Passion for sport can be just the thing to fuel interaction with locals – no matter where in the world you are.
Photo by Seeding Chaos
I went to the Football Hall of Fame on a cold Tuesday in early December. As a lifelong Green Bay Packers fan I knew my favorite team would get lots of space in the Canton, Ohio landmark.
There weren’t many other people wandering about, so the security guard let me park it on the very bench Vince Lombardi sat on during the first two Super Bowls.
Sitting on that bench, I met a fellow Packer Backer and we ended up going out for drinks and reminiscences of our teams’ best games.
The love of sport is a great way to meet friendly locals and like-minded travelers. A conversation about the game can lead to more personal revelations and evolve into a mutual friendship.
Here are 6 strategies for using sports to make new friends.
1. Go For Live Action
Whether it’s a sport you’ve followed your whole life or something totally new, like the perplexing world of cricket, go see a live game.
Most towns of any size will have some sort of athletic contest going on. (Hint: Cheer for the home team).
2. Find A Sports Bar
A good second best involves parking yourself in a pub or sports bar. This may be the only option if something on a worldwide scale is going on, like the Rugby or Soccer World Cups.
Sit alone at the bar. Watch with intention. You’ll quickly be adopted by curious fans at the corner table.
3. Dress The Part
Buy a team jersey or t-shirt. Not only will you be recognized as a sincere supporter, you’ll have a cool souvenir to bring back home.
4. Knowledge Is Power
Study the sports pages. Watch the broadcasters on television. If you don’t know the basics of whatever sport you’ve selected, learn them – perhaps with an assist from a friendly local.
Be able to recognize marquee players, win-loss records, and team rivalries. I love learning new things, and I love getting the insider’s perspective.
Once you’ve done your homework, you’ll have multiple topics to banter about with that stranger sitting next to you.
5. Don’t Be Shy
Be subtly voyeuristic. A polite interjection into a sports discussion identifies you as someone who pays attention. Compliments about your grasp of the game and free adult beverages are certain to follow.
6. Don’t Skip The Post-Game
Go to any post-game functions, for either celebration or commiseration. Now is the time to segue into topics and connections of a more personal nature.
Sports With Benefits
The tips I’ve laid out work for meeting locals, but can also be a great way to spark a romantic fling if that’s what you’re looking for.
My natural tomboy affinities have bagged me some great seats and quality dates starting, but not necessarily ending, at a sports venue. If competition leads to chemistry and your new friend is a local, you’ll get the inside skinny on their home town and free accommodation.
If you are both wandering outside your home ranges, who knows, y’all may just end up planning an encore meet-up in South Africa to watch the World Cup in 2010.
What are your tips for meeting locals through sports? Share your advice in the comments!
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14 Comments... join the discussion!
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Yeah…so will I. But I’m glad he hung up the cleats while he was almost at the top of his game. Damn that interception in OT still stings a bit.
Actually Jacob…almost every city I’ve lived in or visted has a Packer bar. One of the best is on Venice Beach and my boyfriend at the time couldn’t believe how many free drinks we got because I was wearing my 1966 throwback jersey.
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Did you hear Favre just signed with the Vikings? Yikes!
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No he didn’t. You had me scared for a minute
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Great article Chrysser. In my own (biased?! nah!) opinion, this rings loudest in the rugby community. No matter where on earth you find yourself, if you happen upon a rugby club and just utter the words – “i love rugby too”, you’re instantly adopted into their fold.
No questions asked.
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So true, Lola!
Biased? Sure. But there’s something really special about the rugby community worldwide, partly because it’s kind of a niche sport and partly because it’s such a social sport, I think!
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Definitely agree on #3. I was in Seoul during World Cup 2002 (real football!) and with S Korea getting to the semis it was excitement plus … I bought the local T-shirt and bandana and made a whole lot of friends.
BTW, cricket’s not so perplexing once you get used to it …. just long. It’s a good sport to watch with a few beers.
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Lola and I have had conversations on the rugby angle and how connecting to it can make travel so much fun. Personal memories of late involving the Springboks vs. All Blacks in Pretoria before the Boks became World Champs. Met some very fun folks at the game, after the game in the beer garden, after the game in a nightclub in Johannesburg…ya’ll get the idea
And on the “real” football note…was abroad during the World Cup in 2006. If I’d been in the States I’d have had a hard time watching any of it. Instead I sat with Germans. Swedes, British. French, Japanese and South Africans in various parts of sub-Saharan Africa and had a blast tracking the games no matter what backpackers, pub or personal home a match was on television. Still don’t know about the cricket thing though. Must follow my own advice and study.
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hey-great to see all of your comments.. Sounds like you already have a solid core for your M-Team- a ball game sounds like a super way to kick off the opening of a long delayed spring- pick a local team and we will come and help you cheer for your crew, In the course of a bit of rah rah. who know s when something or some one
intwresting might show up!!Check out our new info site on ytb. I think you will like it
Good luck for a great tan – beaver↵ -
One of the best experiences I had out in Thailand was spending Easter Sunday sitting at a tiny roadside bar where the owner and his friends had set up a small table top BBQ (Which I don’t know the correct name for!) – lugged a huge TV outside for us all to watch the Manchester United vs Liverpool match on, and we spent the evening hanging out, drinking beer, cooking and eating BBQ, and generally having great banter with these guys.
I was very nervous about going at first, I’m not a football fan myself but the gang I was on holiday with had both Manchester and Liverpool fans, so chatting to the locals all the week prior lead to the invitation for us all but I do enjoy Singha and generally hanging out with friends and of course ended up having a fantastic time.
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So proud of ESPN…they had thorough coverage of the FAA Final on Sports Center today. Manchester United are the European Football Champions. Did anyone watch the match live? Very exciting. Wonder if Beckham regrets his move to the States…..
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“Wonder if Beckham regrets his move to the States…”
Doubt it. I think he moved because he knew he’d no longer be front and center anywhere in Europe, and I’m guessing he’d rather be the big guy of Galaxy than a smaller part (savvy veteran who plays a focused role, to be polite – past his prime and still hanging around for his marketing clout, to be less so) of a winning European team.
Cricket’s not as tricky as people make it out to be. I think its adherents kind of enjoy its reputation as this incomprehensible game, but truth is (and I know I’m going to offend a heap of cricket fans here) there are enough parallels to baseball that it’s easy enough to grasp the basics…
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How about Euro 2008? ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN Classic have been covering it. I’ve watched probably half of the games so far.
Who knows maybe ESPN will eventually start showing more games.
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Agreed! Rugby is a worldwide community and that's why I love it!
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