Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content

Rutgers University Athletics

Scoreboard

Big Ten Conference
wsoc

Women's Soccer

Live Journal: Women's Soccer Visits England & Scotland

Rutgers women's soccer will be spending its Spring Break in Europe from March 8-17, visiting England and Scotland during a trip packed with sights and soccer. Follow the Scarlet Knights right here for a live journal all week long from the United Kingdom.

The Scarlet Knights' first stop is London, where the team will take in Premier League and Champions League matches at Arsenal and Chelsea. RU will visit famous landmarks in London, including the Abbey Road Crossing, the London Eye, and the River Thames. Rutgers will experience a training session with the coaching staff at Chelsea before heading to Manchester for an Etihad Stadium tour during its final day in England. RU transfers to Scotland on March 13 for sightseeing in beautiful Edinburgh and a competition with Rangers F.C. The Scarlet Knights also head to Glasgow for a Scottish Premier League game at Celtic on the final day of the trip before heading back to the United States.

Travel Day — Friday, March 8
1:30 p.m. — The Scarlet Knights practiced their best English accent while thanking equipment manager Uly Molina for getting their adidas Foreign Tour gear together for the trip.

6:00 p.m. — Wheels up to London! See you on the other side of the pond.

Day 1 — Saturday, March 9 - London, England
9:00 a.m. — The Scarlet Knights, battling a bit of jet lag, hit the ground running with a walk around Big Ben before hopping on the London Eye for breathtaking views of the city skyline and historic landmarks.

5:30 p.m. — Come On You Gunners! Arsenal v. Brentford and dinner at Emirates Stadium.

Day 2 — Sunday, March 10 - London, England
9:00 a.m. — A proper English Breakfast of eggs, sausage, bacon, grilled tomatoes, baked beans, and toast.

11:00 a.m. — The Scarlet Knights sported their best adidas rain gear and hit the streets of Central London on a rainy early spring day. The guided walking tour included stops at Buckingham Palace, St. James Park, the House of Parliament, and Westminster Abbey while learning about the historic stories behind these landmarks.

3:30 p.m. — Doesn't get much more English than this. Fish & chips at the sports pub while watching Liverpool and Manchester City draw, 1-1, on the telly.

england
Today we did a walking tour of Central London and learned all about European history, specifically historic moments that have taken place in Central London. One fun fact we learned was that a common misconception is referring to the clock tower as “Big Ben”. Instead Big Ben is the bell located at the top of the tower and it is about the size of a medium elephant!
KNIGHT VISION: Reilly McGlinn
My favorite thing about today was visiting Central London and seeing Big Ben! We learned that it took more than 15 years to build!
KNIGHT VISION: Gia Girman
Today we went on a walking tour around London and then to a sports bar for lunch. My favorite part of the day was the sports bar to watch the Manchester City v Liverpool game. Manchester City has been my favorite team for years so it was cool to be able to watch them play even if they tied.
KNIGHT VISION: Elliot Forney

Day 3 — Monday, March 11 - London, England
10:30 a.m. — The itinerary invited us to “Come Together” and experience The Beatles' Abbey Road crossing, with chances to recreate the iconic album cover.

2:30 p.m. — We toured the River Thames on a boat cruise taking us up close and personal with the Westminster Abbey, the Tower Bridge, and many other London landmarks along the second-longest river in the United Kingdom.

8:00 p.m. — Rutgers is 2-0 for home sides winning on our UK tour as we watch Chelsea defeat Newcastle United, 3-2, inside Stamford Bridge. Another electric atmosphere and another great match in the Premier League.

wsoc
Today was our third day in Central London. Something fun we did today was the Thames Boat Tour. Doing this tour allowed us to have a better view of some of the coolest buildings in London and also the Tower Bridge, which is sometimes mistaken for the London Bridge. One fun fact I learned is it is illegal to hold salmon suspiciously in the UK!
KNIGHT VISION: Olivia Russomanno
My favorite part of the day was the London Dungeon tour that I did in my free time. The boat tour was really cool, too. The dungeon showed us different torture methods they would use on people back in the day. It was super scary and interesting. There was even a drop ride and a log flume in the tour!
KNIGHT VISION: Kylie Daigle
daigle
My favorite thing we did today was watching the Chelsea v Newcastle game. I have been a fan of Chelsea for years so it was such an awesome experience to visit Stamford Bridge and watch my team win. It was a great game with some great goals...Go Blues!
KNIGHT VISION: Brianna Azevedo
wsoc stamford bridge

Day 4 — Tuesday, March 12 - London, England
12:30 p.m. — Woke up feeling BLUES and transferred to Cobham for a training session at Chelsea FC with the academy coaching staff. We toured the facility and met with the Women's Super League and FA Cup champion coaching staff at Chelsea, including Rutgers women's soccer Class of 1992 graduate Denise Reddy.

