the game. The first pub we went to was The Bailey located at 81 Holloway Road. We watched the Chelsea/Liverpool match there before heading to The Compton Arm located at 4 Compton Ave. to meet the other Arsenal boys.

After staying in the pubs for a few hours, Big Chris and I took a cab back to his place. We went back to Kennington Tandoori – the Indian restaurant we ate at my first night of the trip. If you like Indian food, then be sure to dine at one of the many Indian restaurants in London.

Traveling to London from Helsinki

When I originally planned my journey around the United Kingdom, I knew I would attend the Arsenal match versus Blackburn Sunday afternoon at 1:30 pm and Hospitality Jim had a ticket waiting for me for the game.

In order to partake in all of the festivities I needed to take an early flight as the Arsenal boys usually meet up for brunch three hours before kickoff. Thus, I booked an 8:00 am flight out of Helsinki that was scheduled to land in London at 9:10 am.

In order to get to my 8:00 am flight I needed to wake up at 5:00 am and take the 5:50 am Finnair bus from the Helsinki train station to the Helsinki airport. There were actually other people on the bus with me at that time.

We arrived at the airport before 6:30 am. I checked in and now had an hour wait before my flight would board. Not my ideal scenario but at least I was at the airport. I walked over the cafeteria to grab a soda or coffee and rest. To my surprise about 25% of everyone in the cafeteria had a beer, wine or cocktail of some sort. Had all these people stayed up all night and were still partying? Do Finnish drink this early when they fly? Rather than debate the issue I did as the Finnish and grabbed myself a beer to pass the time.

Flight to Helsinki, Finland

On Thursday night I booked my hotel for Helsinki. I normally book hotels at this last minute. First, it limits my options if not many hotels are available – making my decision easier. Second, it allows me to receive good deals if the hotels discount their rooms since nobody will be staying in them. Third, if I change my plans I do not need to cancel one hotel room and rebook.

I made a reservation at the Radisson Blu Royal Hotel. The rate was 67.20 euros per night which was not much more than the hostels I considered.

I had originally booked the 10:20 am flight from London Heathrow to Helsinki rather than the earlier flight because, as I wrote in a prior post, I was unaware whether Fulham or Everton would be home on Thursday night in a Europa League match. However, it was a good decision as the London underground would not have gotten me to the earlier flight on time. The tube does not open until 5:45 am so I would have needed to determine another way to get to Heathrow.

Instead I left Big Chris’ house around 7:45 am and was at Heathrow at 9:00 am. My only concern with the flight was that if it was late I might miss some of the Florida Panthers and Chicago Blackhawks game I was planning to attend Friday night. The puck dropped at 7 pm so there was not much wiggle room with my schedule.

The flight took off on time (10:20 am) and landed on time (3:15 pm). FinnAir runs a shuttle from the airport to the Helsinki train station for 5.90 euros. It runs frequently and is a convenient way to get from the airport to downtown Helsinki.

Europa League: Basel at Fulham

One of the strange things about Europe is that someone you know from the United States is bound to be in the same location as you at some point. This was the case with my friend Todd San Jule. The last game Todd and I had attended together was the Seattle Seahawks at Green Bay Packers NFC divisional playoff game on January 12, 2008.

This time we agreed to meet for the Fulham and Basel Europa League match at Craven Cottage. In order to get to Craven Cottage I took the underground to the Putney Bridge stop. The stadium is a far walk from the tube stop.

Obtaining Tickets
My original plan had been to arrive at Craven Cottage early, hang out at a pub by the stadium and meet Todd when he got off work. This plan changed when Todd got off work earlier than he thought and I arrived later than I thought.

While Todd was waiting for me I told him to buy tickets for the match. I thought the tickets were £20 since I had looked at ticketmaster.co.uk a few days before the match. However, that was the non-day-of-game price. The price at the box office was £30. If I had known of the price increase I would have bought tickets from the ticket touts I passed on the way from the Putney Bridge tube stop to the stadium – but I did not know.

It turned out ok though since our seats were a few rows from the field, halfway between mid-field and the top of the penalty box.

Craven Cottage
Craven Cottage is a classic old English football ground. It is nestled up to a river and is small enough where you really feel apart of the action. In the lowest scoring game I had seen in over a week, Fulham defeated FC Basel 1-0.

Post Game
After the game Todd and I went to The King’s Arm located at 425 New Kings Rd. There are quite a few pubs in the area to try. After one pint I needed to head back to Big Chris’ house so I could pack and book my hotel for Helsinki, Finland.

Thrown off a London Bus

The scheduling Gods shined upon me when creating the Europa League schedule. Originally I debated whether to leave for Finland on Thursday afternoon or Friday morning since the Europa League schedule was not out at the time. I did not know whether Fulham or Everton would play Thursday night. My preference was Fulham since I could take the train to London Thursday morning and attend the match. If Everton had been home I would have to take either a late train Thursday night or an early train Friday morning to attend the match. It all worked out in the end as Fulham was scheduled for Thursday, October 1.

I was awakened early by the construction going on outside my hostel room. Thus, I relaxed in my room for awhile (I was not in a rush to get back to London) before checking out of the hostel and walking to the train station. Trains from Manchester to London run every 20 minutes so I could just show up and hop on one. I took the 10:35 am train.

