I Watched Football In a Country That HATES It

[@MaxFosh]

I watched Andy Murray win Wimbledon 2013 in that bar at 5:47 on an outdoor telly - what history Lithuania has

[@riaz_5385]

ok mate

[@barranquillaaviation]

cool

[@cheesenugget3254]

Ok

[@ALE-hi5mj]

@MaxFosh 🐐 of 🎾???

[@awaydaysfootball]

😂😂😂 a truly iconic sports monument

[@pijusas8219]

As a Lithuanian I can 100% confirm that the football culture just isn't really present here. During the soviet times football was quite popular here, Žalgiris Vilnius was (and still is) the biggest club here. It had a bigger real grass stadium just near the river (it was closed a while back and recently destroyed to build offices). Žalgiris played in the soviet 1st division with teams like cska Moscow, dynamo Kyiv, Shakhtar Donetsk... The attendance of the games was also pretty good. There is this story where more than 5k Lithuanian football fans teamed up with Ukrainian away fans (it was Dynamo Kyiv I think) to beat up the Russian soldiers in charge of security for the game (it was unarmed army rookies working as stewards). But then Lithuania got it's independence and football's popularity took a drop. The Žalgiris stadium was closed and there were only small stadiums left. The LFF stadium (which you visited) became our national stadium. The football federation was (and still partially is) ran by criminal organizations (gangs) which were really present here in the 1990's. The league here was weak, the federation stole money, we had no good stadiums (There is this famous failed attempt of building a stadium ). Also the fans weren't that supportive ( frequent racism cases like with Akinfenwa). The country lacked investment in youth football. In recent years we saw some improvement even if the national team is still only ranked 145th in the world. We built a new national stadium with 15k seats, Žalgiris Vilnius became the first Lithuanian team to qualify for European football last year... The local teams are also growing in popularity. European competition qualifiers and the competitions themselves seem to attract people to the stadiums. The local league is still not very popular with only a couple dozen people attending matches regularly. Most of these things are because of football being in the shadow of basketball. Our national basketball team is way better than the football team and naturally attracts more people. Basketball arenas are way more full than stadiums. also playing basketball here is more accessible for the youth or as a casual player. There are way more basketball courts than football grounds. As a football fan I hope that the football will grow in popularity here especially if our clubs improve and achieve more in the European competitions, but for now it is still in the shadow of basketball.

[@awaydaysfootball]

Really great comment, thank you for this!

[@Charlizzie]

First, like the Philippines, it has something to do with fast pace and height is the factor. Second, I have seen some tall Lithuanian men and women online most of the Filipinos are jealous to see.

[@pijusas8219]

@@awaydaysfootball It's thanks to you for coming to our small country and documenting your stay

[@varganorbert5421]

The biggest new stadium is in Kaunas. The biggest stadium in tha Baltic region. The name is: Dariaus ir Gireno stadionas. 1 year old and the national team's home.

[@Steadman19]

Really informative comment, i have always wondered why the baltics don’t have a massive football presence! Hope it continues to grow

[@Brzzyy]

As a Lithuanian and a fan of this channel, I can confirm that the second the camera tilted to my flag I nearly had a heart attack 😂

[@aaronhurst4379]

That is an amazing username hahaha

[@fkkte]

I was afraid it was gonna be my country 🇺🇸

[@Brzzyy]

@@fkkte lol could’ve been 😂

[@Hood_ish]

ong 😭

[@p.rumang5386]

Arne goat

[@jackhunter2952]

You should go to a Loughgall FC game in Northern Ireland, a team who just got promoted to the top flight with under 300 people living in the village.

[@Ripmatthews]

I’m 1 of those 300 😎😎😎😎

[@TheGiantKillers]

Irish League is something to behold. Never in the field of Football have officiators been so over officious for so few fans. Anyone who has ever had to deal with the IFA need no explanation.

[@sarahsherry7434]

Come on ireland

[@Shornil23481]

Same @@Ripmatthews

[@robloxgirlhi180]

I PLAY FOR THEM

[@davidthompson1383]

"You keep coming in 35 minutes into the game"😂😂

[@awaydaysfootball]

😂😂😂

[@Renxl_Editz]

😂

[@owlboy_28]

😂😂😂

[@gavinpritchard1604]

I went to Lithuania in 2017 to watch my team in a Europa League Qualifer. We had locals coming upto us before the game, wishing us luck against the team we were playing against. We also had to traverse a forest to get to the stadium, lovely scenery, but the funny part was whilst the game was on, there were actual fans of this team leaving the stadium at HT to go play basketball on an open court next to the car park area!!

[@awaydaysfootball]

Yeah it’s very surreal!

[@OSU-CS20]

What’s ur team!?

[@greenieclips1]

@@OSU-CS20I see u everywhere

[@OSU-CS20]

@@greenieclips1 really lmao? Where?

