Etihad Airways contest winner reflects on trip to Manchester

Every day, not surprisingly, Vera DeFilippo goes through her emails.

For some reason, the paralegal at Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C. in Hamden, Conn., decided to open one message in particular.
DeFilippo filled out the accompanying form and shortly thereafter received a phone call. DeFilippo won a contest to join New York City FC during a preseason tour in Manchester, England,  all courtesy of Etihad Airways.
“I think it was the day before the last day to enter; I clicked and entered my name,” she said. “I couldn’t believe it. In between my 100 emails, I decided to open that one and take a minute to fill it out.”

DeFilippo, of North Haven, Conn., won a free trip for two to watch New York City FC in person. She and her daughter, Kristina, 23, flew across the Atlantic Ocean to enjoy their trip the weekend of Feb. 14-15. They took in tours of both City Football Academy and Etihad Stadium, home of Manchester City FC.

That Sunday, the DeFilippos enjoyed New York City FC’s preseason friendly against Danish Superliga side Brondby at CFA.

“It was a wonderful experience,” DeFilippo said. “It was quick, but it was great. We got there Saturday morning and had tours for four hours between the academy and the stadium. We had a great day seeing everything. We learned a lot – how things are run there, even how they grow their grass. It was a great experience and I’m very blessed to have had it.”

DeFilippo said she has been abroad before, but never to England.

While she wasn’t a fan of the food, save bangers and mash, DeFilippo and her daughter, who played soccer growing up, thoroughly enjoyed the experience, especially since the rain held up all weekend.
DeFilippo said her trip wasn’t a culture shock, be she was fascinated by how much soccer was around.
“I did notice how much they eat, live and breathe soccer,” she said. “You hear about it, but when you go there, you realize it. Every channel on TV is soccer. There’s so much of it and it’s a huge part of their culture. It’s in their blood.”
 DeFilippo, who admitted she didn’t believe she had won the contest at first, saying she didn’t think it was “legit,” has some sage advice to everyone.
Besides always reading your emails, DeFilippo recommended: “People should always have their passport ready because you never know.”