The train from Manchester arrives at Euston train station in London. Before I left London last Thursday I had confirmed with Big Chris that I could stay with him tonight so I needed to take the train from King’s Cross to Waterloo train station and walk to his house. The journey should have taken no more than 30 to 45 minutes. It took me two hours!

First, I need to start by saying I made it to Waterloo train station just fine. I took the Northern underground line from Euston. It is a direct shot to Waterloo. The next part of the story is where things went awry.

Rather than walk to Big Chris’ house, I saw a bus coming and decided to get on with my day travel pass. The bus was not going to take me by Big Chris’ house so I asked the bus driver where I should get off instead. He proceeded to say he would tell me where to get off. After a few minutes I asked another patron on the bus where we were and she said we just crossed the river so I was now going the wrong way. I proceeded to ask the bus driver why he did not tell me to get off the bus at the correct stop and he said it was not his job to do so. Thus, I gave him the bird as I left the bus and you could tell he was not happy about that.

Now I had options. First, I could wait for the bus coming in the opposite direction. Second, I could walk to Big Chris’ place. Third, I could take a taxi. The third option was probably the smartest at this point and I was not sure how long the walk was. So I decided to wait since I figured the bus would be by shortly. However, after about 30 minutes the bus still had not shown up. But you know what waiting for the bus is like – you think as soon as I take a cab it will show up and I have already waited this long. This thought process started with me after waiting for 10 minutes.

Finally the bus showed up. And can you guess who the driver was? You are correct – the driver who did not tell me to get off and who I had flipped off. So I got on at the back of the bus as everyone was getting off. Of course, the bus started to clear out after a couple of stops so I made my way up to the front of the bus and asked the bus driver why he did not tell me to get off the bus in the first place. However, rather than listen to my question he stopped the bus and told me he would not drive the bus if I stayed on. I told him I would not get off. He told me he would not drive the bus and he was calling the London police to escort me off the bus. I could not believe this was happening. I believed his threat and got off the bus rather than deal with the London police.

I had officially been thrown off of a London bus. I ended up walking to Big Chris’ house instead. After my journey I needed a nap and went right to sleep.

After a couple of hours I woke up and met Big Chris at the Grand Union for a pint before taking the tube to the Fulham match. Big Chris found my bus story to be quite amusing.

Carling Cup: QPR at Chelsea

After visiting British Mick, I took the same bus (#295) I had on Sunday afternoon back to Stamford Bridge for Chelsea’s Carling Cup match against Queens Park Rangers (QPR). This time I left earlier so I would not be late for the match which probably meant I would need to pay for my ticket.

Obtaining Tickets
At first I thought I would check to see if tickets were available for the match at the main ticket office. However, when I approached the security guards at the box office they said the match was sold out unless you were a season ticket holder or member. I am not sure why Chelsea has this rule but it makes no sense to me. I was willing to pay for a ticket but they did not want to sell one to me. The rule was not going to keep me out of the match – it just keeps ticket prices higher on the secondary market since ticket touts know you have to buy through them rather than the team.

Instead I went to negotiate with the ticket touts along Fulham Rd. The first tout wanted £70. The second tout wanted £40. I could see there were more touts who had extra tickets so I walked up the entrance to the Fulham Broadway tube station since that is where I bought my ticket for the Arsenal at Chelsea match I attended last year on November 30, 2008. Most touts wanted £35 to £40 and the occasional tout wanted £60. I would ask what face value was and they all replied “It’s sold out to you.”

Next I found a fan trying to sell his two extra tickets to a tout. One rule of trying to buy tickets on the secondary market – ticket scalpers become angry when you get involved in their negotiation. In fact, it downright pisses them off. At this point, rather than worry about this rule, I butted into the negotiation with my usual statement – “I am going to the game and will pay more than what the tout is offering.” It is never much more but the fan with the extra tickets always listens. However, this time the tout (who the fan was negotiating with) was not pleased with my move. He started screaming “you are going to get us all nicked, do you want to get us all nicked?” Nicked is British slang for arrested.

Then I somehow got into only negotiating with him. After my move, he said he would only sell me a ticket for £100 – a tactic to threaten me. However, with multiple scalpers standing in the area I was ready to move on. I gave him a final offer of £25 which he did not accept initially (remember all these negotiations take place in the matter or minutes if not seconds). He asked for £30 which I said no to and began to move onto another ticket tout. He accepted my offer of £25.

This was one of my tougher negotiations for a game that was not sold out – the main reason being that Chelsea was not selling tickets on the day of the game. If Chelsea was selling tickets I would use their price of £19.50 as my negotiating leverage and force the ticket tout to sell for less than that (unless I was looking for a specific seat then my negotiating position is compromised).

Pre Game Dining
Since I bought my ticket 45 minutes before the match was scheduled to begin I thought I would grab a pint at one of the pubs outside of Stamford Bridge. However, the bars that were near the stadium were both completely packed and extremely hot (So-Bar) and for Chelsea supporters only (Café Brazil). Although since my ticket was in the Chelsea supporters section (Matthew Harding Lower) I was able to enter both pubs. However, rather than enter either pub, I decided to enter the stadium and bought one of the pint and pie meal deals Stamford Bridge offers.

