“Mario, I’d like to invite you to come to Las Vegas to meet some American Chelsea fans.”

At first I wasn’t sure about this invitation because you never know what to expect with these kind of events – especially when they’re hosted in Las Vegas. But this wasn’t just any invitation – it was an invitation from Spy, the man I call Mr. Chelsea.

Spy has been working as a writer and broadcaster for Chelsea for as long as I can remember. He knows more about the club than anybody I’ve ever met, explaining the ‘Spy’ moniker.

He has also been a great friend to me since the day I signed for Chelsea. When he introduced me to Beth, a Chelsea super fan from Texas who has been supporting the club since 1981, I had to hear her out.

Beth was first introduced to football when her friend Simon invited her to Stamford Bridge. “I fell in love with the game the moment I saw these 22 men with great bodies walk out onto the field, the crowd standing and singing with passion,” she told me.

After the 90 minutes had passed she asked Simon, “When can we go again?”

Her passion never died, and in 2004 when a friend showed her a picture of herself with John Terry, she realised she wasn’t alone. There were many Chelsea fans just like her in the States. It was that day she decided to build a community for the American Chelsea Fans.

From my first conversation with Beth, I realised she knows Chelsea inside out. She has told me so many stories about the clubs history that even Google is no match for her.

Once I agreed to the trip, Beth organised everything like I was still playing at a top Premier League club. I arrived in Las Vegas on Thursday afternoon with my friend Marc Cunningham. The chauffeur was waiting at the airport to drive us to the Cosmopolitan Hotel where we were showed to our amazing suites. The view from the hotel room was simply magical, we could see the Belaggio fountains and the whole strip.

Once unpacked, I went downstairs to the Hotel lobby to meet all the Chelsea fans. We spent the whole day by the pool reminiscing about some legendary Chelsea stories and catching up with each other’s lives. They were eager to hear my experiences from the field, and my ideas on the Chelsea of today. They treated me like one of their own and it felt great to be welcomed into such a beautiful and passionate community.

I would’ve never thought I’d find that same European type of love we have for football, right here in America.

I am eager to see what else this trip has in stock for me. My remaining schedule has a Q&A and a game lined up – where I’ll be the referee alongside Gus Poyet – and maybe even play a little. However, on that note I must go, because the night is knocking and you know what they say.

What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.

#mmlove