[@greenieclips1]

@@OSU-CS20 idk I’ve seen like 5 comments until now

[@paulius2019]

As a Lithuanian I almost died of laughter, when the camera tilted towards the Lithuanian flag. And football in Lithuania is slowly becoming more popular. More and more people are coming to the games. Hopefully it won't stop growing.

[@awaydaysfootball]

Good to hear!!!

[@thomasjohnson2862]

I understand more people are attending Žalgiris league matches this year than last, after their European adventures last year and being the first Lithuanian club to qualify for the group stages. Aren’t they going to build a new football stadium in Vilnius, I think I read?

[@paulius2019]

​@@thomasjohnson2862 Yes, the new football stadium is under construction and should be completed in 2025.

[@bigytutoshd5146]

​@@thomasjohnson2862the construction was announced like 10 years ago so we'll see😂...

[@WilkSzary0]

I hope not. Football is the worst sport on this planet xd

[@tbone7531]

Fun Fact: Adebayo Akinfenwa has played for two lithuanian teams Fk Atlantas 2001 - 2002 and for 2003 season Laisvė Šilutė.

[@hoovertino]

also Paulinho played for Vilnius in 2006-2007 season

[@josephyearwood1179]

Triumph of the Willness

[@josephyearwood1179]

8:39 The young woman seen in the background is wearing a black top with the words “THE ORTH FACE” rather than THE NORTH FACE.

[@dannyiontton3669]

no lie, I went to a festival there in 2019 with my old flatmate from Lithuania, I had kids watching me do basic kickups like it was the most impressive thing ever, they just need that 1 generational player to turn it around and make football great over there.

[@awaydaysfootball]

😂😂

[@dannyiontton3669]

@@awaydaysfootball also how great was the mega pints? A work out as well as a quick way to get pissed 😅

[@bb-double-yuh]

Or they can just stick to basketball so that I can relate as an American. Lol

[@JasperB12]

golambeckis it is time

[@Cheese-Gamer-b9d]

I (kind of) agree with the kids because I can’t do basic kick ups. I even have bad control when I’m assisted 😂

[@ivanmetal]

little story: everywhere i go, i try to go to the local stadium. and sneak into it, if it is necessary . 2017, In Vilnius i went to the stadium (pretty close to the city center BTW), once arrived, i was intercepted by a LFF guy who gently asked me what i was doing. I told him that i really love football and stadiums, show him some pictures of me doing the same in other countries, etc.... The guy, not only let me walk around and take pictures of the stadium (it was closed to the public that day), but also he gave me a scarf of the national team of Lithuania as a present. Really friendly people there

[@lietuvosfutboloarchyvas]

Well in Lithuania it wouldn't even be sneaking, you can just walk in to most of stadiums. Last year you could even walk into the building site of the new big Kaunas stadium, before it was finished

[@yourm8markas]

I am from Lithuania (and I lived in other countries) and i can confirm that people here are jerks, maybe some exceptions to tourists but Lithuania is a little bit racist sometimes

[@ivanmetal]

@@yourm8markas luckily from me, no bad experiences at all in Lithuania :D

[@yourm8markas]

@@ivanmetal good for you

[@stevejones8314]

Spent 10 days wandering Lithuania in 2018 and it's one of the best trips I've ever done - friendliest people I've ever encountered. Oh and UV lights in toilets are usually there to make it harder for people to locate a a vein to inject drugs(maybe that's why the crowd were so quiet!)

[@sm0iks698]

in the baltic states in general we have other passions , such as ice hockey or basketball. we are even passionate more about 3v3 basketball than football, but in recent times as a latvian ive seen some latvian players showing their shine in germany and italy so i cant wait for what the future holds and i hope that baltic football gets talked about more.

[@giorgiograsso853]

My team's gk (Catania, last year in Italian 4th tier, but promoted in 3rd tier) of last year is Latvian. Klavs Bethers, great guy and great goalie. I hope he'll extend his contract for the next season because he has a bright future ahead.

[@kiantt11]

Ayy Latvia 🇱🇻❤

[@sm0iks698]

@@giorgiograsso853 yes i agree great goalie there are also players that are in parma and spezia that are italian so i cant wait for that

[@ecstasycalculus]

From what I can tell, Estonians and Lithuanians aren't nearly as passionate about ice hockey as Latvians

[@The3rdMan198]

Hi There👋 One Player From EVERY Premier League Club That Needs To Be SOLD is out now on our channel🚨 Check it out👍🏻

[@bigdoghaveit]

The UV light in a toilet is to stop people from taking drugs in Norway because then you can’t see the veins keep making the videos they are amazing and I love the content

[@awaydaysfootball]

Makes a lot of sense!!

[@EnglandErnie]

Great country, great people. Vilnius is an amazing city. Thursday through to Saturday nightlife is unreal! Went to Alytus to watch FC Dainava in Lyga A ..even they had some ultra’s and it’s 100km from Vilnius and a pretty sleepy town.

[@awaydaysfootball]

Unreal city!