The Game
My ticket for the match was different from where I normally sit in the upper deck. Instead, I was in the Chelsea supporters section four rows from the field, just left of the goal. To my dismay about a quarter of the upper deck was empty from the tickets Chelsea would not sell. Attendance at the match was 37,781 – 4,000 people less than the other two matches I have attended at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea defeated QPR 1-0 behind a 52nd minute goal by Salomon Kalou. Joe Cole, who set up the goal, played in the match after returning from an eight month break after rupturing his cruciate knee ligaments.

The most annoying part of sitting in the Chelsea supporters section was that they chanted “If you hate Tottenham stand up” the entire match and would stand for the next minute or so. This caused some fans in the section to start chanting “If you hate Tottenham sit down.” The chant must come from a historical dislike of Tottenham since Tottenham is not a threat to Chelsea anymore.

Post Game Train
After the game I took the tube immediately back to the Kennington area as not to be stuck in Chelsea after the game as I had been in Arsenal the night before. On the train ride back there were two girls and their father (Chelsea fans) who were drunker than most of the fans I see post game around Wrigley Field. They sang the entire way until I got off at Embankment to change to the Bakerloo line.

I met Big Chris at the Grand Union (a short walk south from the Lambeth North tube station) for a pint before heading back to his place to go to sleep to get up early. Big Chris and I discussed the possibility of me staying three more days at his place when I returned – Thursday, October 1, Sunday, October 4 (we were going to the Arsenal match together that day anyway) and Tuesday, October 6. He said that would be fine so I was set for my stays in London.

County Cricket Division 2: Glamorgan at Surrey

I woke up at 9:45 am and immediately started getting ready for my day at The Brit Oval. I was not too concerned with arriving on time at 10:30 am as a day of county cricket lasts for around seven hours.

After getting ready, I had an English muffin with Big Chris and started walking to the cricket ground at 10:30 am. I had walked this same path as I had walked on August 12, 2007. I was interviewing over that weekend in London and was staying near Waterloo Station just as I was this time. It was amazing to walk down Kennington Rd. just two years later.

Obtaining Tickets
I arrived at the Oval and bought my ticket for the day - £12. Obviously there is no secondary ticket market for second division cricket.

The Match
There was hardly anybody in attendance at the match. It appears county cricket is entertainment for retired men who have nothing better to do with their Wednesday afternoon – and, of course, myself. The biggest score of the day was Usman Afzaal who scored 170 runs for Surrey. 100 runs (a century) are considered a major accomplishment for any batter.

Obviously today’s match did not compare with The Ashes, but now I understood why the English asked me about the atmosphere at The Ashes – there was no atmosphere today. This was as dull as you could possibly get. There could not have been more than 500 people in the stands and it was quiet. However, every dull sporting event has its remedy and that is several pints of beer. After a couple of hours the match was no longer so boring.

After the match, I met Big Chris back at his place and we took the #344 bus to the Clapham Junction Train Station so we could visit British Mick, his wife and his new baby.

Carling Cup: West Brom at Arsenal

After booking my rooms for the next week, it was time to eat lunch as I had a few hours until the Arsenal Carling Cup match at Emirates Stadium. I walked a few blocks from Big Chris’ house and ended up at The Three Stags. I ordered the hamburger and a couple of pints before walking over to the Imperial War Museum located on Lambeth Road. To my surprise the admission was free so I spent a couple of hours catching up on my World War I, World Cup II and subsequent wars knowledge.

After the museum I walked back to Big Chris’ place to take an afternoon nap and get ready for the match. On Saturday afternoon, Timmie Hampton mentioned I should meet him and a couple other “Arsenal boys” at Pinchito Tapas – the same bar I met them at 10 months earlier for a Champions League match between Arsenal and Dynamo Kyiv.

The London Tube
I bought my day travel card for the tube (£5.60) and got on at Lambeth North. Pinchitos Tapas is located by the Old Street Tube Station so I took the Bakerloo line to Elephant & Castle and changed to the Northern line.

Pre Game Dining
I arrived at Pinchito Tapas (located at 322 Featherstone Street), a Basque tapas bar in Islington, around 5:30 pm and did not recognize anyone I was supposed to meet. So I waited and ordered some sangria. Around 6:15 pm, Timmie Hampton showed up – I had met him twice before. Once, at a restaurant watching Arsenal at Celtic in a Champions League playoff on August 18 and second, the past Saturday when we met for lunch at the St. Pancras Grand. We discussed what anyone would discuss who did not know each other well – work and football (more specifically Arsenal). Tim ordered a bottle of red wine. After another 30 minutes, Tim’s buddy Peter showed up.

At 7:10 pm, we had finished the first bottle of wine and I thought we would get on our way. The match kicked off at 7:45 pm. Instead Peter suggested we order another bottle. The second bottle was ordered and I figured we would just show up late. However, what I had not remembered from my prior visit was that the reason the Arsenal boys choose this bar is that it only takes 15 minutes from leaving the restaurant to getting to your seat – the plan is to take the Northern City Line from the Old Street tube station to Arsenal, which is part of the network rail line rather than the Northern Line. This train goes directly to Drayton Park – the closest train stop to Emirates Stadium.

We were done with the second bottle at 7:35 pm and off to the train we went. I was in my seat by 7:50 pm.

