Watching football with rival fans in Lima Peru
“Should’ve known you were here”, I overheard a Lions fan tell a Cowboys supporter from across the room. “I felt the temperature rise from all the hot air in the room.” The Cowboys fan was unfazed and continued to berate a Falcons fan calling his team “The Dirty Birds.”
Thanks to Direct TV these burns could have taken place in a pub anywhere from Spokane to Sarasota. But Melissa and I weren’t catching NFL games in Washington or Florida. Nor were we watching pigskins fly from flat screens at the Club House Bar and Grille in our native New York. We were enjoying the modern day U. S. national pasttime in fútbol crazed Lima, Peru.
Being an American traveling and working in South America during the NFL season can be an isolating experience. With the internet and ESPN VIVO it is easy to stay in the loop and catch a live streaming game. I have even been able to join my usual football pools. But watching football in the US is vastly different from watching abroad. Sometimes I crave the camaraderie and playful antagonism that results from watching all the games simultaneously in sports bars. I want to eat greasy food and drink from overpriced pitchers of beer. I want my head to continually pivot like I’m playing ten games of Arkanoid as one cluster of fans screeches in disbelief as another crew cackles in underdog joy.
Watching American Football in Lima Peru
Melissa had fish and chips at the pub in Lima.
This past weekend we caught all of the action of Week 14 at Corner Sports Bar and Grill in the Miraflores district in Lima. The host at our homestay and new friends at the South American Explorers gave us great directions, but all we had to do was follow a couple from the U.S. We tossed our map aside and tailed them as they power-walked to reach the 1pm kickoffs. Grinning and giving a head nod, they held the door for us. They knew we were only stalking them in order to watch fútbol norteamericano.
Inside the Corner Sports Bar and Grill, the first level of the bar had no free tables so we scurried up to the second floor. Passing framed photos of football fans donning team colors, we located a table with a panoramic view of six match-ups. The walls were decorated with posters and pennants angled to look like pinwheels. Waitresses hoisted jarras of beer and plates of wings through the crowd.
Buffalo chicken has flown south to Peru.
Fans sported t-shirts, jerseys and hats representing teams playing in New Jersey, Michigan, and Colorado. During timeouts I saw my first pharmaceutical commercial in fifteen weeks and was surprised to learn that Rob Schneider is getting his own sitcom. It is both reassuring and terrifying to be suddenly re-immersed in American consumer and popular culture.
Divided by Conferences and Divisions but United by Passion
One fan’s agony fueled another’s adulation. I watched a fellow Bears fan sink his face into his hands and felt his discomfort. Meanwhile a roar of victory bellowed up the stairwell. Apparently Broncos fans on the first floor were celebrating an overtime field goal directly below us. It virtually knocked my team out of the playoffs.
Two tables over someone bragged about having snagged Aaron Rodgers for his fantasy football team. “Aaron Rodgers is the quarterback for my actual team”, boasted another spectator, trumping a fantasy ego. Later I marveled at how two Packer fans clapped and cheered for literally every first down their team achieved. It was as if these two were watching the Super Bowl. I guess I am just jealous of their winning streak.
Lomo saltado is enjoyed all over Peru.
The menu at the Corner Sports Bar and Grill was full of familiar foods like buffalo wings, burritos, and potato skins. There were some local additions, notably salchipapas (a heaping plate of French fries with juicy prime hot dogs). They also serve a Peruvian national dish called lomo saltado (strips of sirloin marinated in soy sauce, vinegar and assorted spices then stir-fried atop a half dozen other ingredients). But whether they’re downing pisco sours, Jack Daniels, or a torre the corner (tower of beer), clients could agree on one thing. No matter who you root for or where you are from, it is great to be surrounded by football fans on a Sunday afternoon in Lima, Peru.
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