USA - Cuba: RFK Stadium, Washington DC

The first ever New Jersey Brigade sponsored bus trip took place in October 2008 as the crew from New Jersey and New York invaded the nation's capitol to support the United States in its World Cup Qualifying match against Cuba.

We took off from New Jersey around noon for the 730 match, a packed bus it was. Lots of beer and other fun beverages in tow. As with any bus trip, there is lots of chanting, movie watching, and drunken folks. The usual contenders were on top form.



We arrived at RFK Stadium around 3-4 PM. Our favorite Virginia native met us in the lot with an entire car filled with beer. Most excellent way to continue the day.

During the tailgate, we were greeted by a surprise guest. None other than Nashville host... Ben aka Maaaaaan 2.0. Ben (pictured in the red jersey below) drove all the way up from Tennessee for the match. Another dedicated US fan down for the cause of supporting his country to the fullest.





A Chef Leon sponsored tailgate followed and about an hour from game time we entered RFK. A solid atmosphere. Smoke bombs even made an appearance that night, much to the chagrin of the local security team.


The United States played a terrific game highlighted by a goal from Jozy "King of New York and Jersey" Altidore and the international debut of Jose Torres. NKB Leader and all around USA Fanatico, Kirwan, approves of this performance.

The United States 6-1 victory marked their sixth consecutive victory in World Cup Qualifying and clinched their spot into the final round of qualification.

Crowd was lively and properly cheered on the boys. After the game, Freddy Adu came around signing autographs for all in attendance.

A long day of partying, singing, and seeing the US dismantle Cuba, it was that time to take the bus back home. The boys were tired as evidenced below.

My Lack of Postings - USA - Trinidad in Chicago (September)

I'll be the first to admit, I am lazy. Make that... very lazy sometimes. I had taken a hiatus from updating this blog. Well, it's time to get back into the fold.

Where did I leave off. Oh yeah, USA - Trinidad in Chicago.

After being in Chicago from Saturday through Tuesday doing all sorts of shenanigans (see prior posts), it was finally gameday.

As is the case with many of our NY/NJ crew road trips, Chef Leon was gracious enough to spearhead a tailgate effort. Even with a shoddy grill (thanks Home Depot for selling us 1/2 a grill), the Chef was willing to put together a wide range of tailgate items. My memory is fuzzy, but it was quite an effort. After preparing everything the morning/afternoon of the match, guests arrived at ESC House - Chicago style: Chris from North Carolina and Chris from NYC.

With parking lots not opening until 4 PM, we had plenty of time to stop for beer on the way to the stadium. Arriving at 430 (amazing considering the road traffic around Chicago) or thereabouts, we met up with Kirwan, Goalkeeps Greg, and Pastor Jeff in the lot and began the usual festivities: eating, drinking, talking soccer, and shenanigans.

Chef Leon (wearing USA Hat) talking to fellow tailgaters at Toyota Park in Bridgeview.

One of the regular shenanigans is our "Human Google Map." Everyone lines up around by location of their hometown and we take a picture. Started in Chicago during this trip, it is a recurring theme which you will see in future posts. Anyway, here's our Chicago tailgate map:

Fina (Long Island on the left, Flip in the middle from Brooklyn, Leon/Chris on the right from Manhattan, and Chris all the way down from North Carolina in the back. Picture taken from the north.

Eventually, Rishi (pictured below) and his party bus crew showed up to add to our numbers and to our party atmosphere. Finally entered the stadium around a half hour before kickoff. Drum in tow, even with small numbers we were able to lead most of the section in song.

Rishi in the white jersey/USA bandanna in the midst of the USA section at Toyota Park.

The USA was dominant in this game winning by the final score of 3-1. Two things that stood out: the 15 minute Ohhh USA to end the game. Doing one chant for that long kept the energy going to end the match making it a very good atmosphere for that period of time. One of those goose bump kind of moments.

The second item, related to the first, is that Chef Leon was banging the drum so hard with the stick that the stick broke in half at the final whistle. I have no picture evidence to support this, but I can assure you it happened.

USA Supporters Section in Chicago

After the game, a bizzaro moment occurred. Some girl walked up to us in the parking area asking for directions, meanwhile she was bleeding badly from her one hand. When one our guys commented that she was bleeding, she put her hand behind her back and continued conversing. When offered a towel, she proceeded to walk away.

Quickly, Stadium Security forced us to leave the stadium area. They were a real pain to deal with and for those who have been to Bridgeview I'd like to know if security has forced you to leave the parking area within an hour of a game ending.

We arrived back at the house, where some of us chose to hit up a post game destination. Completely blanking on the name of the bar, but we partied with the NJB Crew reminiscing of the game and discussing future matches (including August 2009's USA-Mexico game in Mexico City which I will be attending). We ordered some local pizza. I never had Chicago pizza before, so this was a treat. Huge pie cut into little squares. Excellent and recommended.

