I’m a sales manager at Grand Prix in Westchester, New York. I grew up in Putnam and lived there my whole life. The second that I heard that New York was going to have a team that actually played in New York, I jumped straight into it. This is something I dreamed about, growing up as a kid, loving soccer and following teams from all over Europe. To have one in your own backyard, you’ve got to take that opportunity.
I’ve watched every single match but in terms of being in attendance, I’ve missed six games in the three seasons we’ve been in existence. I’ve watched a couple of road games on TV and it didn’t really do it for me - as soon as I went to one, that was it - I was hooked. I manage it by begging my boss for time off, working extremely long hours during the winter so that I can take the time in the season.
My favorite road trip so far was Portland last year - the atmosphere there is incredible, their fans are passionate and they’re also polite. It was a tough game, we played a great game and we got the win. After the game, David Villa and Patrick Vieira invited me to have dinner with the team afterwards and it was probably the best experience of my entire life.
I tend to get very overly excited before every season starts but this year, the team Patrick and Claudio have put together is insane. I really wholeheartedly believe that we’re going to win everything this year. The players and the fans are going to be the driving force to help us lift that cup.
My favorite player is a tough one but if I had to choose one I’d have to go for Tommy Mc. He grew up playing in the same club as my little brother, so it just feels like a local boy doing his thing - we all kind of live through him, all the people who grew up in our area.
