I’ve never really been a huge fan of soccer but when Nashville Soccer Club‘s stadium got built right up the road from my house, I quickly became invested in the team.

The stadium is less than half a mile from my house and it holds $30,000 people. I was concerned about the volume of people migrating the sidewalks. I didn’t know what the parking situation would be like, didn’t know if I would be able to come and go from my house the days soccer games were happening. My house is interestingly part of an intersection so sometimes that’s an event in and of itself.

So far the traffic has been about as expected. Coming and going from the house during the duration of the game isn’t the best idea. But there are definitely worse ideas.

The Sunday of the opening match I was out at a brewery with some friends. We had went to brunch that morning and decided it was going to be a Sunday Funday. We were playing Cornhole when I got a text from my cousin asking if he could park at my house for the soccer game. Sure, I responded, not planning on going home anytime soon anyways. We have extra tickets if you want to go, he texted back.

I asked how many and looked around at my friends. There was 7 of us total. I figured there was no way he had that many tickets.

Eight, he replied.

“Who wants to go to a soccer game that starts in 10 minutes?” I asked my friends.

After that, we raced back to my house to park the cars and get to the stadium. We caught the last bit of the game, but it was really awesome to be there for opening day. The stadium is brand new and everything there seems really pristine and nice.

And this week, I got to go to another game with my family. We got there before the game started this time and since my uncle has club level season tickets we had access to a full buffet, unlimited supply of beer, and chocolate chip cookies. It was phenomenal.

The games themselves are also really entertaining. Although the guys are kinda wimps. They go down and act like they’re injured only to get up and walk off the field two minutes later.

During the game I remember thinking that they wouldn’t last a minute on the rugby field. But honestly it takes a very certain type of person to endure the brutality of rugby matches. Soccer is difficult in its own ways. I wouldn’t say there’s more running in soccer than rugby, but you definitely have to be very fit to be on a soccer field. Rugby is more inclusive, there’s a spot on the field for every single body type, which is something I really love about the sport.

Having the soccer stadium so close to my house makes me enjoy where live even more. I live within walking distance of restaurants, clubs, bars, coffee shops, and now one of the biggest soccer stadiums in the country. I’m excited for the season to continue and to be so close to the stadium that I walk to the games. Who knows maybe I’ll become a big soccer fan?