Obtaining Tickets
Since I thought we might be late to the match (which I was right), I bought my ticket after the Arsenal match on Saturday from the box office for £20. I thought all seats were supposed to be £10 but those were only for the lower level. The upper deck was all £20. This decision saved me valuable time rushing to the box office or trying to find a ticket Tuesday night since we were late. As we walked swiftly from the Drayton Park train station to the Emirates we passed a couple of ticket touts offering tickets. Arsenal does not include Carling Cup matches in their season ticket which allows the general population to buy tickets for the match at cheaper prices.

The gate I was supposed to enter had an extremely long line. However, the line that was actually long was for people who had bought tickets through Ticketmaster. Since I bought my ticket from the box office I could enter immediately.

The Game
The Carling Cup is the only tournament not included in a full season ticket for Arsenal. The reason being is that Arsene Wenger plays a junior team with an average age of 20 years old. A few seasons ago, Arsenal fans complained about paying so much money for tickets when the regular starters were not playing. Thus, Arsenal removed the games from the season ticket package and began charging only £10 or £20 for tickets.

There were some empty seats at the top of the stadium but the game was mostly full. The attendance was 56,962 which is 3,000 less than the other games I have attended.

Arsenal won 2-0 as Sanchez Watt scored in the 68th minute and Carlos Vela scored in the 76th. Jerome Thomas from West Brom was red carded in the 36th minute after a confrontation with Jack Wilshere.

At halftime I finally ate dinner since we did not end up ordering anything at Pinchito Tapas. Arsenal has a meal deal where you can buy a pie and a pint for 50 pence less than it would cost if bought separately. Also, remember you can buy beer during halftime of matches between England teams.

Post Game
After the game I met Timmie Hampton and Peter at the Public House on Islington Park St. As I arrived I met a new Arsenal boy, Mark, who I believe is the oldest of the bunch since he recently retired from the Royal Mail.

By the end of the evening, the tube had stopped running since we were out passed midnight. Since Tim and I were the only ones left, we hopped in a London cab back to Tim’s place and I figured out how to take the bus back to Waterloo Station from there. If you don’t want to get stuck taking the bus or a taxi for a long distance be sure to leave before the underground stops running.

Lost in the Wilds of UK Sport: Night #1

There I was hugging and kissing Nicole good-bye at London Heathrow’s Terminal 5. Nicole was flying back to Chicago after our weekend in London and four weeks in Spain. I was staying in England for over two weeks in order to attend as many sporting events as possible within that time frame. I had booked this additional part of the trip back in July when I booked our plane tickets for Spain and England. Originally it was only supposed to be one extra week, but when Nicole needed to get back for school a week earlier it ended up being two weeks.

As Nicole went through security, I received an email from British Mick stating where to meet Big Chris – The Young Vic on a street called “The Cut” by Waterloo Station. The day before British Mick emailed me stating I could stay with Big Chris by Waterloo station rather than a hostel as I had planned.

I left Heathrow Terminal 5 at 4:45 pm. By the time I took the tube back to Central London, picked up my bags from the hotel, made it to Waterloo Station and found the Young Vic it was 7:00 pm – the time I was supposed to meet Big Chris.

Big Chris was 15 minutes late which gave me time to peruse a couple of newspapers at the bar. Remember, I always like to look at the local paper in the city I am visiting in order to learn about events I would not normally think of attending. My current plan for the week was to attend:

1) The Arsenal Carling Cup match versus West Brom Tuesday night.
2) The Chelsea Carling Cup match versus QPR Wednesday night.
3) Take the train to Newcastle Thursday afternoon for the Guinness Premiership rugby match between Newcastle Falcons and Harlequins.

Thus, I had some free time Tuesday afternoon, Wednesday afternoon, all day Thursday and Friday afternoon.

The best paper that listed out all of the UK fixtures for the week was The Independent. It was perfect. I began to determine what else I could attend during my few minutes of free time. The first event I noticed was the Vivendi Trophy with Seve Ballesteros. The Vivendi Trophy is similar to the Ryder Cup but is played between players representing Great Britian & Ireland versus Continental Europe. The event started on Thursday meaning I would need to take a train from London to Paris Thursday morning and still get to Newcastle in time for the Rugby match Friday night.

As Big Chris showed up, I noticed that County Cricket was taking place in England during the week as well. The four day matches started on Wednesday and went through Saturday (starting at 10:30 am each day) allowing time for the NatWest Pro40 League to take place on Sundays.

The closest cricket match on Wednesday was Surrey hosting Glamorgan at The Brit Oval. Even though it was 2nd division County Cricket, the Oval was only a 20 minute walk from Big Chris’ house and where I attended The Ashes in August.

I then asked Big Chris where the best match to attend Thursday morning would be. He said since I was taking the train to Newcastle anyway I should stop in Leeds for the Yorkshire match versus Hampshire at Headingley Carnegie Cricket Ground – one of the test match grounds in England. My events for the rest of the week were now set:

1) The Arsenal Carling Cup match versus West Brom Tuesday night.
2) Second Division County Cricket at The Oval: Surrey versus Glamorgan on Wednesday afternoon.
3) The Chelsea Carling Cup match versus QPR Wednesday night.
4) First Division County Cricket at Headingley: Yorkshire versus Hampshire on Thursday afternoon.
5) Guinness Premiership rugby match between Newcastle Falcons and Harlequins.

