America vs. Bulgaria

This past week we had the unique opportunity to watch our first professional international volleyball match with the two teams being…

America and Bulgaria!

Neither of us had been to a professional volleyball match (and it has been a long time since we attended any sporting events) so we were excited for both the fun date night and the opportunity to watch our home country compete against our current country of residence (we won’t give away the outcome just yet 🤫) !

As a quick side note, this match was a part of the international qualifying rounds for the 2020 olympics. There were 4 teams competing this past week here in Ruse and then they all have several more international stops (such as Italy, Russia and the USA) as they continue to compete for the opportunity to participate in the 2020 olympic games.

While the match itself was very fun to watch, we found the cultural differences between the teams and amongst the fans to be the highlights of the evening 😂! Apologies in advance for the quality of the photos, for some reason my camera was not behaving well that night.

So back to the match…

We were a bit late getting to the arena (due to a concert we had that same evening), but thankfully we were then able to get in for free since the ticket booth closed once the match started and they just waved us right through. I cannot think of anywhere this would happen in the USA nowadays. Point for Bulgaria 🇧🇬!

When we entered the arena it was quickly evident which team was favored to win! While the arena was only about 1/3 to 1/2 full, clearly all of the fans were there in favor of the home team! Not only did they have a large crowd, a typical cheerleading squad and a lion mascot, but they even had their very own pep-band that made quite a lot of noise throughout the entire match. Obviously we had to support our home country so we sat on the quieter side of the arena and were 99% sure that we were the only American fans in attendance. Another point for Bulgaria! (Not looking good for the US 😩)

While it was unfortunate that there were not more USA fans in attendance, we were glad to see that the team was not letting that affect their attitude. As players were “resting” on the sidelines, they clearly were having a blast cheering on their teammates and dancing away to all the rally and pop songs played throughout the game. The Bulgarians on the other hand, were much more serious in their “resting” moments and could primarily be found watching intensely or seriously stretching (this was perhaps one of the most revealing and entertaining cultural differences for us during the evening). 1st point for America for their team spirit 🙌!

Towards the end of the match we noticed a few of the American players munching on some snacks. On closer inspection we realized that someone had thoughtfully made some homemade oat granola balls that were being carried in a traditional Ziplock bag. While this may not seem like a big deal to anyone in America, this type of snack, and the fact that it was in a Ziplock bag are not common sightings here. We instantly felt a cultural connection on this matter and it definitely made us reminisce a bit about home. Point for American snacks, which brings us to a cultural tie 😋!

So who won the match in the end…

While it was a great match and each set was very close at times, the US team did manage to pull ahead each time and overtake the Bulgarian team in all 3 of the first sets and thus ended the match…

VICTORIOUS! HOORAY 🇺🇸!!

Maybe we’ll see these players in the Olympics in 2020! Guess I should’ve worn big heels for this photo 😉 These players also mentioned that very few Americans come to support their matches outside of the US so if you have the chance to go to one abroad, you should go!

Events like this only occur about once or twice a year here in Ruse so we are glad we had the opportunity to attend, support both teams and meet some fellow Americans after the game. We look forward to having the chance to attend future events like this and possibly even a local football (aka soccer) match this summer!

Happy Memorial Day to all of our friends in the states and we hope you all have a wonderful week!