CUP MATCH

Cup Match is more than a cricket game. It’s a fun-filled festival, a national holiday and an island-wide picnic, all rolled into one.For a real taste of Bermuda, raise your cup for Cup Match. This long-weekend cricket contest provides islanders and guests alike a unique opportunity to come together and celebrate Bermuda.

Nearly all Bermudians are on hand to celebrate Cup Match on the Thursday and Friday before the first Monday in August. Those two days, in fact, are national holidays. The first is Emancipation Day, marking an end to slavery.

The second, Somers Day, honors Admiral Sir George Somers, whose shipwreck in 1609 led to the English settlement of Bermuda. Tack on the weekend, and you’ve got a smashing four-day holiday!

Cup Match dates to 1901. After a hotly contested match between East (St. George’s) and West (Somerset) cricket clubs, both sides agreed to play again the following year for a silver cup. The clubs took up a collection to buy the trophy and the stage was set for a national celebration.

Today that hallowed trophy is in a vault at a local bank. But Bermudians consider it so sacred that they don’t give it out anymore. Instead, modern-day Cup Match winners take home a replica trophy.

The game today is just as exciting as it was a century ago, and players as well as spectators take it seriously. Each side proudly wears its colors: light and dark blue for St. George’s; red and navy for Somerset. Come to a Cup Match and you’ll see supporters flying colors from bicycles, motorcycles and car antennas. Some women even paint their nails in team colors.

Where will you find Cup Match? The venue changes every year. One year it’s hosted by St. George’s; the next, by Somerset. That ensures that both sides enjoy equal opportunities to share in the prestige of putting on the event.

But there’s much more to Cup Match than cricket. Preparations begin weeks before the event. Organizers build skyboxes, erect tarpaulins and tents, and set up "Crown and Anchor" gambling tables.

Beloved by locals and visitors, the game is legal — and loads of fun! The Crown and Anchor game board consists of six sections, each with a symbol: crown, anchor, diamond, club, heart and spade. These symbols correspond to those on the dice.

The board is controlled by a "banker" and assistants. Players bet on which symbol they think the banker will roll. Bettors can win as much as three times the amount of their stake, depending on how many selected symbols turn up. If no selection appears, you lose your stake.

But don’t worry. There are plenty of other things to do. At Cup Match, vendors serve up mouthwatering traditional Bermudian fare, including conch stew, fish chowder, mussel and beef pies, peas and rice, codfish cakes, fish and chips, fried chicken and barbecued ribs. It’s a feast fit for a king!

Cup Match is a wonderful place to enjoy calypso singers, meet old and new friends and simply enjoy the exciting atmosphere. It is uniquely Bermudian, and one of the biggest holidays celebrated in the islands. Why not come and see for yourself?

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