1. It's called football here, which I guess based on the action of the game makes more sense than American football. In any case, it's still soccer to me ;).
2. You must kick the ball into the goal to score.
3. My husband used to play the game.
Yep. THAT'S. All.I.Knew. Oh, I also forgot one other thing I knew about soccer: it's a religion here in London.
So because of that, going to a game was on our list of must-dos-while-living-abroad. That and we live near two major stadiums apparently: Craven Cottage {which, ironically enough is NOT a cottage and while we're at it, nope, in case you were wondering, cravens are not birds} and Stamford Bridge {which, much to my dismay, isn't a bridge}.
Since Chelsea tickets are hard to come by, we opted for a Fulham game at Craven Cottage. After attending the game, here is what I now know about soccer in England:
1. The game is fast with no interruptions. I can get used to the pace of the game!
2. It's a low scoring game with very little action.
3. The soccer teams are named after cities or regions {Fulham, Queen City, Chelsea, Arsenal} rather than animals or objects {Cubs, Bears, Black Hawks} and thus have no mascots.
4. And because of #3, soccer is a no frills game with no halftime show. ALTHOUGH {this brings me to #5...}
5. Because Fulham is owned the same guy who owns the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Jags game was played the day after the Fulham soccer game we attended, the NFL cheerleaders performed a halftime show at the soccer game {best part of the game, if you ask me!}.
6. However, because this is not the norm, the crowd seemed extremely confused.
7. The English are ladies in the street but freaks at the game. Their inner wild child comes out during the games and they come up with the most inappropriate + unsportsman-like {albeit entertaining + hilarious} cheers {i.e. "You're f-ing s--t" chanted + sung, over + over again}.
8. And because they are known to get rambunctious, or even violent at the games, the home fans + away fans are not allowed to sit in the same section or even enter the same door. The away fans have their own section with guards surrounding the area in case something happens.
9. Drinking is not allowed in the stands. I'm guessing this also has something to do with the past violent acts that have happened at the games.
When looking back through my list, I guess it's apparent that I still don't know much about the actual sport. But there is one thing I do know about soccer now: the games {maybe not the sport itself} are a fun activity to do with good friends on an English "autumn" afternoon, much like Saturday college football days or NFL Sunday. And it's always nice to have a small reminder of home {insert small, red heart}.