Can it be? Two blog posts in the same month? Well, we've been pretty busy so far this summer launching new tours, bowling, birdwatching, and of course, watching the World Cup.
Every four years when I sit down to watch the matches of the World Cup, I am constantly torn between thinking, "This is why I love soccer" and "This is why I hate soccer." On the first thought, there is a lot to love about the tournament – with a few exceptions, the nationalism is generally benign and good-natured, and small countries with little to cheer about otherwise are swelling with pride over their sides' appearance on the international stage. On the other hand, the sport's governing body, FIFA, is either deeply corrupt or profoundly incompetent, and matches are routinely decided by referees' mistakes or outright cheating. This is not just sour grapes from a fan of the United States, which has been repeatedly robbed of deserved victories – World Cup champions have been crowned by horrific missed calls and blatant cheating, and FIFA refuses to do anything to remedy this problem, arguing that it is somehow "part of the game."
Every four years when I sit down to watch the matches of the World Cup, I am constantly torn between thinking, "This is why I love soccer" and "This is why I hate soccer." On the first thought, there is a lot to love about the tournament – with a few exceptions, the nationalism is generally benign and good-natured, and small countries with little to cheer about otherwise are swelling with pride over their sides' appearance on the international stage. On the other hand, the sport's governing body, FIFA, is either deeply corrupt or profoundly incompetent, and matches are routinely decided by referees' mistakes or outright cheating. This is not just sour grapes from a fan of the United States, which has been repeatedly robbed of deserved victories – World Cup champions have been crowned by horrific missed calls and blatant cheating, and FIFA refuses to do anything to remedy this problem, arguing that it is somehow "part of the game."
No matter who wins, it's going to be a party.
To prove that I am not just a sore loser, I will admit that this past weekend while watching the US-Ghana match, I felt far more of the former than the latter sentiment. One of the great things about New York City is that every single country participating in the World Cup (plus many, many more) has a community somewhere in the city. While I sometimes struggle to find places to watch my beloved Boston Red Sox with fellow supporters, there is always someplace where Uruguayans or Koreans or Spaniards are gathered to watch their homeland side play, and they are serving up their national dishes and swigging their national drinks.
Ghanaian beer specially imported for a special occasion.
Some friends of mine who had spent time in Ghana invited me to Cafe Meytex, a Ghanaian restaurant on Flatbush Avenue in Lefferts Gardens, Brooklyn. The place was packed from wall to wall with supporters of both sides. Most of the Ghanaian fans were decked out in their country's jerseys or had flags draped over their shoulders. One reveler wore a cape made of the flags of both Ghana and the United States, reflecting a common feeling in the air – the Ghanaians wanted their home country to advance, but a victory for their adopted one would not be heartbreaking.
When Ghana scored first, there was an eruption, but that soon settled back into concern, as most of the Ghana fans knew that the US starts slow but finishes strong – one goal would not be enough to win the game. When Landon Donovan converted his PK chance, the place got nearly as loud, as even the most ardent Ghana supporters cheered on the Americans to at least make a game of it. Gaffes and missteps put the Americans back on their heels in overtime, and they were victimized by Ghana again, this time by Kevin-Prince Boateng. I desperately wanted the US to win, and when the referee called time after the second overtime period, I felt devastated. But, then after a brief moment of heartache, I looked out on the street and saw the jubilant Ghana fans playing drums and stopping traffic on Flatbush. Some leaped on the hoods of cars driven by fellow countrymen passing by, some held up buses until the driver gave a congratulatory honk of the horn, while most just danced and cheered for the last African side remaining in this World Cup. The New York Times captured some of this pandemonium on their Goal blog, and I can be seen in this video making two mistakes – one was dropping my phone while trying to take the pictures you see on this post, and the other was to wearing the jersey of my favorite side, Sweden, which did not even quality for the World Cup, eliciting some laughs and jeers from fellow soccer fans.
For the dejected American fans, there was lots of backslapping and expressions of genuine condolence from the Ghanaians. One such fan, when I mentioned that the Americans looked slower and less adept in the air, said, "It's because you Americans don't drink porridge for breakfast. You eat cold cereal. That's why you lost." I'll be sure to mention this to the US Soccer Federation at their next meeting to discuss the future of the national team. But there are still two weeks of World Competition left, and I'll be happy to crack open a Star Beer and cheer for Ghana. They gave such a warm welcome to our president, so the least that I can do is root for their team.
I will definitely be at Meytex this Friday for Ghana's match against Uruguay. If you have any other suggestions for places to catch World Cup matches with natural-born supporters of the remaining eight teams, send them along to me, Andrew Gustafson, at andrewg@urbanoyster.com.