Underdogs.

I woke up early this morning to watch the 2016 UEFA Champions League final. I'd actually woken up later than planned and thought I'd missed it, but thankfully the match had gone to extra time. Real Madrid eventually triumphed over their fierce rivals Atletico 5-3 on penalties.

It wasn't the result I was hoping for, as I was, in fact, supporting Atletico. I'd never really liked Real Madrid anyway, and let's say I didn't exactly enjoy the fact that they had become European champions at Atletico's expense for the second time in three years.

The result also made it five years in a row in which I'd backed the losing team in the Champions League final:

2012: Chelsea 1-1 Bayern Munich; Chelsea won 4-3 on penalties

I typically support the underdog in a game that doesn't involve a team I support. Chelsea were the heavy underdogs in this one, but being an Arsenal fan I was always going to cheer against them. As it turned out, they managed to beat the Germans on penalties in their own home stadium.

2013: Bayern Munich 2-1 Borussia Dortmund (after extra time)

Dortmund are the team I support in the German Bundesliga, and I figured that their recent record against heavyweights Bayern meant that they had a good chance of beating them. It wasn't to be, unfortunately, as Bayern successfully exorcized the demons of the previous year's final by winning it in extra time.

2014: Real Madrid 4-1 Atletico Madrid (a.e.t.)

Atletico had just pulled off a shock last-day Spanish league title win, and given that they seemed to be beating their city rivals Real all the time those days, I really thought they could win this one. They almost did, too, until Real scored in the last minute to take the match to extra time. A mentally broken Atletico went on to concede three more times in the ensuing half-hour.

2015: Barcelona 3-1 Juventus

Okay, I didn't really think Juventus were going to win this one, but I hoped they would anyway as they were the underdogs. As it turned out, Barca were just too good for them and won quite convincingly.

2016: Real Madrid 1-1 Atletico Madrid; Real won 5-3 on penalties

Same fixture from two years ago, and it ended with the same result. Atletico were, yet again, unlucky.

I wonder just how long my run of backing the losing team will continue. I guess this has mostly to do with my championing of the underdog, which isn't the best strategy to have if you like your team winning matches.

But that's just it: football isn't all about winning. Everyone has their own reasons for watching football or supporting whatever team they support - I watch football for the very simple reason that I love football and everything about it. It's not something everyone can understand.

Now to look forward to the Euros. They were the original reason why I decided to go to France this summer, but since I wasn't able to get hold of any match tickets I guess I'll settle for soaking up the atmosphere. I'm planning to vlog my experiences there, as I think I'll be able to capture the mood in a way that writing in this blog simply cannot.

I will still write while I'm in France, of course. The plan is for this blog and the vlog(s) to complement each other. We'll see how it goes.