SC Freiburg Football Club

 One of the most memorable experiences of my semester in Freiburg came in the last few weeks. I decided to go watch Freiburg's soccer club, SC Freiburg, play a Europa League game. It was my first time watching live soccer, so it was a surreal experience. As a tennis player, I have watched many tennis matches before, but their atmosphere is the complete opposite of soccer. In tennis, spectators are expected to remain silent and seated during points, and to be respectful and responsible. In soccer on the other hand, all hell breaks loose! Freiburg fans were shouting and chanting all around the stadium and everyone was loud, rowdy and crazy. And I loved it! It seemed more like a party than a soccer game. Everyone was there to have a good time, and at many points I found myself paying more attention to the chanting fans than the game itself! My favorite part of the experience was the SC Freiburg song, which was played at the beginning and at the end of the game. That song has now become our favorite song over here! Although we don't understand most of it, we now remember the chorus really well:

"SC Freiburg vor - immer wieder vor. SC Freiburg vor - wir stürmen jedes Tor." It means: "SC Freiburg - again and again. SC Freiburg - we storm every goal."

To top it off, SC Freiburg won 5-0 so everyone was happy and excited. 


While Americans are also very passionate about their sports teams, sports like football, basketball and baseball are more popular than soccer and they each often have different fans. In Europe, basically everyone watches soccer, so it unites everyone. In fact, when Freiburg played the English team West Ham, a lot of British people came to the small city of Freiburg to watch the game. It is very uncommon for American sports to draw international tourists. 

Watching SC Freiburg's game showed me how big a part of German culture soccer really is. It was the experience of a lifetime to be a part of a soccer game's electric atmosphere. However, most importantly, I felt so much more connected to the city of Freiburg. I felt like a true Freiburger and realized how much I have come to love the city in such a short time. And that is the beauty of sport.








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