[@tbfünke]

This reminds me a lot of my local USL Championship (2nd tier in USA) team's matches. The stadium is quite similar with small, minimal stands on each side of the pitch, very casual atmosphere with fans coming/leaving during play yet a very focused and passionate ultras section, and the area next to the pitch with people buying concessions and kids playing.

[@dansugardude2655]

Which USL-C team is that for you? My local team is the poor Hartford Athletic 😢

[@tbfünke]

@@dansugardude2655 Phoenix Rising FC I've been to your stadium and it was quite nice actually! Except for the nazi-like security they had at that place

[@lorenzobordignon6997]

@@dansugardude2655 soon derby v Rhode Island

[@taylornelson2416]

I was just thinking that, it's a similar vibe for sure

[@The3rdMan198]

Hi There👋 One Player From EVERY Premier League Club That Needs To Be SOLD is out now on our channel🚨 Check it out👍🏻

[@kerbytamares6403]

Lithuania reminds me so much of the Philippines!😁 Its the only country in Asia that I think is not crazy about football, they have a top league with only 5 clubs. The no#1 sports is basketball. You guys should go there!

[@ryanbeltran9413]

Yeah it’s true. I’m a basketball guy so I think it’s good Lithuania and Philippines are countries that make basketball global but I love football too and want football to grow in brig especially as a Filipino. Women’s team won a game this recent WC which is nice, but the men’s team and hype of football is not great. I can get basketball but something like volleyball which is mediocre is even more popular than football. Even beauty pageants man. I hope there can be good football success and growth in both countries which also having strong basketball culture as well.

[@filmusichris]

​@@ryanbeltran9413Chinese main sport is also basketball. As a football fan who's watching La Liga, Premier League, Bundesliga, Ligue 1, Serie A and UEFA/UCL, I also want basketball to be more popular around the world because it's my second favorite sport next to football.

[@handsomeguy316]

Philippines football League has 12 teams in pfl cup and football was big back in 2010 in the Philippines

[@Mantazaurass]

Great video! You should really come over and see the Lithuania's national team play, Football is finally starting to grow here in Lithuania and there are a bunch of new football stadiums getting built, for example in Kaunas, was watching a match there recently, had an awesome atmosphere, the big stadium was filled to the brim with everyone shouting, drums and chants playing along. Yes, the teams themselves aren't that known here but the national team matches are usually the best ones. :) Glad you had a fun time here.

[@nawaki4586]

You should come watch Bohemians 1905 - Bodo/Glimt in Prague on August 3rd. Bohemians is a very traditional club that made it into European competitionfor the first time in ages. Unfortunately its played at Sparta Pragues stadium but the atmosphere should still be good. The club was actually saved from bankruptcy by its fans around 20 years ago and is also the boyhood club of Antonín Panenka, who goes to every home game.

[@thomasjohnson2862]

I saw Žalgiris in the Conference League last year in Vilnius, and was there for the Eurobasket defeat to Spain 😢. The Conference League and the Nations League should be good competitions for countries like Lithuania to compete in. There’s a good KZbin documentary on them as well, which is the way for clubs to connect with a wider audience and attract fans. I keep an eye on Žalgiris and I hope they qualify for the group stages again this year

[@TheFabrizio100]

Brilliant as always Ellis! One idea for a trip could be to travel for a European qualifier (UCL, UEL or UECL) and instead of finding a shirt/jacket/etc. for the home side, instead try to find one for the opposing team (the away side). Imagine finding a Shamrock Rovers shirt in Iceland for example!

[@Hyperwalk89]

Lithuania used to be pretty good but they are ranked 146 in fifa ranking but main sport will always be basketball (Im Lithuanian)

[@omnipotentcheese6359]

met and worked with many Lithuanians and not one liked football at all, all the blokes were massive and made up a lot of the uni BB team and all the girls were stunning and on their way to crazy science degrees, great and humble people and the best genetics ive seen from any nationality in person lol

[@morganbrokaw5190]

As an American basketball fan, i can say Lithuania produces some wonderful basketball players and has some wonderful basketball culture. You should check out a match there and in a few Eastern European countries, Greece and Spain.

[@yyoreo176]

Spain is everything but not an eastern european country😂✌

[@morganbrokaw5190]

@@yyoreo176 yeah. That's why i didn't just say "Eastern European countries." i said Eastern European countries (and also) Greece and Spain. It was a list, not a pair of examples.

