Gregg Covers Sport

Last weekend myself and my carer went on a short break to Lisbon, and given my love of football, I planned to attend SL Benfica’s home game against G.D Estoril Praia, getting to watch one of the world’s most historic clubs. Here’s how I got on!

Getting a ticket

Once I had booked the trip, unashamedly one of my first searches was to find out which of Lisbon’s two storied teams (Sporting or Benfica) was playing at home that weekend. After finding out it was the later, I looked at how to get a ticket. It turned out that to buy a disabled ticket online, you are required to be in possession of a type of Portuguese disability identification number, so I would have to try my luck at the stadium once I was actually in Lisbon. The game had been moved to a Sunday evening (8:30pm kick off) due to Benfica’s Europa League Last 16 First Leg against Rangers on the Thursday night prior, which is a rare kick-off time in England.

So on the Saturday we ventured off to the Estadio da Luz for two reasons. Firstly to actually buy a ticket for the game, but to also test out the public transport routes to make sure we had an accessible route. Initially we had hoped to take the metro, but soon discovered that the nearest station had no lift access, so it was a case of getting a bus as close as we could and then a 10 minute uphill walk. Once we got to the ground, it was easy enough to buy a ticket (£38 was very reasonable compared to the £60 it would cost me to watch Chelsea back home) and we did the journey back in reverse feeling suitably prepared for matchday.

Matchday

We repeated the same journey had done the day before, wanting to get to the ground an hour or so before kick-off to soak up some of the pre-match atmosphere. One issue we encountered on matchday was the cars parked on the street were often blocking the only drop kerb nearby, leaving me somewhat stranded. However, the Benfica fans couldn’t have been more accommodating, helping my carer lift me gently down into the road. Once at the ground the atmosphere was already building nicely, fans setting off fireworks and the dj getting the crowds going. I had my photo taken with the statue of the legend that is Eusebio, one of the greatest players to ever play the game, and headed into the stadium to get into my seat.

Here’s where we encountered our second problem. I realised Benfica had only sent me one ticket, my ticket, despite my receipt showing I had ordered a complimentary carers ticket. Now trying to explain this when you know not a word of Portuguese is difficult, so I am extremely grateful to a fellow wheelchair user who spoke excellent English and who could explain the situation clearly, which was soon resolved.

The pre-match build up was electric, the crowd singing plenty of songs, including their anthem ‘Ser Benfiquista’ which was a pleasure to witness. This atmosphere continued into the game, as being sat next to the ultras we were treated to continuous chanting throughout the 90 minutes. We were also treated to plenty of goals, with Benfica running out 3-1 winners, including a stunning strike from Orkun Kökçü. The main talking point was a protest staged by the ultras in the first half, unfurling banners that read “No one is above Benfica” and throwing flares onto the pitch, causing the game to be stopped for a few minutes. The passion European fans have for their teams is unrivalled in my opinion, and it’s hard not to get swept up in all the emotion. Once the game finished it was time to make the trip back to the hotel, which required us waiting 20 minutes for a bus at 11:30pm, not getting in till midnight, something that is unheard of England. Overall a Benfica matchday is a brilliant experience, one I would recommend to any football fan, and one you can do with relative ease in a wheelchair which is fantastic (granted the uphill walk may be more difficult in a manual wheelchair). I’ll definitely be hoping to tick off more football games on any travel in the future!