January sucks.

The weather remains as cold and dark as it was in December, but the pre-Christmas cheer has been entirely replaced by an emotional hollowness further compounded by the fact that we’re all broke. With so much post-party penny-pinching persisting, travelling to watch and write about Football becomes a lesser priority. But halfway through a bowl of soggy discount cereal this morning, an obvious question sprung to mind.

How cheap can you make a Football away day?

Now I am well aware that we Yorkshiremen are rather famed for our occasional frugal attitudes, but, to me at least, the challenge had immediate appeal. Could we make splashing out on an extravagant itinerary to watch a high-profile fixture somewhere in the world seem entirely unnecessary by traveling to a new city on the cheap for some fun and Football in order to produce some decent writing?

A quick Google of some professional Football fixtures taking place within a reasonable distance from Camp FBTG indicated that I probably could. After a lengthier research process this evening, I have hashed out a loose plan and come up with a suitable goal;

Complete a weekend away watching professional Football in another city and write a follow-up blog post without spending over 100€.

A straightforward challenge that sounds easy, right? But for it to be a proper FBTG away day, a few criteria must be met;

• I must spend at least one night in the city in question.
• I must purchase some sort of souvenir.
• The match must be located in another province or state from where I begin the journey.
• I must get drunk.
• I must watch the entire match in question, from kick-off to the final whistle.
• I must be on time for work again on Monday morning.

This set of criteria immediately implicates several essential outgoings. The greatest are going to be the ticket for the match (as much as I’d love to get across to New York, it is highly likely that the challenge will be attempted in Spain, where tickets can skyrocket depending on the fixture), travel to and from the destination and accommodation (the perennial piggy-bank-buster). Knowing how FBTG weekends usually pan out, alcohol is the variable that could quickly sap away at the budget. A knick-knack souvenir will cost very little. A fan-scarf would be the preferred option, but a postcard of the city will suffice. And that leaves food, the quality of which I am astonishingly gifted at compromising on.

Only two questions remain. When and where will FBTG‘s 100€ Away Day take place? I can say with no uncertainty that it will be this very weekend. And where? If you guess correctly, I will purchase your season ticket for next season.

You know I won’t really, but feel free to take a guess anyway.

The challenge has been laid down. This time next week we will be putting pen to paper to let you know not just what happened but also how it happened, and more importantly, how much it all cost. I will hold on to every receipt (as much as possible) and attempt to keep an honest tab of my expenditures as I maximise fun without going over the 100€ mark.

Heck, two of us managed to blag two 10€ tickets to see Real Madrid CF play at home before. We got this.

fbtg