Since the dawn of time, from the Coliseums of Rome to the yellow jersey of the Tour de France, sport has been the proving grounds of human endeavour and spirit. Sport is where life is compressed into a few hours, where the emotions of an entire lifetime can be felt on a patch of ground, where a person can suffer and die and rise again.

Making a holiday out of spectator sports is a fantastic way to see the world, you get to tap into the local world and see the people’s fears and loves that a bus tour or tourist attraction would never show. The cacophony of sound that greets the teams at Camp Nou, the unbridled national pride at a Hurling or Gaelic football final at Croke Park or the great hot-dogs at Wrigley Field are all amazing ways to soak up the culture of other people and to connect to others. Spectator sports also make the journey live longer in the memory—the streets of Salzburg are always fresh in my mind after being in the city for the Euro 2008 football championships. You’re never going to forget the trip where you saw a Mexican in a mask fly across the wrestling ring, are you?

Sport is one of our most important outlets of passion, fears, love and devotion. It is where the human race prove themselves over and over again, where we renew our faith in ourselves and where we can transcend all our troubles and reach our potential. It is where people meet after a week of hard work to enjoy themselves and visiting sporting events while on holiday will cleanse the soul and bring you into greater contact than any other holiday activity.