Mpira

You know you’re at a Soccer Tournament in Africa when…

1. It’s not uncommon for your view to be obstructed by a motorcycle riding in front of you along the sidelines.

2. Cows, goats, and chickens get in the way of the game.

3. No shoes…no problem!

4. The hottest selling vendor is bags of water.

5. The field has more mud than grass.

6. You won’t find any bleachers…but the tops of the walls work just as good.

7. If a soccer ball (mpira) is kicked over the wall there is a good chance a child took it and made a run for it.

8. For once the children are more interested in something other than the foreigner

9. Some teams will do anything to win: hiring witch-doctors to prescribe curses, storming the field with machetes, bribing government officials for favors, and of course beating the referee.

10. Trying to find one female in the crowd is similar to finding Waldo.