I arrived in the United States in 1994. That was the year Forest Gump hit the movie theater, Diana divorced Charles, Netscape released a browser, and the US hosted its first and ever World Cup.
I have been watching World Cup since I was a young babe. Even though China as a country sucks at soccer, it’s still the most popular spectator sport, and my dad would drag me up in the middle of the night to watch live games for at least two weeks. The fact that we lived in a city that is hosting some of the games was incredible, and had we even arrived just a few months earlier, I’m pretty sure my dad would have saved up the money to experience The Cup first hand. But as fresh new immigrants, that was a luxury we couldn’t afford.
That World Cup was full of drama. The United States had received the right over Brazil to host the games despite wide criticism over the decision. Maradona, one of my dad’s favorite players, tested positive for drugs and was disqualified halfway through the tournament. Andre Escobar scored an own goal, ending the best chance Colombia would ever have at a championship. Brazil played a scoreless final game against Italy, and won during a teeth clenching Sudden Death round.
Fast forward to 20 years later, I still haven’t made it to my first soccer match yet, but ended up working in China during the World Cup. There was so much excitement in the expat community, since every match will likely include a country one or more of your friends is associated with. Starting from the group stage, there was already a watch party every weekend, not to mention all the expat bars taking advantage of this huge opportunity and showing all games on the big screen, with the first game showing at midnight, and the last at 4am. This was where I really got a taste of soccer culture, and in the best atmosphere where people of all countries came to one place to support their own teams, in harmony.
As the country with the most World Cup wins and the only team to never miss the finals, it was assumed Brazil would be an awesome host to the tournament. Unfortunately, the decision to host ended up being shrouded in controversy due to the extravagant spending and rampant corruption, at a time when the country was already struggling economically. If the team had won the cup, perhaps these things would be overlooked in the aftermath of jubilant celebrations. So it was not necessarily a bad thing that Brazil didn’t make it to the final round, leaving the country and its leadership to reflect on the price it paid to show off to the world.
This video was taken after Germany dominated Brazil in an epic 7-1 win during the semifinals. Someone had once explained to me the origin of the chant, but I can no longer remember (this is why you should blog when things happen and not 3 years later). I also learned that, given the country’s history, for years, Germans have been wary of displays of nationalism, but the World Cup is one major exception where people do not hold back their pride for their country.
I love that idea. Competitiveness is a part of human nature and you can never get away from that. Sports tournaments give people a way to show their pride and share their nationalism in a confined time and place, and all in good fun. After the devastating match, I saw a disappointed Brazilian fan hug a guy in a German jersey before leaving the party. They smiled and exchanged a few words, I imagine to joke about the game and set up a time to hang out after the craziness is all over. If only all foreign affairs could be conducted in such friendly and rational manner.
Perhaps that’s what I miss the most about Shanghai. Even though America is supposed to be the big melting pot, there are enough people from each country to form small cliques, whereas the expat community in Shanghai was small enough everyone from a different country or just interested in foreign cultures was welcome. Being a part of that community expanded my horizons in a way that merely traveling to different places never can, and formed friendships that I hope to maintain no matter how far apart we end up.
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