8:00 p.m. — Back to Emirates for a Champions League knockout game between Arsenal and FC Porto. The energy and atmosphere was absolutely wild as the Gunners ended regulation up 1-0 to tie the aggregate at 1-1 in the second leg. After 30 minutes of scoreless extra time, Arsenal lit up London red with a 4-2 win in penalties!

wsoc london
My favorite part of the day was being trained by two Chelsea coaches and also getting a tour of their facilities. It was really cool to see the differences in coaching and playing styles that I have experienced in the U.S. The coaches were very supportive and also gave good constructive criticism. It was a lot of a fun and also really cool to see all the fields they have for all ages and how well maintained they are.
KNIGHT VISION: Alyssa Martinez
martinez
Today we went to a Champions League game. The atmosphere in Emirates Stadium is electric. The fans are great and it was fun joining in on all the chants. It was a really exciting game that ended in an Arsenal win in penalties!!
KNIGHT VISION: Kassidy Banks
My favorite thing we did today on our fourth day in England was train at the Chelsea facility with the Chelsea coaches. It was really fun and interesting to experience the practices they do over here. We also got a tour of the facility and fields. We also went to the Arsenal v FC Porto game and it was extremely fun to watch. It was an awesome experience!
KNIGHT VISION: Emily Mason
Today we went to Cobham and did a training session with Chelsea academy coaches. We also did a tour of their training grounds. My favorite part of today was the Arsenal v Porto game. It was such a great atmosphere and super exciting. The game went into overtime and even penalty kicks. Arsenal came out with the win, which made this a game we will never forget.
KNIGHT VISION: Audrey Cain

Day 5 — Wednesday, March 13 - Manchester, Liverpool, & Chester, England
4:00 a.m. — The energy from Arsenal's victory kept us up for our overnight bus ride up to Manchester, the second stop on our UK tour.

12:00 p.m. — Another day, another unique experience at a historic football club. We received a guided tour of Manchester City's Etihad Stadium, including the stands, the players' entrance, the locker room, on the field, and a special press conference led by a virtual Pep Guardiola along with our director of operations and City supporter Trish DiPaolo, and City fans Ashley Baran and Elliot Forney.

3:00 p.m. — Hello, Liverpool! Free time in England's City of Music, the home of The Beatles.

6:00 p.m. — A  beef, turkey, and gammon roast dinner with ALL the sides in Chester.

manchester
MANCHESTER
My favorite part of the day was the Manchester City stadium tour. We got to see all around the stadium including the team locker room and the press room! One fun fact I learned was that Etihad Stadium was originally opened in 2002 in order to host the Commonwealth Games before being transitioned into a soccer stadium.
KNIGHT VISION: Giana Romano
My favorite thing we did today was tour the Man City stadium. The best part was going through the game day routine of a player on the team. I got the chills when we walked through the tunnel with the sound effects of the crowd and onto the field. It was such a cool experience. With that being said, go Arsenal!
KNIGHT VISION: Allie Post
My favorite thing we did today was take a tour of Etihad Stadium where Manchester City plays. The coolest part of the tour was seeing the locker room and taking pictures in front of Erling Haaland and Phil Foden’s locker.
KNIGHT VISION: Ashley Baran

Day 6 — Thursday, March 14 - Glasgow, Scotland
12:00 p.m. — We crossed the boarder into the second country of our United Kingdom tour - Scotland, where we were greeted with a pregame meal.

2:30 p.m. — GAMEDAY! We donned the Scarlet kits and competed against an academy side from Rangers F.C. in Glasgow. It was a rainy and chilly day, but there was plenty of fair play, goal-scoring, and intense football in this intercontinental showcase.

8:00 p.m. — Burgers and chicken for team dinner at our new hotel for the final leg of our trip. Excited for Edinburgh tomorrow!

