Editor’s note: Today we have a guest post from Crayton. While he usually prefers to remain the “silent partner” on The Mija Chronicles, he has come across some information that he thinks you may enjoy. Here it is.
Watching the NFL in Mexico is a lot like watching it in the States. The broadcast networks, plus a couple of cable channels, air the games, so if you’re a general-interest fan you can get your fill.
The problem arises for a person like me who is a devoted fan of a particular team, in this case the mighty Chicago Bears. In the U.S., it’s impossible to see every game each week without the Sunday Ticket package, available on DirecTV. Mexico carries Sunday Ticket as well, through Sky, the country’s biggest satellite provider.
We aren’t in a position to get a satellite at the moment, so no Sky for us. (A note from Lesley: Whaaa? You mean we aren’t getting Sky?) That led me, on our first NFL Sunday in Mexico, on a desperate search for a place to watch the majestic Bears demolish the Seahawks.
A side note: If I were in most other countries besides Mexico and the U.S., I could stream the NFL games through the NFL’s own website, which offers that service in most parts of the world. Mexico is blocked since Sky offers Sunday Ticket here.
A few weekends ago, riding around town in the GPS-equipped SUV of my friend Dr. Lic. Carlitos, who likes to put Darude’s techno anthem “Sandstorm” on blast, I popped into several establishments to inquire about the availability of the Sunday Ticket.
Let’s just say it’s not a household name here. Several waiters and bartenders at cantinas and Irish pubs said they did have NFL games, but when I asked them to grab a remote control to pull up the menu for their Sky set-top box, it was apparent they didn’t have ALL the games. (Lesley: Yeeeah, cantina dude! Top that!)
A gentleman at the host’s stand at an Irish pub in the ritzy Polanco neighborhood suggested we go to Caliente, a gambling establishment about 10 minutes away, which has a sports book. Unfortunately, Caliente was not a Caesar’s-Palace-style sports book.
The Polanco location featured a quiet, well-lit room with gamblers seated at cafeteria-style tables. There was little running commentary, only the occasional cheer when someone’s team scored. A waiter brought drinks from a restaurant downstairs, but the service was spotty and unpredictable. Meh. I don’t know about you, but when I’m watching some football, I need the beers to keep on coming. (Lesley: This is true.)
For this past weekend’s game against the pitiful Lions, I wanted something better. So I did some Internet searches. A series of sort-of-handy Yahoo Answers led me to a bar you might be familiar with if you’re from the U.S.: Hooters.
Hooters has one location on the route of Mexico’s Metrobus route on Insurgentes Sur, in the Colonia San Angel.
I placed a call.
“Hi, I’m looking for a place that has all the NFL games, even those that aren’t available on cable TV. Do you have those?”
“Yes, we have NFL games.”
“But do you have ALL of them? Because some aren’t available on cable.”
“Yes, we have all of them. We even open early, at noon, so people can watch the games.”
“OK. So you have ALL of them.”
“That’s the case.”
I was suspicious. I’d been burned a few times. But we stopped by yesterday around 12:30, and true to the Hooters dude’s words, the place was blanketed with LCD screens showing every single NFL game in progress. I made my way to a barstool, suffered through the first half and then enjoyed the more lopsided Bears victory in the second period.
“But Crayton,” you may be asking, “what was it like to watch the game at Hooters in Mexico?” (Sorry, that was me, Lesley, again.)
I’ve never been to a Hooters in the U.S., so I can’t really provide a comparison. The servers wear orange shorts and pantyhose, and some glide around on roller skates. I assume this is common. All I know is that the beer was cold (if not cheap by Mexico standards) and the game was on. That makes me a loyal Hooters customer, at least here in Mexico City.
GO BEARS!