Clash of the Yellow Butts: A Super Bowl experience in Scotland

First of all let me say that it is cold and rainy today, oh and I must not forget that it is windy too: really lovely weather. I shouldn't worry, it will probably be sunny this afternoon; crazy Scottish weather.

This weekend was filled with more sporting events than I have had in my life in quite some time. If any of you are avid rugby fans, you should be aware of the fact that there is a tournament currently taking place. This tournament is the 6 Nations. Now which six nations are they? Well there is England, France, Scotland, Wales, Italy, and Ireland. Apparently these are the big rugby powerhouses of Europe. So this tournament began over the weekend and I was fortunate to watch (on television of course) the Scotland-France game on Saturday. Now, despite the fact that I briefly supported the Guilford team my freshman year and the fact that my brother is supposedly a member of the Iowa State Rugby Club, I really have no idea what is going on in the game. All I know is that there are a ton of players on the field, they cannot pass the ball forward, and they run into each other a lot and a player having multiple missing teeth is not unusual. I felt very much out of my element as I stood (there were no more seats because it was so packed full of avid rugby fans) in Liar, which is the sports bar-like establishment in the student union. But then it made me feel better that I was watching with Minna and Christina who also had no idea what was going on.

Anyway, after 80 minutes of brutal pushing, throwing, kicking, and running, Scotland sadly lost to France. I'm not sure how the tournament really works, but apparently Scotland gets to keep playing, it isn't elimination style. So, I'm sure I will get to watch more rugby matches throughout the course of this tournament.

Now, unlike the mystery of the 6 Nations rugby tournament, a very well-known (to Americans at least) sporting event occurred on Sunday. Well, actually it barely took place on Sunday, but more realistically in the wee hours of this (Monday) morning. Once again I found myself in Liar surrounded by avid sports fans. Although this time the tables had turned. As clueless as I had been the previous day with rugby, I was an all out genius on the rules of football. Anyone who knows me should be getting a big laugh at this, because in all honesty I could care less about football, and sometimes I have no idea what is going on. Maybe it was the sheer fact that my American friends who were watching the game and I had any clue at all what was occurring was what made me feel so smart and into the game.

I decided to cheer for Green Bay, even though I really did not care who won let alone who was playing, for no reason other than I can recall watching, or trying to stay awake to watch, the Super Bowl when I was little with my family and wearing a cheese-head because my brother was a fan. So, there I was, wearing my green cardigan, sitting on a stool with Lauren (my fellow American) paying close attention to the game and cheering at all the important parts.

Now, I'm sure most of you are wondering something very important that I must address: the commercials. Are they the same? Did I get to see countless beer and car commercials? Did I laugh hysterically at the ridiculous amounts of money being spent on such silly advertisements? The answer: no. They do not show American commercials during the Super Bowl in Scotland. Devastating, I know. However, there were two commercials, or adverts as they are referred to on this side of the pond, that stick out in my mind. The first happened to be the very first commercial of the game. I was preparing myself for the hilarity, but instead I got....A Cricket World Cup advert. Really? Cricket, during the Super Bowl? Odd, I know. The second that was so disappointing was for some soccer (or proper football) tournament that is taking place in the near future. Needless to say, I watched a few of the commercials online this morning before class, and I will probably watch more later in the day.

Sadly, I did not stay for the end of the game. Once it hit 2:00 in the morning, the lure of my bed overcame my desire to watch a game that I really did not care to see who won. Keep in mind that when Lauren and I vacated Liar at 2:00, it was still in the third quarter. This morning, I did look up to see who won, and much to my not caring, I was pleased to see that the Packers were victorious. I realize that as I'm writing this, one reason I was rooting for the Packers was because Christina (who is an AVID football fan) was cheering on the Steelers and she can get quite intense, so I decided to cheer for the opposition. Also, I had to root for the midwest :-)

Anyway, watching the Super Bowl, which is so very American, in a country where a good 75% of the population could care less and does not know the rules, was quite the experience. In regards to the commercials, I decided to think of it this way: I could either be in Scotland missing out on the hilarious commercials during the game and watch them online or I could be in North Carolina watching the commercials during the game. Somehow I think the choice is rather obvious, at least to me.

I hope everyone is having fun enjoying their left-over game snacks and either celebrating, or mourning, the outcome of the game!

Cheers!