¡Mucho Betis!

When we asked Amy what she wanted to do in Seville, she suggested a fútbol game, and we were happy to comply. Steve managed to get tickets for the only home game taking place during her visit - a Sunday evening game for La Liga team Real Betis Balompié (aka Betis). It would be our first professional soccer game since we lived in Buenos Aires, waaaay back in 2007.

It was chilly and rainy, so we layered up and took an Uber to Benito Villamarin stadium, hoping for the best. We were relieved to find that our seats were beneath the upper stand, meaning we would stay dry! And we were near the South Goal, with a great view of the section filled with the most hard-core Betis fans. Oblivious to the rain, they waved large green and white flags and sang songs non-stop before and during most of the game. So much fun!

Speaking of songs, when the players came out onto the field, the entire stadium stood and sang the Betis anthem, a cappella and in unison, holding their green and white scarves high. It was very powerful, and we wished that games back home started this way.

Source: http:lyricstranslate.com

The overhang that kept us out of the rain, also prevented us from seeing the scoreboard, which didn’t really matter because there wasn’t any scoring going on. There was a great deal of running and passing, but not many goal attempts. Still, we enjoyed watching the fans sing and chant, and the players do belly slides on the wet grass and play up their “injuries.” One overly dramatic La Palmas player lay on his back in apparent pain and pounded the ground for several minutes, completely ignored, before limping off the field. To everyone’s great joy, Betis won 1-0, and that one goal was beautiful. It was the team’s fourth straight win. Mucho Betis (moo-show betty)!