El Clásico

Fútbol is the country's obsession and favorite past time. While Guatemala has its own domestic league, many people choose to follow the Spanish league or La Liga. Historically, La Liga has always been a two horse race between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona and this season is no different. I'm a fan of Barcelona. Their free flowing football can only be described as the "beautiful game" and many have even questioned whether the current Barcelona squad is the best team the world has ever seen. El Clásico or the La Liga matches between Real Madrid and Barcelona are two of the most important games of the year in Guatemala. I'd even say that more people tune in to watch the clásico than any other sporting event in Guatemala.

I decided to add these photos to show you what an average Guatemalan field looks like. The photos are taken from the same field. Fields here are normally all tierra or dirt. I currently play with the local town team, Pueblo. Every village in Malacas has a team in the first division and currently the Pueblo is in first place. The other image has the words Nou Camp spray painted on a shack which is near the field. I found this image to be quite interesting as the words Nou Camp refer to the FC Barcelona stadium. While this stadium may not seat near 100,000 people like the stadium in Barcelona, the passion for the game is the same.