Connie Buettner on her love of football and the electric atmosphere of the Santander Champions League Final.
Structure, properties, reactions. Am I talking about organic chemistry or football? On the surface, it’s not easy to draw comparisons between the two great loves of my life, but they’re more alike than they first appear: the elements and their application determines the outcome.
CUAFL Champions x 3
We seem to have calculated things perfectly on the pitch this year, as our combined football team, Lucy-Christs'-Churchill, won – for the third year running – the Cambridge University Association Football League (CUAFL) Plate Finals. No fewer than three players on the winning team represent Lucy Cavendish: Josefina Weinerova, Lu Liu, and me; I’m also on the Women’s Blues Team and Treasurer of CUAFL. As you can see, my love for football runs deep.
As if the joy of winning the League wasn’t enough, I was thrilled to be invited to the Santander Champions League Final screening at the newly-built Tottenham Hotspur stadium. The event featured a tour of the stadium, talks by some prominent sports figures and a live screening of the biggest game in club football. With Lucy very generously paying for my travel, I could hardly say no!
THFC Stadium Tour
Upon arrival, we were split into groups and given a stadium tour which included behind-the-scenes access to the pitch, the home dressing room and luxurious VIP area. After the tour, a former professional cricketer, Jeremy Snape, gave us some insight on how the mental aspect of top-level sport is often overlooked in the preparation for high-pressure situations. His talk culminated in a Q&A session with Dennis Wise, a long-time Chelsea FC footballer. They spoke unguardedly about dealing with failure, and using its lessons to build resilience, which really resonated with the students in the audience. Santander had also invited Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Tanya Oxtoby for another Q&A session. This discussion focused more on football, especially expectations for the upcoming Champions League final.
Watching the UEFA Champions League final
As generous as Santander have been to Lucy Cavendish College, flying us out to the Wanda Metropolitano in Madrid to watch the game was obviously a bridge too far! But as I made my way out to the stands with the roar of 62,000 Tottenham fans in my ears, I realised this was a pretty close second. The atmosphere was electric! Five huge screens stood in the middle of the pitch. The sound within the stadium walls was incredible as the Champions League final between Liverpool and Tottenham kicked off. Despite conceding a goal in the second minute, the Spurs fans only quietened down in the final minutes of the game, when Liverpool made it 2-0. At this point, it was clear that Liverpool would become European champions and thousands deflated fans started to stream out of the stadium.
Thank you, Santander Universities
Looking back, it was a fantastic day, organised exceptionally well by Santander Universities which gave a group of lucky football-mad students the experience of a lifetime. I learned a lot from the prominent panel members, and their candid discussions about failure kept our table talking for a long time after the session had finished. I would highly recommend this event to anyone who may get the chance to go in the future. The memories of the new stadium, sincere discussions and a great Champions League final will stay with me forever!
Connie Buettner