[@fuckeduphippie]

@@morganbrokaw5190they in fact just kicked our asses yesterday lmao

[@JackGillies]

I think out of the 3 Baltic countries Estonia has the most predominant football culture and even then it isn't that big. I was in Tallinn a few weeks ago and the 3 games I went to were all really good and a decent standard but the crowds were pretty low as the Finnish league and other bigger European leagues are all more popular in Estonia. One thing I did notice is the fact that Estonians really get behind their teams in Europe I went to watch Levadia Tallinn in Europe and even fans from the bitter city rivals Flora wanted them to win. As a rule basketball and ice hockey are the most popular sports in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia but Baltic football is growing and it has a lot of potential. Keep bringing out these sorts of footballing stories

[@ΔραηΔυλετΔραηΔυλετοωιζ]

I am Latvian, but last year I was at several matches of Žalgiris and there were fewer fans, so in Lithuania the fans are progressing, unlike in Latvia

[@mmfootynews]

Tur biju 4k līdzutejiem Rīgas derbijs 2 nedēļas atpakaļ

[@jokubas3391]

This is a champions league qualifying match, not a league match. League match attendance is still low (last game was 736, but other teams get as low as 60)

[@mosalah11thegoat]

latvia still clears lithuania in football anyway

[@nickivanov6420]

Wow Ellis I have been watching your vids for a while, so credit where credits due, that’s f”kin brilliant! Something different and we love to see it. I’m from lithuania and fortunately enough I have played at LFF stadium myself as a teenager. Absolutely loved this vid, reminds me of good old times. Football is coming along more and more there is loads of academies especially in vilnius, however facility wise it’s not great. Only one proper stadium which has been built in Kaunas so you will deffo have to come back to watch the national team! Also bet you could get a shirt of one of the players🙌🏻🙌🏻

[@smorrissey69]

This brought back some good memories. Was in Vilnius last year (stayed at the same hotel, went to that first restaurant) and its a great city. Me and my mates went to Zalgiris vs Riterai (Vilnius derby) and there were about 200 people there if that. Really surprised me but the atmosphere was made decent by about 50 mad Zalgiris ultras. Will have to go back when its champions league time evidently!

[@maxmunchie]

I was in Lithuania this summer and watch Ekranas v Panevėžys B, basically the Lithuanian Championship, Ekranas fans were singing for 90 mins with flares and chants, there was only about 20 away fans

[@boskowalker6840]

They were singing "Slava Ukraine" 👏 Respect from Bulgaria

[@eddiespaggieddie3849]

Shut up 😂🎉🎉

[@ramadamming8498]

what does "respect" actually mean ?

[@vanessabarker4657]

@@ramadamming8498 to show politeness and to be thankful

[@dansugardude2655]

11:47 “They’re that passionate about something that a lot of people don’t know exists” hit me hard because that’s how I feel about football in the United States! I once asked a friend if he’d like to come to a New England Revolutuon game and he literally responded by asking, “What’s a Revolutuon game?” And then I explained what it was. Some people just don’t know about soccer. I bet a lot of people in Boston don’t know that the Revolutuon exist and a lot of people in Hartford don’t know that they have their own professional club as well 😮

[@ecstasycalculus]

American here, soccer is the 4th or 5th most popular sport in the USA depending on who you ask. The average American male is aware that MLS exists, and might even be able to name the geographically closest team to where they live, but the Revs are in a tricky position because 1) they play in the shadow of the Patriots and 2) their stadium is 20 miles outside of Boston, which is very far even by the usual standards of American suburbs. As for Hartford, I don't even know the clubs name without googling, I'm guessing it's a USL Championship team? As much as I follow MLS, I've never paid much attention to the lower divisions unless there's a club that's about to move up to MLS like Orlando City and FC Cincinnati did.

[@symptomofsouls]

where I live we just refer to them as the "Revs". But I can't go to games because it's a 9 hour drive even though they are my local team

[@symptomofsouls]

@@ecstasycalculus Foxboro isn't a suburb of Boston, it's a suburb of Framingham I believe. The reason the stadium is there is because there is physically no room in Boston to build one

[@ecstasycalculus]

@@symptomofsouls Framingham and Foxboro are both Boston suburbs, with Foxboro being further out

[@trashAndNoStar]

Hasn't it changed now with the whole Messi-mania? (celebs, popular athletes from more popular sports attending Inter Miami games and presumably getting media coverage...)

[@WichitaChiefSam]

As an American, much love to the Lithuanians for being so basketball passionate 🇺🇸🤝🇱🇹

[@atmdopper8906]

Basketball☕☕☕

[@timprex317]

They are not talented enough for football lol

[@Itibitydetsku]

I like basketball but isn't even close tl football.

[@Kund1s]

See you on Sunday Usa Lithuania world cup :)

[@cohara7516]

Been ages since I last watched an Away Days video and Ellis has only gotten better at this. Top shelf content.

[@Nebokray-h6y]

As a Ukrainian, I was very grateful to watch this video. So many of our flags, thank you Lithuania! I hope that after the war I can come to you and drink a couple of pints of beer in honor of your great support.

[@awaydaysfootball]

Flags everywhere!

[@jokubas3391]

it's beacause of the NATO summit happening those days. There was an event where you sign up and put the flag so the foreign leaders see it. There are many many flags, but usually a lot less than this video might make you think

[@ludovicdeclerck]

the beer is from belgium in the video!

