Crystal Palace is SAVED!!

As we all know, I am a die-hard Manchester United supporter. But, unfortunately, I've never made it to Manchester to see them. Last year, when my husband and I spent a long weekend in London to celebrate our 12th wedding anniversary, I insisted that we see a football game. (It was between this trip and the last that I had morphed from casual United supporter into a full-fledged footy maniac!)

Well, obviously, there was no way on earth that we would set foot into Stamford Bridge or the Emirates if United weren't the visiting team. So, we decided to head to south London and Selhurst Park to see the Championship side, Crystal Palace. It was actually quite a good fit, considering that our area in the USA has its own Crystal Palace -- Crystal Palace Baltimore.

Selhurst Park was amazing, the home supporters' pub was boisterous and happy, and the match itself was incredibly atmospheric and exciting. All in all, we had a marvelous time celebrating Palace's win and experiencing true English football.

Alas, this year has been a rough one for Crystal Palace Football Club. They have long been saddled with financial woes, and in January, they went in to administration (bankruptcy). With administration comes a deduction of 10-points, and the Eagles were able to play well enough to avoid regulation in spite of it. But, even the club's football skills weren't enough to put them in the clear: their huge debts (£30million) resulted in the threat of liquidation today at 3pm GMT.

But, happily, today turned out like a movie script! A group of London businessmen, called CPFC 2010, swooped in at the eleventh hour to save the proverbial day!! Crystal Palace is saved!! There are many grateful hearts across the world today - those who've loved Palace all of their lives, those in Baltimore who love Palace, and those who love the institution of football.