FC Zurich

This was a great entry to European football. Sunday matched Basel (#1) vs. Zurich (#3) here in town. If you haven't been to a football match there isn't much like it compared to other sporting events. From the moment you leave your apartment on gameday in Zurich you'll see a sea of blue and white (the home team's colors); most often you'll come across scarves sporting these team logos and colors. The streets, trams and trains all turn into a massive tailgate with fans taking full advantage of no open container laws over here.

As Basel isn't too far away it looked like they were going to travel well. Streams of Basel fans in red and blue were parading through the streets of Zurich in route to the stadium. You definitely got the sense that there was a bit of a rivalry between the two teams. After asking about it, there were some riots/field chargings (in 2006) after a contraversial goal in the 93rd minute. Security has been increased at these games since, which was witnessed in full force (riot gear police and security on the roof). There were 4 main sections in the stadium (A-D), but the areas are fenced off to keep different sections of fans corralled. At one goal the diehard FC Zurich fans packed the stands, by standing on top of their seats, chanting and waving flags the whole game. On the far end, the Basel fans barely put a dent in their seat allocation. We learned later that Basel claims Zurich prices are too high, so they refuse to pay? These sections are literally fenced off and it looks a large zoo exhibit.

The Zurich fans gave a great taste for what a football match is all about. They filled their section with smoke upon the smart of the game and seemed to chant non-stop for 90+ minutes. Very impressive. A penalty kick in extended time let Zurich tie the game which made for a really dramatic finish. An afternoon like that makes it easy to see how football is so popular over here.