[@Bennyz18]

I watched the euro qualifier match between Lithuania and Bulgaria and it was pretty good the Lithuanian national team is decent. I watched it with my grandparents from Lithuania and they spoke about how much they loved it when they were kids

[@mosalah11thegoat]

nah our national team is dogshit we were just lucky. next game we bottled a 2-0 lead against hungary

[@Bennyz18]

@@mosalah11thegoat ya but they still played well

[@simonbell401]

Lithuania is a truly beautiful country, I've had the privilege of going to Vilnius, Kaunas, Trakai, Druskininkai, Kernavė and Birstonnas. I hope you sampled their cold, pink soup "saltibarsciai", it tastes a lot better than it sounds. Also, great content!

[@NorthamptonSupremacy]

tastes a lot better than it looks you mean 😅

[@MariobricksMC]

Reminded me of Aris in Greece and Boca Juniors in Argentina, where it's fans/ultras/barras bravas, are passionate of their club, rather it be futbol, basketball, or handball

[@steliosg01s3]

Τhis does not apply in Greece and unfortunately many confuse it. The fans have the same passion for everything, just in some sports in some seasons (eg basketball), your team performs better and as a result the fans are more enthusiastic. But there are also videos on KZbin of basketball games with explosive atmospheres, which confuse people who don't know the situation here. In short, no matter what sport your team plays, you will have the same hot atmosphere. You can even check videos from women's basketball or volleyball

[@jackandrews5352]

I think it's great how you managed to convince Coronation Street's very own Chesney to travel to Lithuania with you. Fantastic

[@saraprva4172]

RIP Schmeichel 🐕

[@sweeng5638]

You should visit Mjällby AIF from Sweden. Mjällby comes from a small village called hällevik, which is the smallest village to have a team in the first division in Europe . It is unique.

[@andriyklym8103]

14:37 Such a wholesome moment, they're chanting "Glory to Ukraine, to heroes glory" Got me a bit emotional

[@modestasmieldazis5174]

You can't even imagine the goosebumps you can get in Lithuania when the whole "Žalgiris arena" the basketball teams arena, is singing "Putin Xuilooooooo Lalalalalalalalala"

[@thomasjohnson2862]

I saw Žalgiris in the Conference League group stage last year, and it was emotional when they did the same there 🇺🇦🤝🇱🇹

[@EJ_82]

​@modestasmieldazis5174 Same goes with LFF stadium

[@AlatyrPerformance]

Vast majority of the people in the stadium somehow benefit from increased exports to Russia (via other ex Soviet countries)... just a fact, nothing personal

[@modestasmieldazis5174]

@@AlatyrPerformance what? :d

[@Onebadterran]

The club has a beautiful green color, would love to see more of it.

[@matrixberzins465]

It's not that people in Lithuania, or in Latvia and Estonia hate football - the problem is that there is often a change of clubs, as a result of which the fan base of football clubs does not become stronger. I myself live in Latvia and follow local football - for example, some lower league teams have more attendance and fans than our highest league "Virsliga". I still don't know if the same problem exists in Lithuania, but in Latvia, a city with 20,000 - 30,000 inhabitants can have up to 4 teams and each has its own academy and even a small group of fans - it would be wiser to unite under one club name, but have some kind of internal due to disagreements, everyone forms their own football team! And finally, speaking about attendance and fans - in our three countries, the regional football infrastructure is in a very bad state + club management is not working to attract fans.

[@sdeepj]

Latvia is a hockey country. There’s a handful of Latvians in the NHL. And North Americans are always amazed at the passion you have at the World Championship. You celebrated the Bronze better than most cities celebrate the Cup

[@mrhypa]

As a Barnet fan, our atmosphere has improved alot this season that just finished and I expect it to continue

[@huntelaar110]

CL music only in the 4th (and last) round of qualifying

[@just_some_guy_innit]

l, should be playing it from the first qualifying round

[@jesseshore5257]

Worth noting, of the three baltic countries, none of their favorite sports is football, Lithuania and Estonia's favorite sport is basketball. While Latvia joins Finland (and Canada) as the only countries where the most popular sport is ice hockey.

[@shanemingard1260]

Did wrong by ordering Wheat Beers,usually result in thick heads the following mornings lol but Hoegardden isn't usually cloudy Ellis

[@michaelmccarthy5648]

Liverpool played in Lithuania in 2005 champs league qualifiers. I’ve got a Kaunas scarf still from that match

[@Charlieneumann04]

Lithuanians are the coolest ever! The best tattoo artists ever! I would love to visit Lithuania, looks just like Germany, super peaceful!

[@JoeVideoed]

A week ago I went to a Portugal The Man concert w/ a date. We made the mistake of putting our lawn chairs before a curved path where people were constantly walking back & forth on, always obstructing our view of the band. I truly feel your pain.

[@ThomasDonnelly1888]

It is interesting because the basketball team Žalgiris is linked to a football team, like how Galatasaray, Panathinaikos, Red Star etc all have basketball teams with ultras attending both.

