Tears at La Bombonera: Stories from a Six-Year Sojourn in South America

by Christopher Hylland

Tears at La Bombonera is author Christopher Hylland's six-year journey living, working, and traveling through South America—where soccer, called football, is a way of life. From Buenos Aires to Colombia's Caribbean coast and back again, Hylland experiences the history and fanaticism at some of South America's football clubs along the way. Football is a global language, and he shares the stories and experiences from the terraces. It's a place where what happens on the pitch can rank low in terms of quality, but means so much off of it; where everything else, most notably the culture of the game, is unrivaled. Hundreds of thousands of football-mad visitors flock to South America every season. To the iconic stadia such as La Bombonera and Maracanã; to lower division teams in the shadows of some of the world's poorest slums and favelas. Tears at La Bombonera is a book rich in human interest, including the author's own personal experience of adapting to a new continent and way of life.

Genres: Football, Sports, Travel, Nonfiction, Soccer, Cultural

345 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 2021

About the author

Christopher Hylland is the author of the football-travelogue "Tears At La Bombonera: Stories from a SIx-Year Sojourn in South America", his first book. The follow-up, "Dame Bola: A Journey Through The Language Of Argentinian Football" will be released in 2024.

After six years in South America and 20 years in the UK, Hylland now lives in Oslo, Norway.

Reviews

[Avnish Anand · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a football travelogue across South America. The writer spent 6 years in South America immersing himself in the diverse set of football cultures across the continent. The result is a wonderful inside view of how the the game is played, watched and supported in different parts of South America. You read about the clubs and their histories and legends, the fans and their passion, the derbies and great rivalries, the tragedies and the fights and the role of politicians, dictators and Robin Hood styled drug lords.

The writer spent the maximum time in Argentina and develops a special affection for its football and its fans.

At the end of this book, you will be itching to do what the writer did - live in Argentina and other parts of South America and follow the game with the real fans. And that is why this is such a good book.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

An engrossing read into the six-year long voyage of an English-Norwegian across almost all South America (bar Ecuador, Paraguay and Venezuela), and his huge fascination with football. His chapters narrate matches, stadiums, derbies, football history, romantic endeavours, weird anecdotes, tourist summaries, close encounters with the criminal gangs, his love for El Stadio Monumental (River Plate's) and La Bombonera (Boca Junior's historic ground, hence the title) and especially his love for anything Argentine.

Plus the coolest football book cover ever.

[Callum Boyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly brilliant book about one man’s experience of living in Buenos Aires, sampling the footballing culture of Argentina and its surrounding South American countries.

As someone who is heading to Argentina in a couple of months, this is a book that has only gotten me more excited and I cannot wait to go and see some of the areas discussed in this book. One of my favourites reads

[Chris Thorn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Travel and football, a marriage that works so well for someone who loves doing both. Reading the chapter of the same name as the book title, the author somehow manages to describe the indescribable of the atmosphere and emotion you feel attending a Superclasico at La Bombonera. An excellent overall read.

[Johnny Keeley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just brilliant. Have read a lot of books about soccer and this is up with the best of them. Bravo.

[Daniel White · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went into the book with some but little knowledge of South American football but I’ve come away with so much more knowledge on not just South American football but the continent, travel experiences and lots more. While reading the book I found myself googling lots of the teams, stadiums, cities and landmarks the author visited. On the whole, it’s a very enjoyable read for any football fan.

[Dylan Mills · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting travelogue of Christopher's years in South America, with a nice mix of football and personal life stories intertwined, with lots of historical context provided to help explain the current landscape and culture. Would've loved for there to have been a bit more details in his stories though, especially around everyday life and how he found the sunday league football and small cafes and bars over the places he visited.

[Adam Moore McCarthy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable football/travelling South America book 3.75/5

[Lion's Rock · Rating 2 out of 5]

The best chapters in this rambling book are are all about the incredible football scene in Buenos Aires. The narrative could have been much better had it expanded on football and expat life in Argentina rather than backpacker forays. There was a lot of 'grabbing beers' with random people, and their friends, which could have been streamlined. The historical tangents were well summarised, but often felt hurriedly inserted into the author's stories, which sometimes lacked detail and focus. The Patagonia chapter, towards the end, was a bizarre inclusion.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it. If you are looking for a nice laid back vicarious trip through South America to watch some football matches look no further. Christopher has a great conversational style of writing that keeps the pages turning. It's a nice light hearted read about some interesting experiences that have only fueled my desire to get to South America. Thanks for sharing your travels and travails with us Christopher!

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t like this one as much as others did, it seems. Enjoyed when the story focused on the histories of the many clubs the author visited and how often politics became wrapped up in the sport. Less so when it devolved into the “listen to how much beer we drank” anecdotes that felt more like a personal travel diary.

