Semester at Sea Fall
2006 Voyage 
FC Barcelona stadium
TABLE
OF CONTENTS
Passion in Barcelona
By Preston Price
Pertaining to soccer, Spain was my premier
destination of the entire voyage. I went to a professional soccer
game in Barcelona. It was the ultimate ending to a spectacular
voyage that consisted of an abundance of soccer crazed nations.
Spain tops the list in being a fanatical nation for the game of
soccer. It wasn’t that I saw proof of soccer being played by
locals more so than in any other port. However, Spain is known as
having a well established culture of the sport. They also have arguably
the best league in the world, being highly competitive and financially
wealthy.The soccer game in Barcelona was no ordinary soccer game. Futbol Club de Barcelona, as they are called, are amongst one of the greatest teams in the world. They are known to be the best team in Spain and within one of the greatest leagues in the world. Because they are such a highly respectable and financially capable franchise, they have acquired world renowned players from countries all across the globe. This distinctly relates to the Global Issues article by Franklin Foer titled, “Soccer vs. McWorld.” The article has to do with soccer being a marker for globalization’s limits. Major teams throughout the world have now been buying up players from multiple countries using various currencies on the foreign exchange market. This in turn creates a less homogenous make up of fans with people speaking different languages and cheering for individual players rather than the team as a whole. Ultimately, it takes away from the idealistic progress of nationalism and denotes the fact that our global economy has reached certain limits, particularly in the world of soccer.
My experience being a participant observer as a fan at the Barcelona vs. Villareal soccer match in Barcelona, gave me a true understanding of the global limitations of soccer. The star of Barcelona is a player from Brazil by the name of Ronaldhino. It seemed that if fans didn’t come to watch Barcelona, they just came to watch him play. It made me realize how one player can really affect the fan base. Who knows, many of the fans may now be Brazilians. Although he plays his in the Spanish domestic league, he is also the star of the Brazilian national team during tournaments like the World Cup, and it is argued that he may be the very best player worldwide today. He has been playing for Barcelona for a few years and he has become the face of Barcelona. This only hurts the productive aspect of Brazil in a national sense. Brazil is a soccer crazed nation that could especially use a home town hero like Ronaldhino to help boost the economy and sense of nationalism. Regardless, he has done so in Spain by making a home in Barcelona. The fans appeared to display intense passion for him and the game of soccer. At the end of the game he scored a sensational goal and the entire stadium erupted in cheers directed specifically towards Ronaldhino. I can only imagine what it would be like to have 100,000 fans chanting my name.