Hello!

My name is Sonia and i am 19 years old. I have something amazing to talk about today, but first I better start with a short description of me. Well, as I just said, I`m 19 years old and I just moved out here, in London this month. As you also may know, I`m an exchange student from Norway, so this whole experience in England and at my new school is just mind blowing!  

Today, I and my friends went to a football match between two very famous British football teams. I don’t think I have ever had so much fun here in London than I had today. It was seriously an amazing experience. People there were crazy, cheering for their favourite teams, screaming and yelling at the players and singing different songs.

When the match was finished, half of all the people that was there started to celebrate for their team, while the other half looked so disappointed and not wanting to accept that their favourite team lost the match. Some even let their disappointment and anger over their behaviour around other people. The police had to come and make sure everyone got out safely.

All this reminded me of something I had been working with for a few years ago. I don’t know why, but being at this football match and seeing so many football fans going crazy made me think of a poem that I worked with in 11^th grade. I think the name of the poem was Hooliganism, which actually described the behaviour of street gangs in London back in the 1890s. Now, the word hooligan is described as a violent young troublemaker often associated with sports fans, particularly football supporters. The poem was about ten little football fans that disappeared one by one after doing something risky. They all did different things like making rude signs and curse at a policeman, stirring up some hate and get bottled or booing the other team and get outnumbered by the fans.

Okay, this poem might be an overreaction to the match I was at today. The fans didn’t react as stupid as the ten little football fans, but it was pretty intense there, so no wonder I started thinking about this poem.

Today I really felt the excitement and thrill in every single person at the match, and now I understand how much this sport means for them. It is a very important sport in England and for the British people. It is their happiest day when their favourite team wins, and if the team loose, we never know how far they can go with their actions.

Anyways, I had a great time today, and I recommend everyone to do this at least once in your life. You’re not going to regret it! 

Fotball hooliganism (no date), read 12.03.14 on NDLA english.
http://ndla.no/en/node/5576

Haugen Hellevi m.fl. Published in 2009, Targets, H. Aschehoug & Co. 
Hooliganism poem