After one drink at the Young Vic, Big Chris and I went back to his place to drop off my bags. We then went out to dinner at Kennington Tandoori – an Indian restaurant. After dinner Big Chris took me on a pub crawl of his area – first up was the Prince of Wales located at 48 Cleaver Square and second was The Doghouse located at 293 Kennington Rd.

Free Ticket to an EPL Match: Tottenham at Chelsea

After spending the afternoon at British Mick’s (who will now be referred to as London Mick) house, I left for the Chelsea match around 3:20 pm without a ticket (the match started at 4 pm). Of course, my bus was late and it took longer than I expected to get to Stamford Bridge. As was the case last time I would be late. However, last time I was concerned about whether I could get a ticket so I bought from a scalper early. This time I was determined to get a cheap ticket even if I was late. By the time I was outside the stadium it was 4:10 pm – not good when attending a local derby without a ticket.

Obtaining Tickets
Generally, with sold out games it is better to arrive early than late so you have the best opportunity to find a ticket from a season ticket holder or a scalper. By arriving late, the ticket may be sold to the best offer because they do not think anyone else will show up.

The first ticket broker I talked to wanted 250 pounds for one ticket – which, of course, is an absurd amount of money for a regular season game. Even though that was his first offer, he was so far out of my price range there was no reason to negotiate. I offered him 50 pounds and he turned me down. I then started to get concerned because I did not notice any other extra tickets. It was a match against Tottenham and anyone who had an extra ticket was probably already inside.

The next thing that happened was part skill and most definitely luck. Normally when I get a free ticket I look for an odd number of people. One person may have two tickets and three people may have four tickets – meaning they have one extra and will give it away since they do not know what else to do with it.

This time I saw two guys talking to security guards at what seemed to be a gate with tickets dangling. Since I was unsure what was going on, I ran over to ask them if they had an extra ticket in desperation (remember this all happens in the matter of seconds). They said they had an extra ticket but there was a catch – they had already entered the stadium on the ticket but were leaving to go somewhere else. The guy with the ticket asked the security guards if they could give me the ticket and would they let me in. A one-for-one swap, right? It makes complete sense to a fan – to a guard not allowed to let anyone re-enter a stadium (especially a different person) not so much. At that moment I started begging (no shame when given a free ticket to a Chelsea match) – “please, please, please, please, please let this happen.” And to my shock the guards let it! They made the guy hand me his ticket and let me in through the exit – not the entrance.

Timing of the Free Ticket
To my shock I was at the Chelsea – Tottenham match. For a match like that timing must be perfect. When getting free tickets to a Cubs or White Sox game timing is not as important since I believe there are quite a few people giving away tickets. However, when the game is sold out and you are late timing is the #1 priority. These steps needed to take place for the free ticket to occur:

1) I left about 15 minutes later than I wanted to from London Mick’s house.
2) I waited for about 15 minutes for the bus to arrive. I had considered taking a taxi but no taxi drove by the bus stop.
3) I got off the bus a few stops early since there was so much traffic on the road. I walked / ran to Stamford Bridge after that.
4) My instincts told me the guys leaving the stadium had an extra ticket and I ran over. You must always be aggressive when trying to get to a game. Note: These guys actually had two tickets. If the Ultimate Sports Wife had been with me she probably would have gotten in as well – although her presence probably would have affected the timing of our arrival which would have resulted in no tickets.

The Game
Chelsea defeated Tottenham convincingly 3-0 on goals by Ashley Cole (31st), Michael Ballack (57th) and Didier Drogba (62nd). The victory gave Chelsea a record 11 straight wins. However, Drogba exited the game in the 83rd minute due to a calf injury.

The main controversy of the match came in the 54th minute when Robbie Keane went down after a challenge from Ricardo Carvalho. Tottenham should have had a penalty kick but referee Howard Webb did not call a penalty.

Halftime
Once thing I did not mention was that the ticket I received stated that it was a suite seat. However, when I asked the ushers where my seat was they directed me to an actual seat. I figured it must have been a pre-game meal which was why the guys went for the meal but left for the match. What I figured out later was that I probably could have gone into the suite during halftime for dessert and drinks. Everyone in my section was gone during halftime so they must have gone into the suites.

EPL: Wigan at Arsenal

After spending a few weeks in Spain it was time for a weekend in London with the wife. If you are traveling to London and want to see a couple of soccer games then be sure to make the wife happy first – then attend the events. I booked two nights at the Andaz Liverpool Street that I found by going to tablethotels.com. Tablethotels.com recommends stylish hotels that the wife will love and will hopefully not cost a fortune.

The Andaz was about five hotels listed that were less than 150 pounds. The others cheaper hotels were further away and we wanted to stay in a central location. Also, since we were flying to London Saturday morning before the Arsenal match, I wanted to stay within a reasonable distance of the stadium just in case the plane was late. It also turned out that the Andaz was a Hyatt.

Pre Game Dining
We met the Arsenal boys – consisting of Hospitality Jim, Big Chris, Stevie White Hair, Timmie Hampton and Just Gary – for lunch at the St. Pancras Grand in the St. Pancras Train Station. Of course, they were drinking wine and champagne as we arrived at the champagne bar across from the restaurant.

