It doesn’t happen often, but this time Ted Lasso got it wrong. As he tried to calm down his team about playing at Wembley Stadium, he tried to say it was just like any other stadium. His assistant coaches quickly corrected him, explaining that Wembley is actually the largest pitch in the country. However, it isn’t really the size of the pitch that intimidates players but rather the history that accompanies Wembley.
On our first Sport in England venue visit, we quickly learned that Wembley is the “Cathedral of Football.” It is the home of England Football, and it is where every player dreams of making it. From old Wembley to new Wembley, Bobby Moore to Harry Kane, Queen to Adele, only the greatest get to perform underneath Wembley’s iconic arch.
Getting to Wembley was our first big class assignment, as the professors tasked us with arriving on our own rather than meeting us and leading the way. Don’t ask how, but somehow I ended up taking charge on the tube. I was stressed to say the least seeing as though one wrong stop could at best make us late for our tour and at worst leave 18 college students lost in a foreign city. Thank goodness for Citymapper, a blessed app, that helped me figure out which tubes to take and found us at Wembley an hour early. This was the first time we learned that on the Brian train, you’re never late.
Being so early allowed us to buy souvenirs at the gift shop and take pictures with all the statues before our tour. First up was a great reenactment of a rugby scene, then a selfie with England hero Bobby Moore. Special shoutout to our ball, the great Jenna Kash. We also got to see the many high-rise apartments, shops and restaurants that now surrounded the stadium and made Wembley an entire neighborhood, not just a football field. In the United States I appreciate when stadiums provide more than just a game, so the surrounding area was nice to see.
Once we did enter Wembley to begin our tour, it didn’t take long for us to marvel at the 90,000 bright red seats. The largest stadium in Britain and the second largest in Europe, Wembley has hosted the Olympics, football and even American football (go Dolphins!). We went from the stands down to the press conference rooms and the locker rooms before getting to march out onto the pitch as if we were players. Next were the plush seats in the royal box, which we’d see again later that week, before wrapping up our first tour.
This visit proved to be a great primer for Wembley, as we got to explore every corner of the stadium as it stood empty while learning details of its history. You could really sense the majesty of the place with no one in it. Just a few days later, we’d get to see a transformed Wembley on not one, but two game days.
League Two Final
There are four principle tiers of English football. First is the Premier League, home to the teams everyone knows like Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United. Just below that is the Championship League followed by League One and League Two. Unlike American sports, English football features annual promotion and relegation between each of the leagues. On the first Saturday of our class, Dr. Tingle somehow helped us snag tickets to the League Two final in which the winner would earn promotion to League One.
As soon as we got on the tube to Wembley, we could tell something was different than on our tour earlier that week. Fans filled the tube wearing jerseys and chanting songs, and that continued as we arrived at the Wembley station and exited onto Wembley Way. Thousands of people filled the walk that was empty just a few days before. Each of us received our tickets and were told to enter the stadium whenever we pleased since we would eventually meet in the same section that was located in the Mansfield Town FC area, which is why all of us wore blue and gold. Go Stags!
The group I ended up with decided to eat some amazing Italian food outside Wembley before entering the stadium. Once past the long lines and security, we couldn’t help but go right to our seats, and our jaws immediately dropped. Our section was right next to the royal box, right in the center of Wembley! What?! Like so many times during our first week in London, we were in total awe.
With still awhile left before kick-off, most of us perused the concourse. We learned on our tour that fans aren’t allowed to drink alcohol while watching the game in the stands as an attempt to prevent rioting and hooliganism, so most fans could be found standing in the concourse enjoying drinks before the game. A Mansfield fan somehow confused our very own Chris Vann for their brother, eventually sparking a conversation between others in our class and other Mansfield fans. They were fascinated that we were from Texas and were rooting for their team. They taught us some chants to look out for and even took selfies with us. We were already fitting in!
As game-time approached, we hurried to our seats to watch the lineup introductions and more importantly, to belt out God Save the Queen. I got goosebumps hearing Britain’s national anthem at the Cathedral of Football. I couldn’t believe we were really here.
Despite not being the biggest football fan, I was super into this game. Every movement seemed to matter, drawing gasps and cheers from thousands. The entire lower bowl was filled, and the sides were split perfectly down the middle with Mansfield Town fans on one side and Port Vale fans on the other. Think Oklahoma vs Texas at the Cotton Bowl.
A few minutes into the game, we got the best surprise as the one and only Coach McGinlay arrived from the airport, and the class went ballistic welcoming him. That will certainly be a moment I never forget.
With Coach here, we were desperate for a goal, but unfortunately Mansfield got more red cards than goals. Port Vale stomped the Stags 3-0 and #SteppedUp to League One.
As part of their celebration, Port Vale’s players made their way to the royal box to receive their trophy, aka the same royal box we were next to. This meant the players walked right by us, close enough for us to actually give them fist bumps and say hello. Then, as music blared throughout Wembley and Port Vale raised their trophy, confetti blasted in front of us and drove us wild. Our smiles were miles wide as we took in such a magical moment together.
You could say attending a final at Wembley is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and for most it certainly is. In some incredible way, however, we’d be doing this all again the next day.
Championship League Final
If we thought the League Two Final was a big deal, we were in for quite the surprise. As we had learned in class, the difference between being in the Premier League and in the Championship League comes in the form of hundreds of millions of pounds thanks to broadcasting deals and exposure received in the Premier League. That means the Championship League Final, the game that determines the final team that earns promotion to the Premier League, is quite literally the most expensive game in the world. You could certainly tell.
By now, we were pros at getting to Wembley, yet the third time was the craziest. The tube was absolutely jam-packed, and Wembley Way was a sea of humanity. Dr. Nishikawa, newly in from Iceland, even helped us find a safe spot to head to in case things got crazy and we needed to find each other. Instead of eating outside like the day before, we all decided to head straight into the stadium since things were so hectic.
Once inside, our seats again were perfect, just two sections over from the royal box. I personally sought to try something new from the concession stand, and I landed on a falafel dog. Yes, that is a falafel inside of a hot dog bun. The United States really needs to step up.
Today we were all Huddersfield Town fans, so we were all wearing blue again, and what we sensed outside matched what we saw in the stands. Wembley was way more filled. There were over 37,000 fans at the League Two Final, and at this Championship League final there were over 80,000 people. That’s more than double the attendance just 24 hours later at the same stadium.
Huddersfield kept things close, but the Terriers again failed to deliver us a goal. Nottingham Forest scored early, and we realized our section actually ended up being mostly Forest fans. Forest hung on for 90+ minutes, and the final whistle sent their side into a frenzy. Thankfully, most of us bought two sided scarfs so we could pretend we cheered for Forest the whole time just to feel that happiness. We again got to see the players pretty close, and you could tell today’s celebration meant so much more to these fans and players. They were going up to the best football league in the world!
We played our own trivia on the way out of Wembley as we stood shoulder to shoulder with thousands of Forest fans. Getting on the tube meant forcing our way in, but we made it and decided to play our own music. Oh, Americans. Let’s just say Dr. Tingle loves Kesha. Who doesn’t, right?
In one week we went from seeing Wembley empty, to half-full, to almost sold out. Each visit provided unique experiences and scenes, and this series of days became one of my favorite parts of London. I love crowds, so I loved seeing how passionate football fans get during games. It was also amazing to see the transformation Wembley underwent from a regular day to a game-day. It is easy to see why Wembley is the Cathedral of Football.