Man U has a worldwide following (listed in the Guinness Book even for having the most fans of any sports organization), and this was never more evident than in our two brief hostel stays, where all of our roommates were Manchester fans from other parts of the globe. The Red Devils' home stadium is Old Trafford, aka- the Theatre of Dreams, which usually fills to its 67,000 seat capacity. This is thanks in part to United's recent string of success: seven English Premiership titles in the past nine campaigns plus the coveted Treble in 1999; but it is also due to the passion of the English football fan. It is this passion that makes European soccer games an incredible experience for even the casual American sports fan. The atmosphere at the games which I've attended in Italy and England is unlike anything found at U.S. sporting events, and the reason I'd recommend seeing a match to anyone going over to Europe.

Membership:
As with a number of clubs in Europe, Manchester United only sells game tickets to club members. That means you have to send away for club materials months in advance, fill out the applications and send them in, and then get your card before you can think about ordering tickets. Tickets from the U.S. branch allotment can supposedly be requested 5-6 weeks before game day, though we found this policy to be flexible. If the allotment is used up, your branch representative can still put in a request for you in case the club has extra tickets available. This is how we managed to get our tickets, despite the fact that they were very important games.

The club membership costs about $65, with renewal costing $45 or so. As a member, you get your card, quarterly team updates and a book and video reviewing the previous season. Game tickets will cost you an additional amount. Ours (located near the top of the stadium) cost a little over $30 a piece.

While you have a branch representative who puts in ticket requests for you, don't assume he'll do everything for you. Be sure to check and double-check the fact that you have tickets, and the days and times of the games you plan on seeing. We almost got screwed when the U.S. branch rep, as well as all the people in the Man United ticket office we spoke to failed to tell us that the date of our second match had been rescheduled to the day we were flying home. We had even mentioned the originally scheduled date a number of times, but were never corrected. Only a delay in Chicago allowed us to reschedule our return flight, and therefore catch that second game. Always check the date and time of your games in the weeks and days leading up to your trip!

To learn more about joining the USA branch of the Manchester United Football Club, go to: http://www.muscusa.com/

Old Trafford:
I've been in countless stadiums meant to hold as many as 100,000 people, and which dwarf Old Trafford. Still, the Theatre of Dreams impressed me to say the least. Much of it was the atmosphere created by passionate football fans of course... but there was much more. The chants and cheers of the supporters thunder throughout the stadium, thanks in part to the extended roof that covers all the spectators. I was most amazed by the great sight lines. For both games, we sat near the very top of the stadium, once behind the goal line and once along the sideline. In both cases, we had an incredible view of all the action on the pitch. It was quite different from sitting near the top of Seattle's Husky Stadium and watching microscopic football players run around.

Photography is allowed in the stadium, or at least the security is pretty lax. I was told by someone in the ticket office: "We don't allow cameras inside the ground... but it's up to you." There were even fans with a video camera recording behind us. Concessions are sold inside the stadium (including beer), at typical concession prices. Getting to some of the seats in the top deck can be a lengthy journey, considering the narrow, fenced stairs that lead to the top. Despite all their attempts to avoid trampling disasters, I'd hate to see people try to escape the stadium via such skinny passageways...

Old Trafford also features a museum, the Red Café, and the wondrous Team Store. The café is nothing spectacular; your typical theme restaurant fare. The Team Store is amazing. There are endless amounts of team merchandise. Remember not to get carried away in there... you are in an expensive country after all. Still, you will find a number of items here that you can't get online, and there might be some great discounts too. I nabbed a long sleeve jersey for around $45. If it were even available online, it would cost $80. Your membership card also gets you 10% off.