Tim and Steve supposedly found the “deal of the day” which consisted of a two course meal with a half bottle of prosecco for 15 pounds. However, what we did not realize was that receiving our entrées would take forever. We ordered around 1:15 pm. At 2:15 pm we had only eaten our appetizers and the match started at 3 pm. After some firm conversations with the manager our meals arrived, we scarfed down our food and were off for the match.

Obtaining Tickets
As has occurred with the last two Arsenal matches I have attended, Hospitality Jim did not charge me for the ticket.

The Game
Arsenal defeated Wigan convincingly 4-0 as Thomas Vermaelen scored two goals in the 24th and 48th minute followed by Emmanuel Eboue’s goal in the 58th minute and Cesc Fabregas in the 89th.

The Ashes: Australia at England Day 2

When we decided to plan a trip for Europe, the wife checked U2’s tour schedule and realized they were playing in the United Kingdom the week we would be in London. She immediately wanted to attend a show. There were four shows to choose from – Friday, August 14 or Saturday, August 15 at Wembley Stadium in London, Tuesday, August 18 in Glasgow, Scotland or Thursday, August 20 in Sheffield, England. Ideally, we would have attended a show in London so we would not have to travel within the UK. However, that would mean we would need to leave Chicago two days earlier to attend the show on Saturday night in London. When I realized that Australia and England were playing the 5th test match of the Ashes at the Oval beginning Thursday, August 20 and running through Monday, August 24, Sheffield, England was the winner.

Day 2 of the test series started on Friday at 11 am. Thus, Nicole and I were on the 7:41 am train from Sheffield back to London – our estimated arrival time was shortly after 10 am. When we arrived in London, Nicole headed to our friend’s apartment where we were staying and I took the subway to the Oval.

Obtaining Tickets
Earlier in the week, my friend, British Mick, had warned me that tickets to the Ashes could run between 250 and 400 pounds. That price point was high for me, so I chose to do some research. I had assumed ticket prices would be like the India at England test match I had attended at the Oval in 2007 where I paid 20 pounds for a Sunday ticket.

Some Friday tickets for the Ashes were going for the price Mick had stated, but a majority of tickets were selling between 100 and 200 pounds – a much more reasonable amount.

As I arrived at the Oval I just missed buying a ticket from some Australians. I saw them sell their 65 pound ticket to someone for 85 pounds. I spent about 10 more minutes walking around and did not find any other extras.

I was about to walk back to where the ticket touts hang out by the Oval tube station, when I found what appeared to be a random fan who said he had an extra ticket – face value 65 pounds. He showed me the ticket and told me he had actually paid 140 pounds for the ticket. I offered him 100 pounds believing his story and we agreed on 120 pounds (a price British Mick stated was very good). The guy and his friend walked me to the entrance and said they would be in later. I never saw them again, so I was not sure whether they told me a real story or if they were ticket touts. Either way their story was believable.

Concessions at the Oval
One type of food that you do not find at concession stands in the United States is Indian food. Of course, you cannot Mexican food at an English stadium.

In what is a more liberal alcohol policy than United States venues, fans can buy up to four beers or an entire bottle of wine in a single purchase. However, since cricket lasts for hours (Friday’s match lasted close to eight hours), the alcohol sales stop twice during the day – once between 2:15 and 2:45 pm and again between 4:30 and 5:00 pm.

The Match
With the test series tied at 1-1 with two draws, the fifth test match was the decider – like game seven of the World Series according to British Mick. With that in mind, I was prepared to see some intense cricket. I saw the last two wickets of England’s first inning (which had started on Thursday) as England put a total of 332 runs on the board. Most of the writers in the paper had hoped England would score more than 400, so 332 runs were somewhat of a disappointment.

After a short break Australia came to bat around 11:30 am. Australia’s first two batsman, Shane Watson and Simon Katich, had 61 runs with zero wickets as the rains came three minutes before the scheduled lunch at 1 pm. The match was delayed for about an hour after lunch due to the continued rain fall and the teams gathered back on the pitch around 2:30 pm. Watson and Katich combined for 73 runs before Watson was out lbw (leg before wicket) by Stuart Broad. A run total that appeared Australia would eventually top England’s 332.

Next up was Australia’s #3 batsman, captain and supposedly the best batsman in the world – Ricky Ponting. Ponting only had eight runs before Broad threw a cutter that hit the ground then hit the wicket – Ponting was out and England’s day was looking promising. Broad got Australia’s #4 batsman Mike Hussey out lbw before he could even score one run. I had a feeling I was seeing something special even though I am not an expert at cricket in any means.

In the next over, Michael Clarke was dismissed for Broad’s fourth wicket within an hour as Broad bowled through Australia’s main batsmen. Within the next 20 minutes two more wickets were taken from Australia and Broad had five wickets during the inning (and within 80 minutes for that matter). During lunch I noticed a plaque at the Oval commemorating bowlers who had recorded five wickets within one inning – now I knew I was seeing something special.

Tea was scheduled for 4:30 pm – a much needed break for the Australians who only scored 133 runs with eight wickets. However, tea did not seem to help as England held Australia to a total of 160 runs in their first inning and came to bat again at the end of the day. Australia’s 160 run first inning total was Australia’s lowest test first inning since 1997 and their lowest first inning run total at the Oval since 1912.

