Deportivo La Coruña! – Sunday Afternoon Match(es)

Sunday, May 17, 2015

With our wonderful meal at d’Berto restaurant in O Grove now completed, it was time for me to hit the road to Coruña in the hopes of getting a ticket to the Deportivo La Coruña soccer match – fútbol!  At 4:50 p.m. I left O Grove in a big hurry to get there before the 7:00 kickoff … and promptly took a wrong turn!  Once I got turned around and going the right way, I went to pull onto the main road … right when José and Montse were passing by in their car.  José gave me a full eye roll with maybe even a shake of the head as if to say “oh dear, you’re never going to make it”.

One of the main topics of conversation during lunch was discussing whether I should even bother trying to get to Coruña since José had heard that the match was, or would be, sold out.  There had been a big promotion all week on social media to fill Riazor stadium to capacity (34,600+ people), utilizing the hashtag #33000deRiazor.  There were only two matches left in the season (this was the last home game) and without a win in this game, they were facing relegation down to the second division. It was a very important game!  I just kept explaining that I had to go since I had been following along with this team through the entire season (which started shortly after I returned from my first Camino, on the Camino Inglés, located in the province of Coruña).  I couldn’t even fathom being this close to the match and not being there. Even if I couldn’t get a ticket I at least wanted to be in the city just in case they won … which was a real long shot!

Leaving O Grove.   Will I make the match?

It was a quick trip to Coruña and pulled into my parking spot at 6:15 p.m. It worked out nicely that the taxi driver I had on Friday evening pointed out the parking garage entrance, conveniently located right off of the main road that enters the city. I quickly changed into my new Dépor t-shirt (in the car) then hustled upstairs to the hotel to make sure they knew I was in the parking garage and would be checking in after the match.

Parking! Pro Tip: take a photo of where you park!

While I certainly don’t run, there was quite the pep in my step as I walked what was nearly a mile to the stadium along with the crowd heading in the same direction. Approaching the ticket window, I saw it was open and people were lined up. Hooray, I was going to get a ticket!

A quick jaunt from the hotel to the stadium.

 

Dépor swag!

As luck would have it, I was able to purchase a ticket from a nice, normal looking group of people who has an extra ticket from a season ticket holder for only €10 (the price would have been €35 at the ticket window). It was just minutes before the start so off I went with one of the guys to find our seats. His name was Brais (pronounced like “Bryce”, but with a Spanish rolled “r”), which I learned was a ‘muy gallego’ name. (I have a cousin named Bryce in Iowa, so this came as a surprise to me.)

Super nice guys. Brais in plaid. Yes, my eyes are closed, but we were capturing a moment. No time for retakes!

The seats were pretty high up, but had a great view of the home goal box for the first half (HELLO, Fabricio!), and enjoyed the excitement of the Riazor Blues cheering section right below us. Brias ended up leaving shortly after the start to go sit with his friends who had empty seats next to them, but I didn’t mind since the match was such a blast; really a great time.

Fabricio! (in yellow)

Cheering on a goal!

The Riazor Blues cheering, chanting, singing … so exciting!

And wouldn’t you know… Deportivo La Coruña ended up WINNING the match against Levante – by a score of 2-0. The following week, in the final match of the season, they tied Barcelona and remained in the first division of the Spanish fútbol league! Forza Dépor!!

Final score: 2-0

Sunday, October 18, 2015
Let’s fast forward to this October now, when I returned to Galicia for a quick 10 day visit. More on the details of that whole trip to come, but I just wanted to mention that I went to another Dépor match in October. Our return flight home was timed perfectly so that we were in Coruña on Sunday evening before flying home on Monday morning. This time, again, I was coming into Coruña from out of town (from Santiago de Compostela) and arrived JUST in time to grab a ticket and find my seat right as kickoff was happening.

This time I did end up buying my ticket for full price from the ticket window, as the only guy I saw selling secondhand tickets seemed kind of, um, sketchy (and that’s about as nicely as I can put it). Since I was purchasing at the last minute, there were only the most expensive tickets left, but they ended up being very close to the field.

Great seats!

Proudly sporting my team swag again!

At halftime, lots of folks take out large sandwiches to snack on. Sunflower seeds are also a very popular snack.

Lucas!!!

Final score on the new big screen.

There were quite a few improvements made to Riazor stadium over the summer, including new seats in two sections and big new signs on either end.

New seats (1906 – the year the fútbol club was founded)

New seats – Dépor!

The match against Athletic Bilbao was exciting, and ended in a tie at 2-2. That means that each team received 1 point towards the season tally, rather than the full 3 points that a winner would receive. The older gentleman I sat next to, clearly a season ticket holder, proclaimed that the result was “menos mal, menos mal” (less bad). Despite not getting the win, it was another really fun experience! Forza Dépor!!