Afterwards, we took a taxi back to the ESC House. It was around 130 AM at the time and most of the guys went to sleep as we had a 6 AM flight home.

A few friends we had met in Chicago were interested in hanging out one last time, so one other guy and myself decided to pull it together and go out one last time in Chicago with them. As the locals know, most bars close at 2 AM in Chicago. However, there are a few places open until 4 AM.

Needless to say, by the time we left the house we had to hit a 4 AM joint. So, we get to one about 5 blocks away. A couple local brews in and some reminiscing about good times in the Windy City it was close to 330 AM. We walked back to the house and said our goodbyes.

As I had to be awake by 415, I had about a 30 minute window to get some shut eye. As we had a full house that night, there was little space in the house. I just laid down on the patio and closed my eyes. Needless to say, that was the greatest return flight ever from a trip. I remember about 5 minutes of it.

All in all, great trip. It wasn't long until the next adventure: Washington DC for USA-Cuba which I will recap in my next post.

P.S. - The month long ride that was the 2008 Red Bulls Playoff Run.

Viejo Chicago: Day One

It was a sunny Saturday in Chicago, when ESC NYC and ESC NJ Fistpump stamped its tickets to the Second City.

Upon arriving, Fina, Flip, the Chef, and myself headed from O'Hare to our destination, Wrigleyville, the land of Bratwursts, blondes, und traffic. It didn't take us long to reunite our rivalry with El Tri as we flashed our favorite score in front of a stand selling Mexico flags in Viejo Chicago.

After picking up food, drinking supplies (yes, there was a jager purchase), and a poor Home Depot purchase, we drove back to the airport to pick up the Meow Pump. At the point we dropped our bags at the haus and headed out towards the game. A stop was made at the Omni Hotel to pickup local expert and historian El Polaco. Several minutes of weekend gridlock rush hour traffic later, we finally got on the highway headed for Bridgeview, home of the Fire.

For those who have never been to Bridgeview, I wouldn't call it a Cosmopolitan paradise. Upon entrance, I thought I was at a county fair or rewatching a scene of the James Vanderbeek masterpiece, "Varsity Blues" with the massive gravel lots. *Cue Foo Fighters*

The stadium itself is a nice facility. Roof over the sideline seats added a nice touch. The brick facade in front also makes it unique in the American soccer landscape. We were situated in Section 134 located in one of the corner sections in the stadium. We were able to stand in the first row and were able to chant at will, but had to keep it New England clean. The 12 of us who were there sang throughout the entire match doing the usual cast of songs: We Love You, Forza Metro, Soy del Metro, and Dale Me. Thanks to those back east for the complimentary messages during the game, much appreciated. For those that didn't see the match, RBNY lost a tough 1-0 game to Chicago. A bad clearance by Diego Jimenez allowed Stephen "They call him IT" King to put away an easy chance to give the hosts the victory. Section 8 does some nice things with the flags, but overall they did not play a huge role in creating a loud atmosphere at Toyota Park. As a comparison, I'd suggest that the DC Supporter Groups are visibly louder than those in Chicago.

Highlight of the game was a token appearance by everybody's favorite reservist David Roth. Youtube's got it on tape. (Thanks Tilt.)


After the game, the group along with Pinto and the Reichert sisters ventured off to The Globe Bar to watch a replay of the USA-Cuba match. Mr. GPS told us it was a 5-10 minute walk from Aarhus (that's house for those not familiar with Denmark). Over half an hour later, we arrived at The Globe.

Not a bad bar. It reminded me a bit of Nevada Smith's, but less of a college crowd. It was pretty full when we arrived shortly after midnight. The match was historic as the US entered Havana and left with a 1-0 victory. Props to the small contingent of fellow Americans who found a way into Cuba and sang for the country. Hopefully, we will see you in Chicago.

Once we hit the 80th minute, the party truly began as the first shots of Tequila made their way to the ESC Boys. Several beers, shots, and songs later, we closed out the bar. Luckily, there was a quality Mexican joint two blocks down the road that allowed us to refuel with amazing burritos. There's not much better than a 3 AM burrito. The bars had closed up for the night and we finally headed back to Wrigleyville to call it night.

Some other notes of the trip so far:

• On Sunday, we left from Chicago to Munich and we only traveled 10 blocks. No customs either.
• The ultra zoom in of Google maps.
• Local celebrity and sensation 10 Cent.
  
• Ice Diving
• Three Hour Song and German Dance
• Acknowledgement of the Hat
• Miller Campus
• German Fistpump
• Holler House
  
• Cerverceros
• Brew Crew

More updates later. Pictures and videos when I return to Jersey. Until then, I leave with you this 10 Cent inspired moment.

