Like much of Africa, football (aka soccer) is huge. The second night we were here, the kids each got Black Stars (Ghana national soccer team) jerseys. Today, the kids and I went to a Black Stars game vs. Sudan. It was an early qualifier for the 2010 World Cup. I have to admit, if a similar game had been in Seattle, I probably wouldn't have attended, but this seemed like too good a "cultural experience" to pass up. The VIP tickets were sold out, so we got 4cedi (about $2.50) cheap seats. We were in row Q (the stadium goes up to Z) and had a birds' eye view. The evening was warm & slightly breezy - perfect! We quickly learned that the seat # on your ticket doesn't have anything to do with where you sit. We crammed into a row & waited for kick-off. We had a GREAT time. I must say that Ghanaians are probably the most "civil" football fans on the planet. I was fully prepared for pandemonium & even wrote my cell phone # in permanent pen on the kids' bodies in case we got separated! However, people were enthusiastic, but polite & Ghanaian spirit was huge.
Ghana won 2-0 against Sudan. Someone mentioned to us that because of Darfur, Sudan needs to hope of winning, but we still had to cheer on Ghana. It felt amazing to be in a stadium with thousands of Ghanaians, cheering on our new little country & seeing a "real" football match.
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