Day 54 – Santa Laura Estadio – Universidad Chile 3 – 3 Unión Español, Santiago, Chile

Jumping out of the taxi near the stadium I assumed it would be a simple matter of finding the ticket office and making the purchase. I was wrong – they don’t sell tickets at the game, you have to buy them online beforehand. However like all entertainment events around the world there will always be touts and people with spare tickets willing to sell. And so for 8000 Chilean pesos (approx £9) I got a ticket from one of the Unión fans just before kick off.

And what a great game to see, three apiece, with a red card and three penalties! The home side, Universidad de Chile, down to ten men after a dubious decision in the second half, came back from 3-2 to score a late equaliser, sending the passionate fans around me into raptures.

Fans watching a match between Universidad de Chile and Unión Española on 01-03-2014 (result 3-3), Estadio Santa Laura-Universidad SEK, Santiago, Chile

Fans watching a match between Universidad de Chile and Unión Española on 01-03-2014 (result 3-3), Estadio Santa Laura-Universidad SEK, Santiago, Chile

Fans watching a match between Universidad de Chile and Unión Española on 01-03-2014 (result 3-3), Estadio Santa Laura-Universidad SEK, Santiago, Chile

Fans watching a match between Universidad de Chile and Unión Española on 01-03-2014 (result 3-3), Estadio Santa Laura-Universidad SEK, Santiago, Chile

Fans watching a match between Universidad de Chile and Unión Española on 01-03-2014 (result 3-3), Estadio Santa Laura-Universidad SEK, Santiago, Chile