In just this past week, I’ve been fortunate enough to experience the spirited, unforgettable energy and culture of European soccer. I had the opportunity to watch Europe’s best teams, my favorite being the Arsenal vs. Porto game. The fans brought so much spirit to the game, from kick-off, overtime and eventually penalties, energy was never lost during the game. Excited to see how they do in the quarterfinals!!
KNIGHT VISION: Ava Brass
The best part of the trip so far has been the Arsenal games. Specifically, their Champions League game vs. Porto was my favorite. The game went into PK's, and Arsenal came out on top. The atmosphere in Emirates Stadium was amazing to experience, especially after a huge win in penalties. The fans are all super engaged and my teammates and I had a really fun time. We joined in on the chants and listened to the crazy things some of the passionate fans yelled. The whole trip has been so much fun though!
KNIGHT VISION: Olivia Bodmer
My favorite part of this trip so far has been walking around and sightseeing Central London. It has been really cool seeing all of the pretty buildings and learning the history behind them. Having this experience has been awesome!!
KNIGHT VISION: Cameron Kennett

Day 7 — Friday, March 15 - Edinburgh, Scotland
10:30 a.m. — The rain couldn't stop us from a 90-minute guided walking tour of the New and Old Towns of the gorgeous and historic Edinburgh. Starting at Edinburgh castle, the tour took us through the unique history, architecture, and stories of the iconic city. We saw a few spots known to inspire the character names and locations in the Harry Potter series. After the tour, we had plenty of time for shopping (hello, 100% Scottish cashmere), food, drinks, and more sights as the sun (yes, THE SUN) graced us with its glorious presence in the afternoon.

6:00 p.m. — Dinner and a night out in the town back at our home base for the last leg of our trip - Glasgow.

wsoc
Today we visited the capital of Scotland - Edinburgh! I enjoyed going on the walking tour and learning about all of the history in Edinburgh. We traveled down cobblestone streets and sidewalks seeing the beautiful architecture of this town. One fun fact I learned was that the Edinburgh Castle was built on top of an extinct volcano called Castle Rock!
KNIGHT VISION: Tehya Scheuten
Today we went on a walking tour of Edinburgh and we got to see the old and new town. We learned a couple fun facts throughout the walk which were really interesting. Afterwards, a group of us went to get lunch and then we walked around and shopped. The day started off very rainy but then when we were walking around the sun came out which made the day even better! I had so much fun seeing Edinburgh and shopping with the girls!
KNIGHT VISION: Emma Misal
Today we did a tour of Edinburgh and learned about the history of the town, culture, and people! We went through the old town, new town, did some shopping, and got to see some amazing sights. Definitely my favorite place we saw!
KNIGHT VISION: Shannon Reiser
Today we got to tour Edinburgh, Scotland and it was my favorite city we've visited yet. The architecture was beautiful and the history was so cool to learn about. Once it stopped raining, we went up to the castle and could see the green mountains around us.
KNIGHT VISION: Allison Lowrey

Day 8 — Saturday, March 16 - Glasgow, Scotland
10:00 a.m. — We took a walk around City Center in Glasgow, another town loaded with history and gorgeous buildings and landmarks.

3:00 p.m. — Our final stop of the trip - more FOOTBALL! Celtic vs. St. Johnston at Celtic Park in the Scottish Premiership. We finish our United Kingdom trip 4-0 for the home sides attending professional games as Celtic get the 3-1 result at Celtic Park.

10:00 p.m. — Lights out for our early flight from Edinburgh back to New Jersey! See you back in the Garden State. Cheers, Mates!! 

My favorite part about today was going to the Celtics game. They ended up scoring their second goal of the game in the first 30 seconds of the half. Something I found cool was that the Celtic fans wave Irish flags and chant Irish folk songs.
KNIGHT VISION: Riley Tiernan
My favorite thing we did today was go watch the Celtic vs. St Johnstone soccer game. It was a really fun atmosphere and an exciting home team win. I appreciated that I got to have such a cool experience on my birthday!
KNIGHT VISION: Gabriela Gil
My favourite part about today was definitely the sightseeing in Glasgow! We got to see beautiful historical buildings as well as doing lots of shopping at the local stores!
KNIGHT VISION: Patricia Tsokos
Rutgers University Athletics logo