The fact that we are in Rome doesn't hinder our involvement (or enjoyment) of both American and International sporting triumphs - and this past weekend was a great one! Sunday saw our community revelling not one but two fantastic matches - both of which featured oval balls...
First, the Lions came to take on the Sky Blues. England v Italy in the Six Nations Rugby Championship. A crowd of faculty, staff and students attended the match, at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. It was a hard fought competition that saw the Lions take the crown but the final score line did not reflect the courage and energy of the new Italian team - they deserved a closer finish. The highlight of the match (for AUR if not for the rest of the 55,000 strong crowd) was to see our adverts playing on the big screen in the stadium!
Sunday evening (Rome time) was, of course, Superbowl! Given the time difference between Minneapolis and Rome (7 hours) we couldn't gather en masse at the University but students organized house parties across Rome to cheer on their teams (and explain the rules to non-American friends!).
It was an exhilerating (but exhausting) weekend! Now we just have to prepapre for Italy v Scotland (Rugby), The Tennis Masters, The World Volleyball Championship, The Harlem Globetrotters, The World Table Football Championships ... and, of course, Roma is Serie A.