Let’s begin with a quick Chinese lesson:
好球！
That means Hao Qiu (pronounced “how-chyo”), which is a way of saying, “That was an awesome play!” It’s used by fans of nearly every sport here when they react to a made basket or a successful free kick.But American football has had a little bit more trouble getting the same exposure as basketball and soccer in China. In Shanghai, specifically, the NFL community — which is made up of mostly Americans — is much smaller than in a city like London. China just hasn’t fallen in love with the sport yet.While this is a sports-mad country, and Shanghai is huge, there are only two legit sports bars in the city: The Camel and The Big Bamboo.Another obstacle for fans trying to catch a game here is the time difference. We’re 12 hours ahead of Charlotte, which means I’m normally watching from my living room at 1 a.m. or 4 a.m.So when you were settling in for Sunday Night Football this week, I was waking up on Monday morning. I left my apartment at 7:30 and headed to the Camel, which is about seven miles away. Unfortunately, if you don’t drive, or live near a subway, there are obstacles.People …
More people …
Even more people (this is a relatively uncrowded bus by rush hour standards).
Fortunately, I arrived at 8:36, just in time to catch the Steelers’ opening drive. As has always been the case, Bank of America Stadium was infiltrated by Pittsburgh fans, but I didn’t have that problem in this Shanghai bar. In fact, it was just me and a lonesome Steelers fan.
Benjamin and I watched the game in what felt like a private viewing party. In the end, he left for work a little happier than me.
But when you get a chance to watch your team on a big screen in ‘prime time’ while being seven-thousand miles from home, it’s a unique experience.I hope to be able to find a place in Shanghai where other Carolina expatriates can watch prime time games together in the future. And perhaps one day here, the locals will begin to love Cam Newton, the Panthers, and the game like we do.Daheixiong (大黑熊) Mike
- Michael Arone is a Charlotte native who’s been living in Shanghai since 2010. He’s been a Panthers fan since their inception.
- If you’re a Panthers fan outside the U.S. and want to contribute to this series, shoot us an email.