NORTHVILLE, Mich. — It took Fahad Yousif two days to receive his Certificate of Completion from the National Football League. It is dated December 12th. Signed by Dr. Ari Novick, a psychotherapist in private practice in Laguna Beach, California. The number is “Certificate #216932”. This means that perhaps 216,931 people have received that honor. . Cost is $250. That’s what Yousif paid for the four-hour course, which covers about eight or nine chapters of expected fan behavior in NFL stadiums.
He is holding his phone to show me.
“I can’t believe this happened,” he says.
This is what happens when everything goes too far. Yousif is a Detroit Lions fan. Who decided to howl on the Green Bay Packers sideline during pre-game festivities? At Ford Field last weekend. After a few choice words (not profanity, he clarifies), he placed his thumb against his neck and made a cutting motion. It was a terrible, terrible idea. For some, especially Packers coach Matt LaFleur, what started out as a trash-talking fan’s mouth devolved into a raving lunatic making threats. LaFleur fired back at Yousif. Yusif smiled broadly and shouted at Lafleur. Security got involved.
Yousif was there as a benefit of a ticket package. Granted the option to pick up one additional bonus for the 2024 season, he decided to be one of the fans who pull the giant American flag taut across the stadium during the national anthem before games. Instead, security escorted him out of the stadium before the national anthem.
The dusty affair went viral. After returning to his seat, Yousif was ejected from Ford Field before halftime. LaFleur then addressed the incident in his postgame press conference, saying Detroit’s pregame activities should have been better monitored. On Wednesday, the Lions canceled Yousif’s season ticket. He was then banned from attending NFL games. Every day, new colleagues and old friends text me asking “Did you see it on TV?” and media requests. Yousif acknowledged his mistakes and apologized at every opportunity. Everyone, including Yousif, more or less agreed that he had gone too far.
At the end of the week, the Lions and the league laid out a path forward. Yousif said the stadium ban would be lifted once he completes a code of conduct class and writes a formal apology.
Well, here it is. It’s Saturday afternoon, almost a week until the Lions host the Buffalo Bills in a marquee NFL game this weekend. Yousif accepted an invitation to meet at a Starbucks in Metro Detroit.
Maybe this is about life in the blast radius of a viral moment.
Or he could almost miss out on what could be the greatest season in Lions history.
Or it’s about repentance.
Or a second chance.
But Yusif is asked what he stands to lose.
“Oh my gosh, everything,” he says. “This is who I am, and you see, I almost lost it. I do not dismiss any criticism I have received. It’s nothing. I agree with most of it.
“I have had the honor of carrying the flag of the country I love. A line was crossed and it shouldn’t have happened. I can see where people are coming from. “I can’t believe this happened.”
Yousif is many things. He is a product of Metro Detroit’s vast Chaldean community. He is a first-generation American, born to an Iraqi father and Kuwaiti mother. He is the older brother of two siblings. He graduated from Wayne State University. He is a salesman for a Midwest auto tool company. He is the husband of his wife Gabby.
But what he most identifies with is being a Lions fan.
Yousif grew up speaking only Arabic at home. He tried everything to fit in at school and felt most comfortable talking about football. Growing up attending Farmington Hills Public Schools, he said, “Hi, my name is Fahad.” “I’m a huge Lions fan.”
Yousif ignored his father Saad’s pleas to play football. Instead, he lined up at defensive end and linebacker through middle school and high school. He got tickets to his first game at Ford Field in 2013. He and his older cousin began attending four or five games a year.
“It felt so natural,” Yousif said. “It was like this is where we come from and this is who we root for. “Support the Lions no matter what.”
Yousif grew to learn and understand the game more and more, but like many others, he fell into the same trap that befell generations of Lions fans. He believed.
“Oh, it’s the Matt Patricia era, bro.” He says now, smiling and fighting. “I totally bought the hype.”
But like every generation of Lions fans, something came from that belief. I shared my experience. Yousif convinced his father to start rooting for the Lions. He sold a dream. “This is the year.” Soon Yousif stopped attending the matches and decided to watch them at his father’s house instead. 2 chairs. Large screen TV. Standing appointment.
“Every year he got into more and more things,” Yousif says. “He finally got it and it kind of changed our whole relationship. “It wasn’t a great time for the Lions, but it was a good time for us.”
The Dan Campbell era in Detroit began in 2021 with Jared Goff’s franchise trading star quarterback Matthew Stafford. As soon as Yousif heard the news, he called his father. It was mid-March. Saad, 65, is newly retired and ready for his next ride as a Lions fan.
Six weeks later, Yusif heard that his father was sick. He went into the hospital. He was placed on a ventilator.
“It was too fast,” Yousif said. “Within 10 days, the man was dead.”
Yousif has not commented on this in numerous media appearances this week. There is no time for a viral moment. And his story doesn’t excuse what happened last week.
“It shouldn’t have happened yet,” he says. “I was a huge fan of professional wrestling growing up, and I think that’s part of my personality as well. I’m rooting for heels.”
The character is definitely big. Yousif is the loudest person in the coffee shop. He talks like he’s drinking jet fuel. One customer closed his laptop and moved to the far table. But Yousif doesn’t seem to be able to really help. He seems to act solely out of excitement and emotion and in equal proportions.
Until he started talking about the last few Lions seasons. After his father passed away, Yousif wasn’t sure if he would see the Lions anymore. Regardless of the outcome, every game was tied for defeat. As he said this, he was caught and paused for a moment, his jaw clenched and his cheeks quivering.
The 2021 season has come and gone. He prepared an empty seat for his father and watched the 2022 game from home. Before 2023, he decided to make a big decision. Season ticket. low bowl. Section 141, line 33 above.
He watched his team go 12-5 and win the NFC North last season.
“I know it sounds crazy. It really is. But I think my dad is saying this. Yeah, it’s okay, okay.“I’ve been telling people for years that he’s involved in all of this. I find a lot of comfort in that. I think he heard me say I didn’t want to see the Lions anymore.” . He wanted to make it easier.”
Now Yousif is rooting for one of football’s most unexpected giants. The Lions have a 12-1 record and are currently the favorite. It’s something so unimaginable that we can’t even talk about it.
Neither he nor anyone else can wrap their heads around what is happening. Yousif admits his mistake and accepts the punishment, but believes LaFleur overreacted and perhaps this whole thing didn’t have to escalate to that extent. He’s looking forward to another Lions-Packers showdown in the playoffs.
He plans to be there for it. It’s like he’s planning on being in the stands for Lions-Bills. A large group of long-term season ticket holders who run tailgates in the Eastern Market invited him to tailgate on Sundays. That person may have a ticket available.
Even if his season tickets are gone forever, Yousif can still go watch his team.
So he will be a fan.
He doesn’t know how to be someone else.
(Image: Mitch Robinson / athletic; Photo: Nic Antaya / Getty Images; (provided by Fahed Yousif)
