Day 11 (September 20): Saprissa vs. Liga Daeportiva Alajuelense

     Being soccer deprived for over ten days was very hard on Amber and I, since we did not consider bringing a ball to play with on our trip to Costa Rica. Our only option was to go to a traditional Costa Rican soccer game, or a 'fútbol' game as the Costa Ricans say it. Lucky for us, one of the most intense rivalries in soccer was being played during our visit, Saprissa verses Liga Daeportiva Alajuelense.

                 We got to the Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá stadium with plenty of time to walk around and get dinner before the 5:00 PM game. However, finding seats was our problem. The whole stadium was filled with people and we had to struggle to get through the crowd. The Saprissa's were the home team, so of course we pulled for them; however, none of us really cared who won. Saprissa's number ten was by far their best player, Esadio Ricado. Since Amber was number ten on her club soccer team, she decided to buy one of his jerseys to take back and wear in the United States. By halftime, the game was tied three to three (both goals scored for Saprissa by Ricado). I have never seen so much passion for a soccer match in my life! To add to the massive amount of people there, all the crazy fans were jumping and yelling constantly. Vlad said that attending a Costa Rican 'fútbol' game reminded him of attending an American football game. As the last three minutes of the game were approaching, number two on the Saprissa team took the ball from a Liga player and scored on a break-away to win the entire game! I was upset, because I missed the whole play; I went to the bathroom. As soon as the final whistle blew, the crazy Saprissa fans screamed, rushed onto the field, and began to run towards the players. We, however, took this time to our advantage and left immediately to avoid heavy traffic.

 

-Hannah