[@zilvinaskeras6831]

You are wrong here. Video is from Vilnius and no connection to Zalgiris basketball team, which is from Kaunas. However in Kaunas there is football team called ''Kauno Zalgiris'' and it is connected to basketball team Zalgiris.

[@ThomasDonnelly1888]

@@zilvinaskeras6831 See I was hedging my bets, I knew there are two Zalgiris football clubs and only one basketball and I didnt know what one the basketball one was so I never said what one I meant, sneaky.

[@rahulmukherjee1586]

Nerijus Valskis a Lithuanian Striker played in Indian Club Football( Chennayinn fc) and won a Golden Boot ...

[@SuperJNG18]

Ed being in a San Marino shirt makes this even more endearing.

[@awaydaysfootball]

😂😂

[@markgregorygacosta531]

You must definitely come here to the Philippines. Another country that's crazy for basketball. But we have a thriving national football league in based in Manila (Philippines Football League) . You should definitely watch it.

[@xazza1080]

Ellis, as a Lithuanian, if you want a great atmosphere at a football game or a beautiful stadium, you want to watch Kaunas Zalgiris. The Darius and Girenas stadium has around 15k capacity and is a very nice stadium 🤩

[@UCCMas]

As Lithuanian who never been at football... Great atmosphere at Kaunas stadium? Yes, it had been once. When it was created by Žalgiris Vilnius fans in cup final.

[@andriuss.9029]

😂😂😂😂😂 Kaunas stadium🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@ramunaskuciauskas3035]

Was real fun watching it. So true. I live in Vilnius. Thanx lads for nice video.

[@justinfreeman6143]

Loving all of your amazing content Ellis ❤

[@awaydaysfootball]

Legend!

[@aryanjolly1990]

Not the Barnet dig 😭😭 come back now Ellis I promise the atmosphere will be better than whenever you came last time

[@human777]

looks like a nice place tbf, no wronguns, nice traditional / religious architecture, no litter

[@Nik-cg6qr]

Great stadium , athmosphere the food looks delicious . Seems like a great experince . Very cool to see the stadium was full of fans and they were so pasioned . The city looks very nice and chill too

[@RonDiani]

A friend of mine was there lol but for national team match

[@ilaydaviko8688]

Ellis, you should go someday to Israel to watch Hapoel Tel Aviv. we have the best fans in Israel, altough the team havent won a trophy since 2012, and we even got relegated to the 2nd devision in 2017 for the 2nd time in our history. if you will go, I will suggest you to go to the Derby against Maccabi Tel Aviv or against Beitar jerusalem cuz thats our two biggest rivals. it will be quite hard to get tickets for the Derby, but its possible. now I live in America and you dont understand how much I miss the fans.

[@thetabbyguy921]

Also an Israeli though if he came to watch my team the stadium alone might cause him to puke out his beer, that is with the bold assumption you could even find beer before the match.

[@ilaydaviko8688]

@@thetabbyguy921 חחחחחחחח את מי אתה אוהד?

[@thetabbyguy921]

@@ilaydaviko8688 הפועל רמת גן

[@ilaydaviko8688]

@@thetabbyguy921 וואלה ריספקט אחי

[@ulfurkarlsson5885]

I'm Icelandic Artist I have had many exhibitions in Riga, and used to life in Vilnius, I am a Newcastle United fan my self, and watch most of they're games in a pub, but when I'm in the Baltic countries I don't even try to find a pub, because I know they are not interested at all. They are more into Basketball and Ice Hockey

[@ukrleaf]

I'd wager they still have more of a football culture than their Baltic neighbors in Latvia and Estonia. Zalgiris fans are easily the best ultras group in the Baltics

[@noahkafuracao1924]

Love Zalgiris from Brazil 🇧🇷🇱🇹❤

[@BALHAM69]

Next season a Bashundhara kings match would be good They won the Bangladesh premier league last four seasons now Are they a team to keep a eye on? 😮 Good match vlog :)

[@samuelpinder1215]

Unless you yourself are bangladeshi why do you know the winner of the bangladesh premier league

[@BALHAM69]

@@samuelpinder1215 they are a club on the raise, tiktok videos about them and are they the next Newcastle for example? They are doing very well. They are in Asian champions league against the Saudi Arabia League teams It will be interesting to see how they do

[@Ac1899Milano]

@@BALHAM69 the next Newcastle? 😂 And we all know how they will do against the Saudi teams, they are losing by 3-4 goals Edit; just checked out of curiosity and turns out they are playing a qualifier in the AFC champions league next month which they are probably going to lose.

[@aaronhurst4379]

I'd love Ellis to go to that part of the world, would be very interesting!

[@BALHAM69]

@@aaronhurst4379 he definitely can All about planning the trip there 😊

[@coopsey]

When I went to Vilnius with mates a couple of years ago, we were sitting in a bar, looking for something to do that night and saw the national team were playing Qatar at the national stadium just up the road in an hour. We were amazed the tickets were only 10 quid AND still available, but when we arrived it was at that stadium and there were less than 100 people in the ground. It was bizarre.

