Go Rosario Central!

The vast majority of people from the U.S. would characterize their high school experiences by the clubs they were involved in and the sports that they played. Going to a public or private high school in the U.S. is not solely comprised of academics but rather seen as the whole high school experience.

This is not the case around the world. When students visit the U.S. as exchange students it is often very easy for them to assimilate themselves in the student body by joining clubs or sports teams, these organizations are instant ways to meet new people and future friends. But often when U.S. students go to other countries, they find it challenging to join into groups without the aid of these social groups.

But outside of the typical school settings there are often other options for teens to get involved and find a group of friends with common interests. In Argentina, the by far largest option of these is joining a sports club. There are several famous clubs within Argentina but generally there are two or three per large cities and there are huge rivalries within cities. The city where I was at had two large clubs that were primarily focused on soccer, as are most, and were huge rivalries. The two clubs in Rosario are called the Newells Old Boys and Rosario Central. My host family members are huge Central fans and so if I had even thought about being a Newells fan I think they would have made me move out of their house!

The loyalties to these two clubs really are intense. My host aunt is a Newells fan while my host family, as I mentioned, are huge Central fans. In my first month in Argentina when I hardly understood any Spanish and was still figuring out how things work down there, I met my aunt for the first time at a family barbecue. She was so friendly, and despite her not knowing any English, she made me feel welcomed. She has a large and loud personality, just over all she is a very passionate person. She gave me a black and red bracelet which I thought was simply a kind welcoming gesture, little did I know that the Newells’ team colors were black and red. My host mom immediately stepped in to tell her to back off and my host dad took the bracelet from me as they both began to get into a friendly yelling fight about their two teams. In the end I was explained in detail that Rosario Central is the best club from Rosario and that I could keep the bracelet but not ever wear it at home. The whole affair was so confusing as I didn’t understand Spanish and everyone around me was yelling and laughing but looking back on the experience it is so humorous.

I ended up joining a girls’ basketball team at the Rosario Central Club and that was one of the ways that I made friends down in Argentina, despite the language barrier. Many other high schoolers and college students join the clubs for sports teams or social groups, so despite the fact that schools don’t have these organization directly within their infrastructures, the students still have opportunities within their communities to get involved and make friends with similar interests.