Whether we support our childhood team or our favorite team in FIFA, the love that Rowland Hall students feel for their favorite soccer teams is unlike anything else. But that love translates to something else: bonding. Every time it's game day, you see people talking, building friendships, and fostering community over professional soccer. People can bond over the game, arguably more than over any other sport at Rowland Hall; you see it in the halls and in the classroom. People come together over soccer, to watch it, to speak about it, and to play it. Not many upper schoolers are playing sports during school hours, but you'll see people playing soccer.  People playing soccer during the school day is an example of how fan culture builds a social bridge for our students in ways not seen in any other school, and it holds an important place in the community.

When we surveyed the freshmen about their connection to pro soccer, 64 people responded. Out of those 64, 24 watched soccer, and out of those 24, only 19 actually had a favorite club. Although there are only 24 students, the intensity of these few fans creates a visible culture that impacts the whole grade. In fact, out of those 19 people with a favorite club, only two support a club outside Europe. What's interesting is that when we talked to the German students on the soccer team, they all supported a German team, and not just a team from Germany, but from the specific regions the students were from. Their European culture has a history of supporting soccer teams; they basically grew up supporting their team because of their background. This shows the uniqueness of fans from the United States; nothing gets in their way to support a team that isn’t from where they live. This is what brings American soccer fans so close together; they can relate through the challenges of supporting a team outside of their area, like waking up at weird times to stream games in faraway countries. Fan culture serves as a medium for spreading culture throughout the school.

Being a soccer fan is an experience that you simply cannot find in being a fan of any other sport. Soccer is a sport where the smallest of touches can create the biggest of moments, and when those moments come, fanbases unite. We see this week in, week out at Rowland Hall; we see it in the hall where people are huddled around someone's phone, waiting for those big moments to happen. When those moments come, they celebrate together. Soccer at Rowland Hall doesn’t just bring us together physically; it tightens the community and builds friendships. In fact, freshman Kirav Martinez stated that “the people who watch soccer, I’m naturally closer with.” This shows that soccer is something that people are able to bond with each other over, even if they don’t have many other things in common. Soccer is such a big factor in so many people’s lives that it can be the reason friendships and connections are built.

In conclusion, this generation of high schoolers especially,  has changed how Americans view soccer in the United States. According to yougov.com, 7 out of 10 of the most-followed club teams in the U.S. are European, really emphasizing how much soccer culture has changed over the years. Nowadays, young fans are growing up to players like Mbappe and Yamal, and even when we were kids, we grew up to players like Messi and Ronaldo, all of whom played in Europe. This really just means that we start following the clubs that they play for. Our interviews and surveys have shown that many people at this school enjoy rooting for teams in Europe and go out of their way to watch their teams’ games, despite the time change being an obstacle at times. In fact, Kirav Martinez said, “in 2016, my dad took me to Barcelona, and we saw a Champions League game, and it was versus Arsenal. And Messi, Neymar, and Suarez all scored a goal. And from there, I kind of just kept supporting them.” Kirav shows that the love of soccer overcomes the challenges of liking a soccer team outside one’s own realm, and that our school expresses this love through our students' fan culture.