[@awaydaysfootball]

Very odd. What was the score?!

[@coopsey]

@@awaydaysfootball an absolutely nail biting 0-0. Just kidding it was crap. Maybe that's why football isn't popular in Lithuania, because noone can score?

[@Brzzyy]

Thank you for giving our small country some recognition Ellis 😂😅

[@Tblxplays]

You should go watch Yeovil vs Weymouth at Weymouth in the national league south next season it is an amazing atmosphere

[@shorv]

i don't speak a word of lithuanian, but nealkoholinis almost certainly means non-alcoholic lmao

[@blast2095]

As an Aussie, can confirm you water astro, in order to a) make it softer and improve grip, and b) cool it down so you don't get carpet burns

[@mrlucasholland]

Petition to go to north Macedonia for the away fixture

[@sinoiluisaj]

Football is actually not hated here, its just not as popular and we're not that good at it, Vilnius doesn't have big stadiums (one is under construction, but no one knows for how long lol) and it's just not that popular because of those things. Although Zalgiris has pretty great ultras/fans called Pietu 4, check out some videos of them, they're pretty nice! Thx for visiting Zalgiris! Zalgirieciai, zalgirieciai, hey! hey! EDIT: lol, i was actually standing in the same ultras section as you

[@BigBog247]

I would say there is more than 1 or 2 countries in Europe where football isnt the main sport. In Ireland its the 3rd main sport and Rugby is pushing for that number 3 A lot of eastern europe dont care too much for football , also its not number 1 in switzerland and possibly Wales

[@thetabbyguy921]

Quick Google search says it is the most popular sport in Switzerland and also many Eastern European countries are literally notorious for having some of the most passionate fans in the world.

[@PussianoGaynaldoPiuu]

It's not only popular in 6 European countries that includes Lithuania, Finland, Latvia, Ireland, Czech and Estonia

[@thetabbyguy921]

@@PussianoGaynaldoPiuu in Czechia it's popular just has competition, the Czech league is pretty good.

[@ohbedi1429]

Although its the Capital city the biggest stadium is in Kaunas the second largest city in Lithuania

[@paul8058]

Im 61 and i remember as a kid the hate Wales would have for football. They would call it a English sport, no pub would show it. It was all Rugby

[@olamilekanYT]

Lol isn't Rugby also an English sport?

[@davidz2690]

That’s so dumb haha, football is the most popular sport in wales by far and they’re both English sports along with most other popular global sports haha

[@paul8058]

@@davidz2690 @davidz2690 You're clearly a child, stop saying "haha" you're reading to much of the Beano. . Lights out now and go to bed. I'm going to tuck your mum in.

[@paul8058]

@@davidz2690 You're clearly a child, stop saying "haha" you're reading to much of the Beano. . Lights out now and go to bed. I'm going to tuck your mum in.

[@thomasfclc5606]

In answer to your question at 14:02 yes AstroTurf does need watering but only when it's hot. Its to stop the ball from sticking to the ground and so it rolls smoother

[@thedrunkenirishman9832]

U should so a video about the league of ireland

[@matthewbaker7729]

Loved this this. Need more of Ed!

[@BadgerOfTheSea]

Ed always looks like the cousin your mum makes you hang out with

[@awaydaysfootball]

Sure he’ll love that

[@RonDiani]

This reminds me of my local team our stadium looks not better and we just enjoy ourselves. My friends go watch games but I don’t

[@vasylfedchyk]

I was pleasently surprised by the amout of Ukrainian flags on the streets of Vilnus, want to take a moment to thank my Lithuanian brothers for the support! Guys, come to watch some football in Ukraine. We still play it despite all the odds. Will be happy to show you around 😉

[@unclejacksbluewhitearmy]

Was once in a sports bar in Warsaw during a European handball championship game on the TV. They had an MC comparing the game and it was a great atmosphere until he come up to my wife during half time to interview her on camera…..who doesn’t speak a word of Polish. Awkward!

[@aryanpugilist]

Lithuania has great Basketball players tbh, but there is definitely a football culture and an ultras scene for sure. Zalgiris has great fans!

[@davidmercer3573]

Love the content Ellis and great to see the first away days of the season 🥳 Loved the Barnet comment 😂😂 Gotta come to Enfield Town and watch us play this season

[@midrizzl6682]

Just a question mate,best football shirt I can buy rn, I’ll buy whatever one you recommend

[@ontieponti]

Ajax

[@RyanSpringer1984]

Tampa Bay Rowdies

[@Valid_Answer]

Tokyo Verdy 1993

[@jackbennett9710]

Arsenal home 23/24

[@vidisg14]

FC Fehérvár

[@Saintkev76]

I’ve been there. I spent the morning very rough from the night before, St Johnstone in Europe. We had the end the ultras were in. Very poor game too… this brought back many memories…

[@NojusPocius]

As Lithuanian yes football isnt popular here. But after we finnally have a normal stadium its looking more positive. The last game at Darius ir Girėnas stadium the 15 k capacity stadium was almost full. But football will never be as popular as basketball in Lithuania

[@King_Hippo_69]

As a Lithuanian, football is just a non factor in the culture. It's all basketball, but this international break is something special. Utkus is on the rise, along with Ginitas

[@DevonHayter-pl3gf]

🇱🇹 🤝 🇺🇦

[@GlassJoe1337]

It's great watching these videos. I fully expect to see a video of you going to random country that your search bar autocorrected to then watch a club there.

