Interviews
THU 16.02.2023
Cory Hardin has a conversation primed in his head if someone calls him a bandwagon fan. Hardin is a Buffalo Bills fan due to his ties to Western New York, where his family is from.
While the Bills are one of the top teams in the NFL these days, Hardin, and many other lifelong fans, have had to endure years, and even decades, of struggles, including watching the team lose four straight Super Bowls between 1990-93.
“It’s how I operate as a person,” Harin says. “I’m going to stick with the team I’ve chosen. I’m very loyal.”
The same can be said for Hardin’s soccer fandom. Like many other Americans, Hardin grew up playing the sport, but lost his connection to it as he got older. It wasn’t until he began playing recreational soccer in Chicago recently that he began to fall back in love with the beautiful game.
Having an appreciation and interest in LaLiga, Hardin was finally ready to commit to a club. Real Madrid? FC Barcelona? Atlético Madrid?
“I like an underdog story and RCD Mallorca really fulfills that for me,” Hardin says. “It’s all about the emotional stuff with supporting a club for me. It helps that their kit and crest also look really good, too.”
While he hasn’t spent a lifetime following the club’s trials and tribulations, which include winning the 2003 Copa del Rey then filing for bankruptcy seven years later, Hardin is fully committed to Los Piratas moving forward through thick and thin.
“There's a whole story there that lives with that team and can live in you, and it’s a beautiful thing to watch,” he says. If you stick with a club through thick and thin, you get to watch this great story unfold rather than saying, ‘I’m going to like a winner right away.’”
Hardin, who says a friend recommended the club to him, is also sharing RCD Mallorca’s story with his partner, Helen Joo Lee. He says they’re planning to travel to Spain within a year or two to watch the club live and in person.
“My partner loves to travel. Her greatest passion in life is to see the world,” he says. “I want to try to expose her to more of the sports side of culture. … Bringing somebody like my partner along for that ride would be awesome.”
FULL SERIES:
A Breakaway from Household Support
Real’s remontadas roped in this fan
Unexpected Encounter Leads to Unforgettable Experience
Sevilla Fandom Comes Full Circle
UD Almería unites community in New Jersey
Basque Roots Grow in Meaning for Boise Student
Local peña helps Celta Vigo fans overcome morriña
San Diego, the Birthplace of the first Cádiz Peña in the U.S.
Fate, luck and curiosity brought this fan to Atleti
Real Sociedad fandom blossoming in Boise
Growing up in awe of Sánchez, Real Madrid
Ortegas proudly promote Real Betis around the globe
¡Vamos mi Sevilla! ¡Vamos Nueva York!
Mexico’s Márquez Converted This Culé
Covid can’t stop this Valencia CF socio
Living near the Bernabéu led to this fan loving Real Madrid
How a U.S. Elementary School Principal Helped Save Real Oviedo
Growing the Beautiful Game in Montreal and Beyond
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