Images of Soccer in Oaxaca
During the last two weeks in which I spent doing research on migration in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, I think I annoyed my fellow students by excitedly pointing out every time I saw a soccer field or game. Obsessed is the word I often heard my classmates use to describe me. I can’t say they were wrong.
During the two weeks, I took some pictures of soccer fields and games being played in all sorts of locations. A selection of the best are below.
The majority of the time, we were in the small rural town of San Miguel Tlacotepec. Set in the Mixteca Alta region (so named for the Mixtec-speaking indigenous people who have lived there for centuries), the town sits in a valley between the many mountains that provide the backdrop. Below is San Miguel’s dirt soccer field set next to a basketball court, which also doubles as a soccer field. Given that the dirt field was hard as a rock due to the current dry conditions, the court was a much better option, especially for Fútbol Rápido, the Mexico style of play similar to American indoor soccer.
While in San Miguel, I spent a fair amount of time at schools, as part of my research is focused on the impact of migration on education. While there, I took every opportunity to play soccer with local kids. I played at a local elementary school one day, but quickly grew tired due to the elevation, as San Miguel is more than a mile above sea level (I have a newfound appreciation of national teams’ complaints about having to play in high-altitude cities). I sat down to rest and took some pictures of the students playing.
At an elementary school event for parents later that week, I noticed two young boys. Bored with the official goings-on, they found a soccer ball and began to play. Was I witnessing the next Rafa Marquez and Giovanni Dos Santos?
After our time in San Miguel, our group went to Oaxaca City for a day and a half of relaxation. While strolling through the streets, my head turned when I saw two MLS jerseys hanging in a sporting goods store. Next to Pumas and America jerseys, they seemed completely out of place but such is the impact of Beckham and Blanco.
Oaxaca is an incredibly beautiful city, replete with colonial architecture. Another colonial influence can be seen in the city’s churches, many of which were constructed by the Spaniards. One of the most famous is the local Catedral de Oaxaca, set next to the town center. A holy site for many, these children found another use for the nearly 300 year-old building. All three boys played together for a while until two moved on, leaving a lone player to use the cathedral’s walls as a passing partner.
On my last day in Oaxaca, I spied a boy dribbling his ball down the street. He was unperturbed by the people around him, the cars driving by on the street next to him, and the gringo taking his picture. He was a vision of concentration, focused only on the ball at his feet.
December 24th, 2007 18:24
Really neat. I had a bunch of pictures of soccer in Oaxaca from my trip there last spring but I lost them when my computer got stolen. I was actually in Oaxaca City for the first few days of the world cup so it included the citywide celebrations of the 3-1 Mexican demolition of Iran. It was also very strange being the only white person in a packed bar watching the US get stomped on by the Czechs.
But by far the best was the beach soccer in the little coastal towns.
December 24th, 2007 18:32
Great stuff, man…and as much as I love the futbol in Mejico angle, I’d love to hear more about the research project itself. Sounds pretty interesting, and timely.
December 25th, 2007 00:37
OT: How are you liking UCSD so far? I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s slowly sucking out my soul. I just wish the lights at Warren Field had been put in the two years I lived on-campus. Everytime I’m there now I see people playing soccer.
December 25th, 2007 12:28
Oxaca City is a beautiful city. There has been some politial unrest there in the last year. I hope the city has recovered.
December 25th, 2007 13:10
Here’s to Temo selling more shirts then Beckham! Forza Fire! Great read as usual.
December 26th, 2007 17:56
Ace Cowboy - Here is a very broad overview of the research project. Basically, we were in a San Miguel for two weeks. During that time, our main task was to find people to talk with and administer a roughly 150-question survey to. The questions on that survey are similar to the ones on the 2005 version.
In addition to the survey, students in the program (35 in total, roughly 20 undergrads and 15 grad students) were broken into groups, each of which had a topic to investigate more fully. My group, for example, is focusing on the impact of migration on education. We did in-depth interviews with teachers, administrators, students, and parents about this and observed in several schools.
During the next couple of months, we will doing the same type of fieldwork with people from San Miguel who live in the US. Conveniently, many live in San Diego County.
After we have done all of this data-gathering we will analyze our findings. Eventually, each group will write a chapter that will be compiled into a book. This book is the latest in a series, which includes similar studies of towns in Jalisco and the Yucatán.
I can say that the fieldwork portion of the project in Mexico was a wonderful experience for me. I learned a lot and had a great time, which is an excellent combination. If you want to see non-soccer pictures from our trip, check out our group Flickr page.
December 28th, 2007 00:54
I love how Oaxacans love basketball and Baseball as much as soccer. Just shows how they do it a little bit differently in the land of Juarez.
January 2nd, 2008 00:24
DK - A small favor: if you see the next Ken Griffey Jr (the one who didn’t take steroids and will make the hall of fame legitimately) down there during one of your trips, give him my number and tell him the Mariners are the team to be with! Plus, you don’t want their best athletes playing soccer right b/c then the USA will be able to take them more easily. You win and my Ms win. No losers here. Happy new year. Scotland soccer forever in 08!
March 31st, 2008 12:38
i think this a good rescource for a research