In order to get the full Italian experience, it is necessary to immerse yourself in the culture by trying the local specialties and living life as an Italian. Food and art are two of the most important aspects of the culture since they pride themselves in being experts and having a long history in both of these fields. However, one major aspect to experiencing the complete Italian culture is their passion towards sports. More specifically, football is huge in Italian culture and no, I’m not talking about the sport with helmets and scoring touchdowns. As an American, I call this sport soccer, but since I am in Italy, the only acceptable way to call this sport is football. Football is essentially part of every Italian’s national identity as every kid grows up watching and playing the sport and supporting their local team, exemplifying how huge football is in their culture. In order to grow my CQ Drive and experience what it is like to be a European football fan, I decided to go watch Fiorentina, the local football team in Florence, play against Napoli, a football giant in terms of their history in the sport. I have grown up playing soccer my whole life and been to a few soccer games back in the US, but those games can’t compare to the game I went to here. The atmosphere and passion exemplified by the fans was electrifying. Everyone in the stadium was standing up and singing in support of the team for the entire 90 minutes of the game, even when they were losing. When Fiorentina scored, the noise from the stadium was unlike anything I have ever heard. They were even throwing flares onto the pitch while firefighters were extinguishing them, something I would never see in the US. The game ended 2-2, and when the final whistle blew, I looked around and saw that nobody was even thinking about leaving the stadium. The whole crowd stayed and sang for the next 15 minutes while the players came over and clapped, showing their appreciation towards the fans for showing up and supporting. In the US, people would be rushing to get out of the stadium to beat the traffic. As the picture shows, almost every seat was taken with fans standing while only the very front seats were empty. The sense of community, connectivity, and passion this sport brings to the Italians is unmatched to anything I have seen in the US. This experience was not just a fun event to be a part of, it was a key to help me understand one part of Italian culture. As a global leader, it is important to recognize the local interests and experience them in order to gain a better understanding of a different culture. By doing so, it will contribute towards the growth of one’s own CQ Drive, an essential factor of cultural intelligence. I hope to one day come back and experience a football game while standing in the middle of all the fans. I believe that will give me a feeling of what it is like to be a true supporter.
