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Tablefootball
Fiona Johnson puts some men
in a spin
| Oh,
Table Football. Once the preserve of youth clubs,
camping holidays and French textbooks (Regarde Jean.
Il jou au babyfoot. Il aime jouer au babyfoot. Bonjour.),
it is now more likely to be found where once the pool
table stood, in bars and Top Mans all over the country. |
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And
why not? Empirical evidence (number of adrenaline rushes
and competitor squeals per game) suggests that babyfoot
is simply more fun than pool, and as far as comparison
with another great bastion of pub gaming - the fruit machine
- it's just more worthwhile.
Invented in France around the start of the 20th century,
the game spread in international popularity at the end
of the Second World War, as returning soldiers brought
hankerings for their new-found pastime back home with
them. 'Foosball', the American term for the game, came
about via the grapplings of GIs with the European pronunciation
of the word 'football'. Its more recent surge in popularity
has introduced a spate of babyfoot-dedicated bars in capital
cities from London to Beijing.
Though not necessarily easy to excel at, babyfoot is quintessentially
easy to play - particularly if you ignore the complicated
etiquette of the proper French rules (though one condition
should remain memorable: score nul points and "vous
etes un Fanny"). Simply manoeuvre the little-men-on-rods
around so that you score goals, and your opponent doesn't.
And mind you don't spin them. It doesn't matter how powerful
and fast it makes you feel, spinning is controversial
and will cause an argument that you will most likely lose.
Table
Football can be found in both Hectors and in the city's
Polar Bars, and if you're after a free game, then try
Top Man. Here are an additional three places you might
not have spotted le babyfoot.
King
and Queen
13 Marlborough Place
Price: 50p
This overly-Tudored neighbour of The Pavilion is mainly
of note for its collection of dubious plastic figurines,
however it does boast a babyfoot table that's usually
free. It's as charmingly battered as you would expect
from this eccentrically themed pub, with the blue team
sporting a wounded striker pinioned to the rod at 45 degrees
of difference to his team mates. More predictable problems
come from a slight glare, and the ball's irritating habit
of coming to rest in an unkickable wilderness, but really
all this table needs is a bit of TLC, and a good wipe.
New
Vic,
31 Richmond Rd
Price: 50p
Tucked away at the top of a steep hill behind Upper Lewes
Rd, the New Vic is a more vibrant pub than it has any
right to be. Boasting purple walls, fairy lights and nostalgic
flushes of Snoop Dogg from the decks, The New Vic is too
pleasant to be studenty but too high octane to be a straightforward
local. Its contribution to Brighton's babyfoot scene is
to be found in a quiet backroom whose other most noticeable
feature is the covering of chequered black and white lino.
This kitsch-en floor in fact turns out to be at a slight
slant; but fortunately not at a direction that skews the
game's outcome. A sleek, modern table in a surprisingly
cute pub.
Open
House
Springfield Rd
Price: 50p
While babyfoot is by no means the main attraction of this
large and attractively accessorised pub, the enthusiast
would hope that it might be more than an ill-placed afterthought.
Lodged next to some tables behind the bar, the positioning
of this glass-topped table is more conducive to the venue's
high-density merry-making, than it is to sophisticated
babyfootism. The two main problems are as follows. For
the blue team: a paucity of elbow room. But, in a far
more crucial handicap, the red team will find their scoring
zone obscured by the surprisingly precise reflection of
a wall lamp. It is indeed a gorgeous piece of lighting
- massive, and reminiscent of a half-discarded chrysalis
- but the reds should expect to lose.
Other Places to Play:
Concorde 2, Madeira Drive
Font and Firkin, Union St, The Lanes
Hectors, 51-52 Grand Parade
Polar Bar, 114 Western Rd
Swan Inn, Middle St, Falmer
Top Man, Western Rd
copyright The Insight 2002
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