A Rocky Mountain High

Throughout the past few years, I have made some good friends through soccer. Most of them are based locally in New Jersey or New York, but some of them are live in other parts of the country such as Boston and Kansas City.

Recently, one of my buddies in the ESC switched jobs and moved out to Denver. He's spoken highly of the Mile High city and is itching for me to come out and visit. If I make the venture out west, I would have to make a pit stop at the Rapids new digs -Dick's Sporting Goods Park (plenty of jokes to be made here).

Unfortunately, the Red Bulls play Colorado on July 4th weekend. A perfect time to go to Colorado, but the stadium is already sold out. This is still a great opportunity to go, but who wants to scalp tickets to go to a MLS match?

I've never been out to Colorado before, so a western style Independence Day sounds like a good thing to me.

If I wait a couple more months, it will already be snowing there. And who wants to go on a mini vacation to a snow infested venue. Especially, if you do not ski or snowboard. Exactly.

The point I'm trying to make is that through the game of soccer one has the opportunity to make friends all around the globe. In my time writing for American Soccer Daily and Yanks Abroad, I've now got soccer buddies in Europe and some awesome places to crash if I ever feel so inclined. The same can be said for different places around MLS. It's just a really awesome way to travel if you can go on a short vacation, pick up a game, drink some beers, and talk footy.

If you make yourself available, talk to fans from different areas; relationships and great friends are there to be made.

A New Friend from Not So Far Away

Nashville is now less than two weeks away and things are progressing well.

The other day I received a message on BigSoccer from a fellow US and RBNY fan also headed down to Nashville. The difference is these folks have the patience and time to do it right and take a RV to the Music City.

They have volunteered to provide a tailgate for us on Sunday for the final game in Nashville.

It's always awesome when fellow fans take the initiative and arrange things for their fellow supporters.

If anyone else is heading down to Nashville, hit me up with an email. Hopefully, we can get a quality pregame party going for the Thursday game.

A Busy Month Ahead

I'm starting to get excited for my second soccer trip of the year (I was in Baltimore for the MLS Draft with my fellow members of the Empire Supporters Club).

The plans have been made:

Time requested off the job.... check.
Airplane ticket purchased .... check.
Hotel booked .... check.
Tickets in hand .... check.

I've never been to the land of country music, southern bbq, and a good ole' southern good time. Should be an excellent trip capped by watching Jozy and the gang qualify for Beijing.

But that's not all.

The qualification process begins Tuesday, March 11 for the boys in Tampa. A three game, four team group with the top 2 teams making it to Nashville. With the amount of talent on the US roster, this should not be a problem.

A viewing for the US Olympic teams game on March 15 should happen. Haven't had a bar viewing since US/Mexico back in February. At that game, we had over 100 people fill a room at Stout in midtown Manhattan to see Baby Primetown score his first goal for the senior national team.

Less than a week later, the Nashville trip will arrive where all sorts of crazy adventures will take place.

On March 29, perhaps the greatest club rivalry in the world will occur when Celtic play Rangers. I will be watching this Old Firm match for the first time at the Scots American Club in Kearny, New Jersey. The Scots Club is a landmark in the area having hosted the likes of Sean Connery, Sir Alex Ferguson, and Kearny's own John Harkes. I recently became a member of this historic club and look forward to catching this game with the club's very own Rangers Supporters Group.

Later that day, the 2008 MLS Season kicks off and I will stay in Kearny for the ESC's Kickoff Opening Event which will take place at Kearny's Irish American Club.

It's early in the year, but winter is over and soccer is finally here.

Introduction to Primetown

As the 2010 Worlc Cup cycle draws quickly upon us, I have come to the realization that I need to see as many games as possible. As I was finishing up high school during the 2002 edition and was interviewing for jobs during the 2006 edition, I was unable to either of the quadrenial events. This time around I plan to attend to as much of the qualifying process as possible and the games in South Africa.

I am addicted to this game as many of you are and am itching to see the qualification process begin.

To give a little background, my first ever US game I attended was the US Women's extra time semifinal victory over Norway in the 1996 Olympic Games in Athens, Georgia. After that I took a 9 year hiatus from US games.

In 2005, I joined Sam's Army for the semifinal and final round of the Gold Cup Finals at Giants Stadium. Since that point, I have become a member of Sam's Army as well as a member of New York's Empire Supporters Club.

This blog will be a running diary of musings and more importantly the travels of following the US and the New York Red Bulls.

In a month's time I will be embarking to Nashville for Olympic qualifying.

My goals for the Nashville trip:

1. Chant the US to qualification
2. Party with as many locals as possible
3. Experience honky tonk culture
4. Throw Jozy a scarf after he scores a brace on Mexico (pending they meet in the tournament).

In the meantime, I will reflect on some of the recent trips I have been on and explain the meaning of "Primetown."