[James · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a potentially interesting book and I only kept reading due to the unusual subject, because my main lesson to take from it is that most books have a minimum standard of writing that one can take for granted. The quote on the back is from Eduardo Galeano, and it's not a massive surprise that the publisher didn't trail text from this book, which was disjointed and generally a frustrating read.

Hylland was a football enthusiast who taught English and moved and travelled around South America to experience tourist sights, football matches and backpacker small talk, and the book focussed on the football aspect, chiefly in Buenos Aires. He came across as fairly agreeable but with a simplitic take on politics and somewhat cliched observations, but the main issue was the writing style itself. It was as though the entire book was just any note he had made during his travels put into chronological order, meaning new paragraphs could be quite jarring compared to the last one, and there were mundane observations included for no obvious reason, such as a mother and child who went to football regularly. There were no direct quotes or opinions from them, and in other books they would only be mentioned if they were to appear again later on with some significance.

There was at least an effort to describe key past events such as previous derbies and brief club histories, but past results and scorers could have done with more selective inclusion, or more narrative, rather than coming across as dry lists. Hylland was good at illustrating the different approaches to fans in grounds from the police, and would normally comment on the atmosphere or how many fans were there, but it was always from his viewpoint. I would have liked a native fan's perspective on attending games and how they treat supporting the club, and why some fans were willing to give up their seats for important games and pass on their membership card to somebody else. The author admitted he started hanging around with other expats but even as he assimilated more the native thoughts didn't come through.

Instead there were the often repetitive musings of a permanent tourist, with fairly shallow political opinions and what was effectively a diary in prose form, with the flow dictated by chronology rather than theme. There was little attempt to link aspects of living in Argentina and attending football and the book was crying out for it, at the expense of details of which bar Hylland had watched an Arsenal match in.

The book still had some merit for its atypical content and the experience of a punter rather than a journalist, but the emotion he felt at La Bombonera didn't come through the pages to me and while I'm sure it was heartfelt it wasn't clear what made Argentine football so enchanting for him.

[Darren H · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had read a lot of positive things about this book. It had been reviewed and recommended by a lot of journalists and people I respect greatly. I bought this book with high expectations and it did not disappoint. Brilliantly written in a very engaging style that really puts you right there on the journey with the author. He really makes you feel that you are there with him. He details the big events from living in Argentina and attending the main Boca v River Plate match itself on a few occasions but also matches during the World Cup in Brazil in 2014, smaller matches and local derbies some which he meticulously researched and based his travel around and others which he learnt of when there. This is a great book about football but it is also about a lot more and that is down to the skill of the author, detailing the friendships made, day to day things that happen, little idiosyncrasies about life in another culture, missing Argentina when he was travelling in other parts of South America, the small events and little (often hilariously funny in places) things that happen along his travels and the idiosyncrasies about life in the parts of the world he visited. He takes you on this great journey and experiences along the way in a style that really draws you in. The Author did great research on the history of the places he visited and it is filled with really interesting and sometimes heartbreakingly sad historical facts. The book is brilliantly well written in a very engaging and personable style. On another point, but I do feel this is worth mentioning, the book itself (the hardback edition) is very well designed. It seems that a lot of thought and effort went into putting it together in terms of size, design and functionality. It is really appreciated. It looks superb in terms of pictures and the design of the book. Really clever idea to have a hardback book in a standard size which makes it a lot easier to read (and travel with) and it looks class too. A thoroughly enjoyable and superbly written book from a very talented and engaging writer. A book I am certain I will read again and also buy as a present for friends who I know would appreciate this. A great book. It is a book about football, it is a book about travel and it is a book about life and friendship and it is brilliantly written

[Lachlan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A captivating read by football/South America/travel fan, Chris Hylland. There was a lot to like about this book for me, much of Chris’s experiences travelling and living in South America clicked with my experiences, albeit I lived in Bogota, and he was in Buenos Aires with a stint in Medellin. I liked the section on Colombian football and the history behind the teams there. I’ve been to a Millonarios v Santa Fe clásico and I thought he did very well to describe the scene.

I enjoyed the football history of the clubs around South America. I knew some of the big club names but not the stories behind them which Hylland tells with interesting facts, anecdotes, and connected to him visiting the stadiums or chatting with fans. This was a particular strong point as Hylland speaks Spanish, he was able to get opinions direct from die-hard fans, especially from smaller clubs which might not usually get a mention. This, along with Hylland’s backstory and travels, I thought really humanised the book and gave it a personal touch which blended nicely with the football stories and facts. I found myself wanting to jump on a plane to Buenos Aires to eat choripan, drink Quilmes, and scalp tickets to a River Plate v Boca Juniors clásico.

Hylland’s passion for the game, and in particular, Argentine football shines through. You only have to see the list of games he watched live at the back of the book to see his passion.

