I have been fortunate to play football (soccer) here in Istanbul with a group of Turkish guys. The games start at 10 p.m. and usually last about one hour. Whenever possible, I play twice a week on Monday and Thursday nights. Only downside to this schedule is that I typically get home at 11:30 and I am wide awake and I have to get up the next morning at 6:00. Games are 7 to a side including the goalie with no subs.
In addition to being a great group of guys, they are pretty accepting of an American football player mixing it up with them (not to mention that I am about 15 years older than most of them). We play outdoors all year around, in the rain and cold and in the heat of the summer.
When I first started playing back in September of 2013, I was amazed to see these guys smoking a cigarette before and after games. As you can see in the picture below - they are all lighting up after a recent game - maybe that is why I am able to keep up with them? The other picture is from Sierra's team which is all Turkish as well. The girls play for Besiktas football club. Sierra has not played much this summer due to our travels, but she plans to get back at it soon. Always good to play football and to learn from others - its a great game no matter where you are - even in the heart of the city.
Mike
*So I have to add a couple of things to this post. Since I wrote this, one of the guys (second from the left in the first picture) was proud to tell me that he has stopped smoking, so kudos to him for breaking the habit! Secondly, the other day, someone that plays on a regular basis mentioned that he had seen this post and he liked what I put about being accepting. He then told me that there are a handful of guys who play with us that are Jewish and that it is pretty rare to find a Jewish person in a country where 99% of the population is Muslim. Once you step on the field, he went on, it does not matter where you are from or what your beliefs or religious background may be. On the field we are all individuals who are here to play a game we love and to appreciate one another's skills and effort. Football is the number one sport in the world for a reason - it does bring us together and for 60 or 90 minutes it's all about working together to get that little ball into the net.
In addition to being a great group of guys, they are pretty accepting of an American football player mixing it up with them (not to mention that I am about 15 years older than most of them). We play outdoors all year around, in the rain and cold and in the heat of the summer.
When I first started playing back in September of 2013, I was amazed to see these guys smoking a cigarette before and after games. As you can see in the picture below - they are all lighting up after a recent game - maybe that is why I am able to keep up with them? The other picture is from Sierra's team which is all Turkish as well. The girls play for Besiktas football club. Sierra has not played much this summer due to our travels, but she plans to get back at it soon. Always good to play football and to learn from others - its a great game no matter where you are - even in the heart of the city.
Mike
*So I have to add a couple of things to this post. Since I wrote this, one of the guys (second from the left in the first picture) was proud to tell me that he has stopped smoking, so kudos to him for breaking the habit! Secondly, the other day, someone that plays on a regular basis mentioned that he had seen this post and he liked what I put about being accepting. He then told me that there are a handful of guys who play with us that are Jewish and that it is pretty rare to find a Jewish person in a country where 99% of the population is Muslim. Once you step on the field, he went on, it does not matter where you are from or what your beliefs or religious background may be. On the field we are all individuals who are here to play a game we love and to appreciate one another's skills and effort. Football is the number one sport in the world for a reason - it does bring us together and for 60 or 90 minutes it's all about working together to get that little ball into the net.