IT’S THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR!

No, we’re not channeling Andy Williams here in pre-prep for the holidays — but this is the most wonderful time of the year for us. Why? Because we just finished up an incredible three weeks in Beijing. We’ve just finished a thrilling U.S. Open where Federer rediscovered his mojo. Baseball is just starting to get good, as the Cubs strive to end their century-long curse. And our beloved football season has finally arrived. (Insert goose bumps here.) But wait, we’re not done: The English Premier League is now in full swing. And NASCAR’S Chase for the Cup begins next week. Does it get any better than this? Nope, not for us here at GoGameFace. And we’ll tell you why.
   
GameFace all began when a girl had a dream. And in this dream, we lived in a world where there was a smart and saucy voice that spoke to female sports fans. And that voice was not condescending (because we do know how many points are in a touchdown). And the voice did not try to get us to watch sports like guys (because we don’t want to memorize every player’s career stats in order to enjoy a game).
   
You see, that girl with a dream is Erica Boeke. She enjoys sports differently. She watches sports like a girl. She wonders why baseball players are still wearing double-knit pants when we can get wonderfully stylish yoga pants down at Lululemon. And she wants to debate what the best national anthem performance ever was: Marvin Gaye, 1983 NBA All-Star Game (see below)… our little secret until Nike just came out with their commercial (see just below that).

She also likes to reminisce about her favorite tailgating spreads ever and salivate over the gourmet fare that was served. She also wants to talk about how she and her sister go to Spring Training every year in Scottsdale and how they are dying to go to the FIFA World Cup in South Africa in 2010.  She has a lot to say when it comes to sports — and she knows you do, too.
   
So enough of this third-person business. She is me. I am Erica Boeke. And I wanted to create this community for us — the 50+ million American women who follow pro sports (yes that’s a stat, but it’s a meaningful stat!) More recent projections put that number at 70 million. There are lots of us out here. And yet, no one’s talking to us. This is why I knew I had to try to make this dream come true. I knew we all needed a place to go that was smart and irreverent and not pink. (Why is it that everything that is geared toward women and sports is pink?)
   
I set out with my friend Chris De Benedetti to write a book called “GameFace: The Kick Ass Guide for Women Who Love Pro Sports” (Virgin Books, September 2008). In it, we cover all of the drama that women love on the field and off. Juicy sex scandals … why sports marketing & promotions suck (and rock) … how to get in the pit at NASCAR … our all-time favorite Super Bowl half-time shows … and much more. No pink jersey required.
   
But wait just one minute. Who is this Chris character? And what’s this I hear about him being a guy? Yes, he’s a guy. But he’s a guy who cares more about juicy stories than stats, and he prefers the sentimental side of sports rather than the ruthless bottom line. Not to say he’s soft — he can hold his own in any sports bar conversation across the country, but he provides a great balance to my perspective. He tells me when I’m being too catty when I diss Jessica Simpson (a.k.a. Yoko Romo) for the umpteenth time —  and alternatively, can answer questions like, “Hey Chris, why do guys go to a ballgame and try to keep an empty seat between themselves and their buddy … then when there’s a great play, next thing you know they are hugging and crying and groping each other?”
   
So there you have it. The voice of GoFameFace was born. Please check out our book for our in-depth perspective on all of our favorite sports topics — but we also welcome you to the site, which will hopefully be your home-away-from-home when it comes to timely sports coverage from a girls’ eye view.
   
Every day, you’ll get our perspective on the sports topic du jour, and you’ll also hear some other voices in our Luxury Sweets articles each week, thanks to our roster of GameFace writers who have joined us. Through these opinionated articles — Fashion Plates, Away Games, The Show, Grub and SWAGs — we’ve got the bases covered (sorry) when it comes to all the things women love about sports. We also have a pop culture-infused Fantasy Football guide called Fantasy Island, and a customizable My GameFace page where you can set up your profile, and share your sports faves and foes with the world. You’ll see what’s new and next with us in Buzz, where you can follow us along on tour, as we travel across the country talking with women about the book and site, and starting the GoGameFace movement!
   
But enough about us, already! Sheesh. You are the reason we’re here. We welcome your thoughts and opinions and ideas on how to enhance the GameFace community. In the book and on the site, we may have missed your favorite eats at the park or we passed over your favorite sports sex scandal or maybe you love teams with purple in them as much as we loathe them. Tell us. And tell us often. Because the only thing we love more than sports is talking to other smart, saucy female fans about why they love it, too — and finding out how they watch sports like girls, just like us. (Yes, even Chris!) And who knows, maybe your thoughtful and saucy commentary will land you your very own column here on GoGameFace.com. A girl's gotta dream, right?

Thanks for your support and GoGameFace!
Erica & Chris