Fiorentina 2 - 0 Sampdoria

Our good friend Bruno, who has the Serie A schedule memorized, put us on notice of a match that would occur while we're in Florence. Perfect. So while we're leaving dinner and could hear the sirens from the polizia rolling down the street we thought nothing of it, until we noticed the bus loads of away supporters following them. Football factories here we come.

After having to show our passports to even get into the area surrounding the stadium we knew we were in for the real deal. It took us a few attempts to find our proper entrance to the stadium as the staffs English was limited to pointing, which including 2 stewards pointing to each others gate. A friendly match-goer set us straight. Absolutely everyone was in their seats. There's no messing about. Our section was full of middle aged men, a few women, and lots of cigars. No one talked except to yell at the referee or players. It's entirely about the game. We didn't see anyone drinking beer in the stands and the only thing being sold in the stands was none other than gelato. At half we decided to wander the stadium and the biggest line was at the espresso and gelato stands. As Julie exited the washroom we noticed that the entire concession area had emptied. People did not linger and certainly did not miss a minute of the match. The Sampdoria fans had their own section bordered by a completely empty section on each side and a staff member sitting in each row of the empty sections to ensure no one got near one another. Throughout the match the away fans were signifanctly louder, at least from our vantage point, except when an 'incorrect' call was made -- then the home team let their unified voice be heard. After the match, a 2-0 victory for the home team, the away fans stayed for at least 20 mins after the match, chanting and waving their dozen flags. As we were likely the last souls to leave the stadium, we weren't in a rush as we didn't know how to get home, the away fans were still doing their chants, even as we walked down the road away from the stadium. There's a video posted on the right.

All in all a great experience and a dramatic contrast to the social event that Toronto sporting events are. I'm sure there was some colourful commentary throughout the match, of which we could only understand; 'Madonna' 'Dio' and 'Momma Mia'. These fans truly bled Viola.