Every faith has its sacred sites, its places of pilgrimage.  Football is no different.  San Siro, Nou Camp, Wembley:  these are the places the devotees congregate to re-affirm their belief and often to have it tested.  For followers of Réal Madrid, Bernabéu is the Holy of Holies.  I joined 80,000 of them recently on what was my first visit to the stadium to see a game against Eibar.

Faith encourages confession, so let me share a secret with you.  I was a little disappointed.  Not by the stadium, which was impressive enough, but by the faithful whose commitment was less forcefully expressed than I expected it to be.  I grew up watching football in England, where the passion of the fans is intense and relentless.  Dare I say it?  The Madrileños were surprisingly restrained in comparison.  A Spanish friend who joined me blamed the club’s years of success.  That makes sense.  Faith needs to be tested and adversity is the best way to do it.