England ended the day with 58 runs in their second inning with three wickets (15 total wickets were taken on the day) and appeared to be on their way to returning the Ashes to England by the end of the test series.

EPL: Arsenal at Chelsea

After spending Saturday night in Misterton, the plan was to drive back to London Sunday afternoon. We left the house at 11:30 am for the 3 hour drive back to London. With Nicole and British Caroline planning to spend Sunday afternoon shopping in London, I had 3 matches in London to choose between (in order of preference):

1) Arsenal at Chelsea - kickoff at 4 pm.
Commentary: I thought tickets might be difficult to find or expensive since it was the local derby, but the match was close to where we were staying in London and had a later start time.

2) Everton at Tottenham – kickoff at 3 pm.
Commentary: Tear 'em down Todd attended the Blackburn at Tottenham match a week prior (November 23) and said he bought a 37 pound ticket for 20 pounds – a much easier ticket to get than Chelsea, but not as conveniently located.

3) Bath at Harlequins (Guinness Premiership) – kickoff at 3 pm.
Commentary: With the Guinness Premiership not as prestigious as attending a Premier League match, this was my third choice. However, with tickets available at the box office, the local proximity to where we were staying and the fact I had not watched rugby on the trip, this match was a strong second choice.

We made it to the outskirts of London (12 miles to Central London) at 2 pm. With Tottenham not on route, I had already eliminated that possibility. Plus, British Mick said I should really attend the local derby - Chelsea vs. Arsenal.

Next thing I knew we were in some of the worst traffic I have ever seen on city streets. With no real alternative route, we were a prisoner to the chosen one. Realizing there was no way to make the rugby match by 3 pm, the Arsenal at Chelsea match was my only choice. We dropped Nicole and Caroline off in Central London at 3:10 pm and I was dropped off at the Victoria Train Station about 10 minutes later.

By the time I found the bathroom, an ATM machine, purchased my underground ticket and found the correct tube line to Stamford Bridge it was already 3:35 pm. It took 15 minutes to get from the Victoria tube stop to the Fulham Broadway tube stop. The match started at 4 pm. Thus, I would only have 10 minutes to find a scalper, negotiate a ticket price and enter the stadium. Still scarred from my failure to purchase a ticket at Anfield in Liverpool on February 24, 2007, I was nervous about whether I would be successful.

Obtaining Tickets
A ticket scalper was standing directly outside of the underground stop as I exited the station. I asked if he had a single and he said he wanted 200 pounds for the ticket. Knowing tickets were approximately 50 pounds, I said I would only pay 80 pounds. He continued to reduce his price – 150, 120, 100. Finally, he started arguing with his partner, but I could not understand what they were saying. They split up their pair and sold me the ticket. With such a quick price drop from the scalper and the fact he split up his pair, I had a feeling I was paying too much. I made sure the ticket looked legit – proper holograms, etc and bought the ticket.

As I walked to Stamford Bridge, I did not notice many people selling extra tickets, so I started to feel better about my purchase. I sat in my seat about 30 seconds before the match kicked off. About 10 minutes later a man from Brazil sat down next to me with the same crease in his ticket I had. I knew that was the second ticket. I asked him how much he paid. With a happy smirk, he said 40 pounds. “That’s pretty good. Don’t you think?” he asked. I told him yes. He also mentioned that he only had 40 pounds to spend and that there had been a few people selling tickets outside.

Ticket Scalping Tip: The best way to get a good price from a scalper is to only have a certain amount of money available to spend. Scalpers will want more, but if you do not have any more money, the scalper may drop their price and sell you the ticket. This worked in the Brazilians favor.

If I had arrived to the Stamford Bridge area earlier, I figured I would have been able to purchase a ticket on the secondary market for around 40 pounds (if not less), which was less than face value. I talked to some Chelsea supporters during halftime and they could not sell their extra single ticket for face value (47 pounds) outside so he ended up eating the ticket.

The Game
Arsenal won the match 2-1 after scoring a controversial first goal. Robin van Persie’s first goal was scored from an offside position but the referee did not make the call.

Stamford Bridge was a great old stadium. Although I did not see much of it, it is better than Arsenal’s new home, Emirates Stadium. At halftime, I purchased the English meal deal for the first time – a pint and a pie. Remember, fans are allowed to drink beer at Premiership matches before the game and during halftime – they just cannot bring the beers to their seats.

Post Game Thoughts
After the game, I began thinking how can a Brazilian, whose English is not very good and who is in London for 4 months learning to speak English, pay half as much as the Ultimate Fan. It all comes down to the Liverpool match I failed to find a ticket to back in February 2007. That was the only game I have ever tried to attend in which I could not find a ticket. And the irony was that tickets could be found. I was just not in the right place at the right time.

The other few games I have not bought a ticket for were because I thought ticket prices were too high. I began to realize that I have successfully bought tickets for 99.75% of the games I have tried to attend. Granted some of those games were harder to obtain tickets and more work was involved. However, I need to stop worrying about not finding a ticket. In fact, I still made it to an event after the Liverpool match – the Track Cycling World Cup in Manchester, England – it just was not the match I wanted to attend that day.

