FThey were up four hours before the start of the first game of the Soccer Champions Tour between real Madrid and the AC Milanand the huge parking lot that surrounds the Rose Bowl Stadium It was starting to fill up with cars. A tradition to enjoy soccer that takes a unique preparation to set up your own beach bars equipped with great detail. Countless barbecues, games to pass the time, music of different styles and refrigerators to cool off from the stifling heat of Pasadena. In addition, the organization had set up a ‘Fanfest’ at the height of a match Champions League than a preseason friendly. And while the hot dogs were flying, a server realized that he was experiencing the complete pack of ‘soccer‘, a religion that no one affords to miss.
street party in venice beach
An experience that reached its highest point when several journalists who covered the tour of the real Madrid we decided to go to venice beach to play a game of street basketball against local artists. Bought the ball and immersed in a warm-up to degrease the joints, they challenged us to a 3 against 3 (we didn’t know how to say no) that left a good feeling despite facing the street version of Allen Iverson. Or that was the feeling I lived from within. I fake, another fake, step-back and shot… and they are choff. Seeing it seemed easy, but carrying it out under the pressure of a special stage was different.
Why play basketball in ‘Venice Beach Courts’ in Los Angeles at one of the first recommendations that they made me when I told that I was going to cover the tour. Located on a paradise Californian beach, its courts attract talent from all over the country but surely it is better known for being the main setting of the film ‘Whites don’t know how to put it in’.
bale’s ghost
Going back to the preseason, the most curious story that the game gave me was a interview for an American media. Interested in Jude Bellingham, They asked me to do an X-ray to analyze the first days of the English midfielder at Real Madrid.. The new white signing monopolizes all the press and fans during the tour on Californian soil.
Is there any fear in Madrid that Bellingham is a similar case to Bale?
But the interesting thing would come with the last question. “Is there any fear in Madrid that Bellingham is a case similar to Bale’s?”. At first it surprised me… and I tried to respond with an approach that would quickly clarify me. His intention was not to bring out the football side, but to investigate if he met the classic profile of a British player who finds it difficult to learn the language and adapt to Spanish culture. At that moment my answer was quick and concise: Bellingham, the opposite face of Bale. The English footballer has been here for a couple of weeks and has already fully integrated into his new team. His close and joking personality has fit perfectly in a wardrobe that does not stop playing jokes. “I think it is important to know and soak up a new culture”Jude assured shortly after landing in Madrid to make it clear that his story is going to be different.