A great read for lovers of South America, football, and travel.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this. I've been increasingly interested in Latin American history and culture and have been starting to watch some Argentine and Copa Libertadores matches, and have started to realize how few English-language resources there are about the Latin American game. This book was absolutely perfect for me when I discovered it. I devoured it in just a few days.

I was impressed by how much of the game's history was recounted here. This kind of book could easily be done way more lazily than this, but Hylland takes it upon himself to recount aspects of the game in various Latin American countries that aren't easily accessible in English elsewhere.

It's maybe a little long, and sometimes the chronology jumping around can be a little confusing, but overall this is really readable and interesting and was just what the doctor ordered for me. If you are a fan of the beautiful game and have any interest in what it means socially in other parts of the world, highly recommended.

[Huỳnh Ngọc · Rating 5 out of 5]

An enchanting account of the author’s journey throughout South America and mainly Argentina, where he tells stories about not only football but the enormous culture that comes with it. Reading this book will make you immersed in the way people on this continent live and breath football, the passion, the superstition, the commitment and even the danger and chaos of the vibrant and ever-alive continent that is South America as a whole, and Argentina specifically. I appreciate that the author not only writes about the most well-known teams but also teams from lower divisions, every story is worth telling. This is the book that you want to keep reading forever and I do feel like the author took me to Argentina. 10/10 would recommend.

[Geir Ertzgaard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dette er ikke litteratur i snever forstand, det er en fortelling om livet som groundhopper og backpacker i Sør-Amerika mellom 2009 og 2019, og det var en fryd å være med Christopher Hylland på reisene hans til forskjellige stadioner i Buenos Aires og rundt om på hele kontinentet. Til å begynne med handlet det mest om fotball og stadioner som jeg også har vært på og kjent på atmosfæren fra. Etterhvert utvider skopet seg både geografisk og tematisk, og jeg ble underholdt og jeg ble klokere - og det er mer enn jeg hadde forventa av denne fargerike og unike reise/fotballskildringen.

Liker du å reise? Er du fotballgal? Denne treffer.

[Danny · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book but in the end I could barely finish it. There’s little to no cultural depth to the book nor any real depth into the grounds visited across the six year journey. Stories told within it are vague and focuses on personal experiences. It takes a bizarre segue on identifying and listing how many beers were drank over the course of a country and noting the number of girlfriends and trying to step up to being step dad in Lima. There’s a chance that this is simply down to me for wanting it to be as magnificent as Jonathan Wilson’s Angels With Dirty Faces, but I feel it tried to take on too much and ultimately failed.

[Per Brastad · Rating 2 out of 5]

As it says in the title: «Football, Travel, Culture, History, Groundhopping.»
I'd expect a book published with those key elements on the cover to contain some exciting stories, entertainment and anecdotes; and new insights and approaches to history, culture and politics. This was possibly also the author’s ambition, but sadly I feel that he didn’t succeed. The book came across as a groundhopper’s record, with some attachments, most of them not very interesting or enlightening for those who know even a little about the continent and its recent history.

[foxfire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book. I'm not one for travelogues anymore, but the author here does a great job doing something new, unique and engaging. I particularly enjoyed the blend of history, travel-diary, and soccer that results in a great tour of the contemporary world of South American football.

As well, when I recently traveled to Buenos Aires & Montevideo, the author was quick to respond to my questions re: going to matches via twitter. Gotta love that.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought 'Tears at La Bombonera' expecting nothing more than an insight into South American football, what I actually found was one man's account of a six year love affair with a sport, a country and a continent.

Highly recommend to anyone with an interest in football or travel books.

[Alex Fullarton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having spent a small amount of time in South America and experiencing as much football as I could (not enough) this book was exactly the fix I needed, makes you want to book a flight to Buenos Aires immediately.

[Ryan Bowman · Rating 3 out of 5]

(3.5 rounded down)
interesting stories but the author jumps around in the storytelling quite a bit, making it a bit hard to follow where he is and what he’s doing. doesn’t really engage with the fan culture very much, just talks about meeting random fans and going to a game.

[Barry Cosgrave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good read for fans of footy & travel .

[Nick Matra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wanted to love it, couldn’t do it - had to tap out

[Chini · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superó todas mis expectativas, un retrato de la historia de los clubes, sus mitos, y el contexto social en que se fueron desarrollando.

[Rhys Webster · Rating 5 out of 5]

A genuinely outstanding read. Full of fun anecdotes and history, this is a love letter to a country (and continent) with a unique personality. I would recommend this to any football fan

[Andrew Guttridge · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting travelogue of the authors experience living in and travelling in South America, mostly Argentina. Informative, funny and captures the spirit of football in this region.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book, good quick read.

[Jack Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really fabulous read on football travel, culture and history in South America. Very readable, with a consistently engaging narrative, but also full of information. Fantastic.