[@JP-oe4ry]

Come to Finland! The knuckle dragging native Finns love Ice hockey for some reason. I tried watching some games..never again. The Finnish football league is absolutly dire, have seen maybe 10 games in 18 years. Average attendance is around 2k. Also flying here is expensive, drinking beer is expensive, accomodation is expensive...yea maybe actually dont come to Finland

[@_evangupta]

you should give ice hockey another chance! it’s crazy fast and super skilled. also you guys are one of the best hockey nations in the world right now with some insane talent. obviously i’m gonna be biased because i’m canadian and that’s sorta our thing too haha

[@aston-s]

I seriously looked at coming to the Finnish cup final this year... the idea was dropped fairly sharpish when I worked out the prices

[@rasmus7493]

Same story in Estonia, but instead of hockey it's basketball

[@samuelpinder1215]

If you watched the finnish hockey league it may have not been as exciting as NHL as I dont think they fight as much in the finnish league

[@Eibarwoman]

@@samuelpinder1215 If one wants fights, it's probably the minor leagues such as the AHL, ECHL, or some of the local semi-pro leagues in Canada

[@scpjack7856]

I went to watch a couple of matches when I was in Riga, including the cup final. It’s growing with the increased money in the Virsliga but games are still not well attended. Riga FC and RFS are the only club with ultras and there aren’t many. Watching Auda win the cup was special though, they are from a tiny village outside Riga and it felt like the entire town showed up.

[@YoungCoconuttt]

wrong country but similar outlook on football

[@matrixberzins465]

Riga FC was founded in 2014, but RFS (the official info says that it was founded in 1962), but in reality it was at best a children's academy, which in 2014 decided to form an adult team in the Latvian 2nd league - after two years they managed to reach the 2016 and in my opinion it was because, due to financial debts, another top league club, Skonto FC, which was founded in 1991, was not granted a license. The fact that both clubs, RFS and Riga FC, are not even 10 years old, but can gather around 5,000 fans per game in mutual games - this is considered a very good result on the scale of Baltic football :D

[@YoungCoconuttt]

@@matrixberzins465 what are tukums 2000 like? i have a friend from tukums and i told him i’m gonna become their biggest canadian fan but obviously it’s pretty hard to follow latvian football here😂

[@scpjack7856]

@@YoungCoconuttt Tukums are a lower-mid table team in the Virsliga at the moment. I *think* it's a stop on the train from Riga to Liepaja so getting there as a foreigner shouldn't be hard as long as you can get to Riga. Most Virsliga matches are available on OneFootball (at least in the UK, I assume it's the same for Canada). Edit: Riga to Tukums is a non-stop train ride that takes about 90 minutes. Also games are really easy to get tickets for and dirt cheap. Tickets at Skontostadion (where Riga and the national team play) are 8 Euros and I assume Tukums home matches are cheaper.

[@scpjack7856]

@@matrixberzins465 Latvian football is so fascinating. The club with the longest league winning streak in history don't exist anymore. Meanwhile, two teams from Jurmala have won the Virsliga in the last ten years and both of them have since folded.

[@rabab_keeper]

you are finally back! I wanted to ask if you can make video about jersey and i ìf you still sell those

[@aaronwinckler8683]

Just watched this. Zalgiris did end up advancing to the next round of the Champions League Qualifiers and played Galatasaray. They drew 2-2 against Galatasaray at home (scoring a 91st minute equalizer). Seems like it was quite the match.

[@davidballard08]

Come back to the US next year and come to a STL City game. It’s a new team for MLS this year and the atmosphere of the home games is amazing

[@FrankSerpico29]

The national football stadium is in Kaunas. And it's actually very nice. Usually empty on game day, but nice

[@lkrnpk]

I thought it would be like Will from Inbetweeners in the caravan club episode: ''As expected it was just chaws and old people''... which it probably would be for smaller clubs in the country when we talk about attendance

[@RyanHorseHelmet]

At least they play the song that all Football stadiums worldwide play! @ 9:00 "All I need, is your loving tonight".

[@HamiV]

Would love to see Ellis come to nz. Another great video

[@juanfexdpro9083]

The best Lithuanian club is zalgiris,probably there best effort is getting grouped at conference league 😂

[@PolishWakabayashi]

this "potato wedges" was fried bread, very popular in lithuania, more than fries

[@Plasmawarrior]

As an American, I can safely say this is becoming one of my favorite channels on KZbin. Although, I'll keep calling it soccer. :P