Last week we went to a basketball game, which I was looking forward to since I like pro basketball. It was -11c (12.2 f), when we walked across town to "Borashallen", where the basketball games take place. Despite the chilly walk, I'm glad we did - it was awesome!
In the photos below, you can see that it is not the biggest sports arena in the world (about the size of many high school gyms in the US), but as a spectator, I'd rather it be smaller but packed full than huge and feeling empty.
There were something like 2,800 people there, and there was great energy. The team itself is very good! We *killed* Uppsala 104-72, with three our players scoring in the 20's.
As for the atmosphere in a Swedish basketball game. It is a lot different than the US! The fans clapped every-single-time our team scored. All the fans. EVERY time! In the US, everyone will clap after a good run of scoring, or exceptional defensive or offensive plays, but here, it was very encouraging.
I was blown away at the passion of the players, too. In the US, once you get beyond college level, the players are laissez-faire; kind of going with the flow unless they can make themselves look good. Here, the players were into the TEAM, and were really into it. I have never seen so many technical fouls (one guy even stomped on a guy when he was down on the floor because he fouled his teammate). So...maybe there could be a little more balance between passion and controlling it!
Another thing to note was how many sponsors are peppered on the team jerseys and shorts. It makes sense to me, but it reminded me of nascar or bull riding, where they have many, many sponsors instead of one or two major sponsors.
Anyway, you should DEFINITELY check out a Borås Basket game if they're playing. Check out their schedule at their website, here.
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