Saunas, Snow, and Jalkapallo- An American in Finland

Well I know some of you Stateside were interested in the football culture over here in Finland and some people in Finland have been interested in how exactly I ended up here so I have decided to create this journal of sorts, chronicling my venture here in Finland. Here is my first installment. Enjoy...



Aaah, the allure of European football. It draws the attention of the entire footballing world, and- whether you admit it or not- is the goal of 95% of footballers. That’s what drew me to this place. That’s what caused me to leave my home, family, friends, and everything I was accustomed to. It was this allure that I was even willing to venture into a land where football wasn’t even the number 1 sport and spends a considerable amount of time covered in snow and ice.

But this is Europe. There should still be thousands flocking to the stadiums, singing (or cursing) my name in full voice as I jet down the sideline, who would die for their local team…right?

Well, first let’s start off a few years back. I spent 4 years playing at Liberty University a division 1 program in Lynchburg, Virginia. Most of you would know the University by its founder and now late Jerry Falwell (a man that I respect and will miss greatly…say what you want about him, but he was a visionary and a great man of God). I had a decent college career, earning all-conference honors in my senior year. However, I was hardly on the radar of any MLS team come draft day.

Following my 4th year, I did what most players do that weren’t drafted into the MLS. I shelled out a good bit of money, racked up a good bit of mileage on my car in the hope of standing out among at least 40 or so other players at open try-outs with the same goal- to earn a contract with a professional soccer team.

After attending a few open try-outs, I had several USL couple of teams interested- Harrisburg City Islanders and the Cincinnati Kings. I opted to sign for the Kings because I had a lot of family in the area (not in Cincinnati, across the river in Kentucky). It was definitely an awesome feeling to achieve a goal I had dreamed about since I was 4. Of course, I was hardly satisfied and definitely wanted to reach a higher level. I didn't exactly enjoy my time in Cincinnati though do to some off-field problems I ran into do to my own stupidity. But, nevertheless, it was a great experience to get my feet wet in the world of professiona football.

But was this it? Was this what I had spent years killing myself on the field, dreaming about every night since I was a boy- to spend my final years of playing traveling 13 hours on a bus, playing back to back days, playing in high school or college stadiums, earning scraps?

Now, I’m not trying to knock USL. They provide an excellent service to players like me and others with the dream of playing professional football. In fact, there are many that earn a very good living from USL so it is certainly a viable alternative, and I can easily see myself playing in it again…But it’s just not Europe.

So after a bit of networking, and despite having some interest from the newly founded Carolina Railhawks after an open tryout, I managed to secure a trial in Helsinki, Finland with Atlantis FC. Now I know what you are thinking…why Finland?! Well beggars can’t be choosers my friend, and I was willing to go anywhere. But as my plane approached the runway in Helsinki, I knew I had no idea what I was in for. I had just spent a little over a month at home in Texas for the holidays. It was 70 degrees Fahrenheit when I left. When I landed in Helsinki, it was -10 degrees Celsius with a fresh blanket of snow covering everything I could see.

I’m not sure why it was a shock. I knew that Finland is generally pretty cold in the winter. I knew that there would probably be snow. I mean... I had even spent 3 months training with teams in Oslo the year before (it was summer though). But for some reason, as I looked out of the window of the plane as we landed, my jaw dropped and suddenly, I wanted nothing more than to be back in sunny, warm Texas.

To be continued...