Growing up I’ve always had an affinity for fútbol, or should I say soccer. So, when it came to me being in Portugal for the world cup, I was very excited. In the past, I had traveled to see my favorite team, Barcelona, play in Spain, but this time it seemed as if it was going to be different. At first, I was kind of upset that the only time the games would be played in the United States, I would not be there :((. That very quickly changed when I went to fan stage in Portugal for the very first time.

Fan stage became one of those places that just seemed so natural to be at for games. I first went for Portugal but also started going for the United States soon after. Although it was just a huge group of people staring at a screen, it was just so exciting to be a part of this community. Seeing the amount of love and support Portuguese people have for their international team was amazing.

I feel like a big part of my study abroad experience will be the memories I made at these world cup games. Unfortunately, the hype did die down a little when Portugal was knocked out of the games :(, but hey they did try their very hardest. I hope to continue to go to the games and have as much fun as I have been having!!