You see football, as anyone outside of North America calls it, is more than a religion. It has been elevated to a cult like status in some countries where some of the best players who play the game have become more popular than the sport itself.

After spending one year working in Kampala, Uganda I also became a member of the football cult. I don't think that it was by choice but more along the lines of curiosity and necessity. I wanted to know what all the commotion was about in the various local bars around town. Spending each Saturday afternoon at my favourite bar, TLC, to watch teams and players I had never even heard about run up and down a field trying to get a ball into a net took some time to get used to. I was introduced to the top two favourite teams that Ugandans loved to watch: The Arsenal Gunners and the Manchester United Red Devils.

Talk about rivalry. Certain parts of the capital city are known as areas that are strictly Arsenal or Man U territory only…. not both! While I never signed in blood my allegiance to either team I did have fun seeing the two sides react when their opponent scored. Uniforms are adorned on game day and the bars are filled with cheap local brew flowing by the bottle. Kids down sodas by the crate load used as a cheap trick by fathers to keep them happy and full. Many girlfriends also give in and tag along with their significant other to keep them occupied on a typical sunny 30 C afternoon. Sadly though, most of them realize rather quickly that they will be receiving little attention once the game starts.

	Thierry Henry is just one of the stars on the Arsenal Gunners.

My first game was an eye-opener. It was a Man U vs. Arsenal game. Now, if I had known now what I did then I would have been better prepared for what I saw. The bar was PACKED! Images of absolutely crazy fans from both Arsenal and Man U jerseys blurred around me as beer flowed and pre-game bets were made. I looked for my work-mates in a sea of different colours and finally found them waving frantically at me with cold beers waiting on the table. Sweat was pouring down my face from all the excitement, confusion and the sheer amount people I had not expected. Of course I knew that it wouldn't be just me, the bartender and a couple of waitresses watching the game but this was unreal. I looked at my colleague Andrew and shook my head. He just laughed at me hysterically. He knew that I wasn't expecting all this pandemonium especially on a Wednesday night. He just tapped me on the back and mumbled, "Welcome to Kampala's Little Highbury!" and offered me a beer.

Although I do remember the final score of the game was 2-0 for Man U. It wasn't the score of the game or who scored the goals that hit me the most. It was how a country of 24.5 million about the size of the state of Oregon took Premier League football so seriously. It was how Ugandans adored these semi-gods by the names of Scholes, Pires, Van Nistlerooy and Henry. It was amazing. If only the English knew.

	Does Fergie know about the type of support he gets from Uganda?

A couple of weeks before saying good-bye to friends and colleagues in Kampala I caught one last game at my favourite watering hole. There was a contest that allowed two fans to win an all expense paid trip to watch a Man U vs. Chelsea game. The following week the lucky fans were announced and guess who one of the winners was? No, unfortunately it wasn't me. Believe it or not it was that crazy Man U fan John. So who knows maybe all that yelling did do him some good. And maybe, just maybe, Fergie might hear him scream over the thousands of fans at Old Trafford Stadium. Then again…. maybe not.