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Yellow and Verde mixed in the stands as longtime supporters of Tigres UANL also cheered on Austin FC. (Claire Partain/Austonia)
Austin FC and Tigres UANL fans seemed to be given an uncomfortable wardrobe choice as they headed into the exciting game. Instead of "Yellow or Verde?," many fans asked "Why not both?" as they geared up with both of their favorite teams' colors in a match that celebrated the true spirit of Austin.
In Austin's first-ever international friendly—a match that doesn't affect the teams' standing in their leagues—on Tuesday, Tigres UANL brought the heat that they are known for. With lots of Austin supporters of the Monterrey team, Austin FC and Tigres UANL fans mixed and mingled—and some even bore the same name—as Austin lost 3-1 to the Liga MX powerhouse club.
Both teams brought their backup players to the front of the lineup to start the match. Austin, with its slew of injured starters, saw keeper Andrew Tarbell and defender Aedan Stanley for the first time and put fan favorites Diego Fagundez and Kekuta Manneh in the starting XI. Gentle giant Jhohan Romana and midfielder Tomas Pochettino, both recovered from injuries themselves, were also back on the pitch. Defender Matt Besler took the captain slot.
Rodney Redes broke through with his first goal in the regular season, but the Tigres reminded the crowd of their spot at the top of CONCACAF, a continental championship, as they responded with two back-to-back goals at the end of the match to take the friendly 3-1.
It seemed as though many Austin FC fans who have followed Tigres their entire lives would face a moral dilemma as they went into the match. Instead, supporters sported Verde scarves with yellow Tigres jerseys, sat next to their opposing teams' fans and even cheered for both of their favorite clubs as they went head to head at Q2.
Yellow y Verde
For the first time, the Mexican flag flew next to the U.S. flag at Q2 as both national anthems were sung tearfully by fans in the supporters' section.
While the match didn't count toward either teams' standings, Austin FC fan band La Murga de Austin was as rowdy as ever as they led the supporters' section through heartfelt Austin FC chants. Beer was thrown, water was splashed and a steady drumbeat kept fans alive even after Tigres responded with two goals to win the match.
Verde supporters show out
Meanwhile, Tigres fans found their home base near the top of the West side of the stands. Q2 saw more opposing fans than ever before as hundreds flocked from near and far to watch their lifelong club play.
Javier Hernandez and his wife, Sochy, looked like total Tigres fans as they repped blue and yellow hats and a giant lion's head.
But that choice came more down to jersey options than anything else. The two Austinites are Austin FC fans as well, and they're happy to see the two teams come together. Eventually, Javier wants to combine two Tigres and Austin FC jerseys to form one unified Verde and yellow jersey.
"We didn't know what to wear," Hernandez said. "I had a friend who is from Monterrey too, and he was wearing an Austin FC jersey. There's no rivalry or anything like that. We're all friends."
While most fans said they felt united and accepted by Austin FC in the match, a few said they felt they were unfairly discriminated against as they were asked to leave their own drums and banners at the gates.
Candelario Lopez and his family came from San Antonio and Temple to watch the match. Attending a Tigres match in Monterrey is normally a 12 hour drive, so Lopez said he was happy to have his favorite team so close to home. "It means a lot," Lopez said.
Still, he wished that the opposing fan section was given the same treatment as those in Verde.
"We had no problems at the beginning but, it's a friendly," Lopez said. "We are acting friendly, some others are not."
Tried and true Tigres fans find their own spot
While one team had to win in the end, the match will help both Austin and Tigres grow in new ways on and off the pitch. Many Austin supporters hope the partnership lasts for many years to come as Austin builds its fanbase and Tigres continue to build on its legacy.
Aselmo Jimenez, who was in Verde but was chatting with Tigres fans, said he knew a partnership would happen before it even started. He said he knew the partnership would continue past the match before it even started. His friend in yellow, Carlos Gomez, agreed.
This is a great opportunity for Austin fans to see firsthand a team from Mexico face our team," Gomez said. "We're excited. The atmosphere and experience is just awesome.".
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Popular
Austin's poker house scene continues to flourish through a loophole in Texas gambling laws. (Palms Social Club/Facebook)
Gambling may be illegal in Texas, but over a hundred poker houses are using a loophole to open up shop across the state, especially in Austin and Dallas.
The classic poker game is finally getting played for real cash around the Lone Star State thanks to an exception in Texas' gambling ban that allows poker games to be played in private residences. Instead of taking a cut from the pot like traditional gambling ventures, private poker houses don't make money from the results of a game; instead, they get their revenue from membership and hourly fees.
It's a business strategy that's gone (mostly) unchallenged by Texas politicians, especially as the industry begins to heat up.
Austin may now have around 20 poker houses around town, but it wasn't long ago that one stood alone like a small town saloon. The city's premiere poker house, Texas Card House, was founded in 2015 and has since grown to include a YouTube channel with over 30,000 subscribers, a wide range of gameplay and regular visits from big-name poker gurus like Brad Owen and Doug Pope.
David Lagana, a content creator who has worked in college sports and Hollywood, was brought into the scene in May as the house's live streams began to blow up. He said the live streaming battleground is only beginning.
"The space is ever-growing," Lagana said. "It's been interesting to try and find a lane that everybody can succeed. It's all about finding something that people want to watch on a nightly basis."
Carolyn Hapgood, who has worked for Texas Card House for three years, has made a name for herself as a live stream producer, dealer and player herself with the company. She's seen Texas Card House grow from a two-room card house to the most well-known poker venue in Austin with another branch in Dallas.
"It was a teeny tiny little house with five tables, and that was the first legal card house in the state," Hapgood said. "And since then it's blown up."
Texas Card House dealer Carolyn Hapgood has been working with Austin's premier poker house since 2018. (Texas Poker House Austin/Facebook)
From $100 pots to buy-ins of $15,000 or more, Texas Card House has it all, especially as in-state players learn more about the game. Hapgood said there isn't really a typical poker player at the house—instead, the poker table forms an "interesting little ecosystem" that includes college students, a 93-year old Vietnam War veteran, online gamblers, old-school players and everyone in between. The diversity at the table has been enhanced even further by COVID as people clamor to return to in-person events.
But Texas Card House no longer holds a "royal flush" in Austin's poker culture. The Lodge, based in Round Rock, is now expanding to over 60 tables, the largest in Texas, while Palms Social Club, owned by Texas Card Houses' original owner Sam Von Kennel, brought service staff and a refined atmosphere to the Austin scene.
Hapgood said the base of poker players is very large and continues to grow, forming a community as players form friendships on and off the table.
"My favorite part of the poker community is how much fun we have," Hapgood said. "You sit at a table with eight of your friends, everyone's kind of just having a good time. There's a lot of players who will, you know, call or text each other after they're done playing, and they end up inviting each other barbecues, and going out to dinner with their families and stuff like that... those are my favorite people to hang out with."
Getting involved in the poker scene is as easy as tuning into a live stream, and Lagana hopes to see more outsiders like himself get inspired by poker in the future.
"It's kind of like life," Lagana said. "Life isn't just one hand to play... you're only in control of sort of what's in your hand (and) you can't play the card that you weren't dealt with. So it's really been a fascinating life lesson for me."
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