Tonight I saw my first European football game, Serie A showdown of #1 AC Milan vs. #3 Napoli! Having been to every Penn State home football game for the past three years (plus every home game versus OSU and Michigan for the past 5 years), I thought I had a pretty good idea of what a loud stadium and electric environment was like. Wow was I wrong.

The common message out of Europe has always been that Americans have no idea about the passion and intensity that European football fans have towards their favorite teams. While this is typically combated with the passion displayed by American college football fans, in reality it is not even close. San Siro Stadium on Monday night, the home stadium to both AC Milan and Inter Milan, was the loudest environment I have ever experienced. While the student sections at places such as PSU, LSU, Florida, and Alabama give them a run for their money, the passion shown by the adult crowd is absolutely amazing. In Italy, being a fan of a football team is not a passing interest, but something that defines you. In a place where fans are let out of the stadium according to which team they root for, where riot police line the stadium and walk up from our apartment, and where fans were banned from attending games for an entire year for throwing flares in the stands and onto the field, football is serious business in Italy.

Featuring two of the top teams in the Italian league, this game featured some great soccer and resulted in a 3-0 AC victory. I would recommend to everyone studying abroad in any European city to go to at least one game, even if you don’t like football or sports, just to experience the crazy atmosphere. I can’t wait until the next one, hopefully Champions League!

Location: San Siro Stadium, Milano, Italy