Champions League: Dynamo Kyiv at Arsenal

In the first Champions League match I have attended since 2001, Arsenal defeated Dynamo Kyiv 1-0 on a late goal by Nicklas Bendtner. Once again, I attended the match with “Hospitality Jim” who started to think I was an Arsenal jinx since Arsenal had played 177 minutes without scoring a goal with me in attendance. Instead, with a free kick from beyond the mid field line, Cesc Fabregas launched a pass to Nicklas Bendtner who put the ball in the net for the only goal of the game.

Pre and Post Game Dining
Before the match, we ate at Pinchito Tapas at 322 Featherstone Street, a Basque tapas bar in Islington. If going from the Old Street tube station to Arsenal remember to take the Northern City Line, which is part of the network rail line rather than the Northern Line. This train will go directly to Drayton Park – a short walk to Emirates Stadium.

After the match, we went to a bar around the corner from the restaurant we dined at before the Aston Villa match - 25 Canonbury Lane. However, instead of ordering beer, the “Arsenal boys” were buying bottles of champagne just as they had 10 days prior. Maybe the Ultimate Sports Wife and I will need to adopt a “champagne only” mentality before Bears games rather than drinking cheap beer.

Emirates Stadium
In my two Arsenal matches at Emirates Stadium, I have not been impressed with the Arsenal faithful. Emirates Stadium, nicknamed the Library for the supporters subdued attitude, has been relatively quiet compared to the other matches I have attended in Europe. Also, the stadium has taken on more of an NFL stadium feel, rather than the old stadium feel of other European soccer stadiums.

EPL: Aston Villa at Arsenal

The Ultimate Sports Wife and I landed at London’s Heathrow airport at 6:30 am. With a 13-hour layover before our 8 pm flight to Athens, Greece, I had already planned to attend the Arsenal and Aston Villa match at Emirates Stadium Saturday afternoon – kickoff was set for 3 pm.

Our friend, British Mick, had made all the plans for the day. He insisted on picking us up from Heathrow at 7:30 am (which was definitely a good decision) and drive us back to his place. From there we were to nap, shower and be ready to depart by 11:30 am in order to meet the “Arsenal boys” for lunch by noon.

We met Mick’s friends at the Cock Tavern – a pub directly next to the Highbury & Islington tube stop. We grabbed a drink at the pub before continuing to Gem Restaurant - a Turkish/Kurdish restaurant. Politics aside Kurdish/Turkish food should be read as Greek/Turkish food. Nicole and I laughed at the irony that we were dining at a Kurdish (read Greek) restaurant in London before flying to Athens for over a weeks visit. Nonetheless, after a few bottles of cava and wine I was ready for the match.

As we walked to Emirates Stadium, I asked one of the “Arsenal boys,” who we will call “Hospitality Jim,” how much I owed him for the ticket. He said I owed nothing and that they were corporate tickets. I was shocked and offered to buy him beers inside the stadium, which he agreed. Then, he handed me his season ticket card for entry to the stadium.

Note: The season ticket card looks and acts much like a driver’s license or credit card. Many European soccer clubs sell season ticket cards rather than individual tickets to season ticket holders. There are multiple reasons to do so:

1) It cuts down on secondary ticket market sales since the season ticket holder needs to invite a friend or walk the buyers of the ticket to the stadium themselves.
2) It must save on ticket cost since the club only needs to pay for one credit card per season ticket rather than the paper stock to create 10 (NFL), 45 (NBA and NHL), or 81 (MLB) tickets per season ticket.
3) It allows for easier transactions of tickets amongst season ticket holders. “Hospitality Jim” explained that if a friend has extra tickets and wants to sell them to you, Arsenal will transfer those tickets to the buyer minus a 10% commission.

In my personal opinion, it sounds like Arsenal wants to avoid the secondary ticket market and ensure they know who is entering the building. Arsenal’s decision to have a season ticket card has nearly eliminated the secondary ticket market.

My first thought of receiving the season ticket card was that I would need to find a paper ticket stub. I have paper tickets for nearly every event in which I have attended. For those events that do not have tickets, like a Tour de France, I try to find a proxy such as a flyer or something that might substitute. Thus, I asked a few people in the stadium if they had paper tickets. Each scoffingly laughed and said that I would be pretty lucky to find a paper ticket. Thus, I came to the conclusion that this would be my first game without having an actual ticket stub. In the absence of a ticket, I took a picture of “Hospitality Jim’s” season ticket card. My plan is to develop the picture and use that as my ticket stub.

At halftime the game was tied 0-0. I bought “Hospitality Jim” his beer as promised. The Premiership allows fans to buy and drink beer on the concourse. However, fans cannot bring beer to their seat, which kind of encourages you to chug your beer. The second half was not good for the home team. Aston Villa scored a goal early and late in the second half to win the game 2-0.

After the game, I found the Arsenal tube stop on the Piccadilly line since I could take that line directly to Heathrow without changing. The entire journey took about an hour and 20 minutes. I arrived at Heathrow at 6:30 pm and met Nicole (since she did not have a ticket for the Arsenal match). We sleepily sat waiting at the gate and boarded the plane for Athens. This was the ultimate sports layover for a trip to Europe.