Podcast Transcript

16 June 2006
U.S. Versus Czech Republic, World Cup 2006

Mary-Elizabeth Madden, Assistant Cultural Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in London, talks about her experience being at the World Cup to Watch the U.S.

The USA vs. Czech Republic World Cup match on Monday was my first international sporting event. Sure I've been to lots of sporting events in the United States - cheering for my college teams, attending various American professional sports games-, and even attending a Premiership match in London, but I'd never had the chance to root for a United States national team. Now that I've gone, I can't imagine anything better than my first experience being at the World Cup.

There is nothing like the World Cup - a month long international celebration of one sport. Hundreds of thousands of people travel from all over the world just to soak in the atmosphere - even if they don't have tickets to any matches. The World Cup manages to do what so many events and governments can't - it brings people together, no matter what their beliefs, religions, ethnicities, or backgrounds are. No one cares. Everyone is unified by their appreciation of football.

I spent the weekend in Belgium. On Saturday, England played its first game. I watched the match at an Irish pub in the middle of Brussels. Hundreds of English fans crammed together to watch the match, and joyously celebrated England's win. They were singing and dancing on the pavement.

Sunday I traveled to Germany. On the train from Brussels to Cologne, I met an Australian who was on his way to meet up with the Australian football federation. Rodney has been following Australian football for years. We sat in the food car and chatted about the fortunes and disappointments over the past years of our teams. We talked about the prospects for the SoccerRoos and the Americans in the upcoming matches. As I learned, in Australia soccer is facing many of the same challenges and growth that soccer in the U.S. is going through. Australia making the World Cup final is potentially the energizing event that the 1994 World Cup was for American soccer.

After checking into the hotel in Essen, I wandered in the town square shopping area near the train station. I was attempting to find a USA jersey, scarf, or something to wear. I gave up after six shops. While items for Togo, Costa Rica, and, of course, England, Germany, and Brazil could be found, it was a futile attempt to look for anything that said "USA". It was almost as though the Germans did not expect any Americans to attend the game.

They were very wrong because come we did. On game day, as soon as you exited the train station in Gelsenkirchen, you couldn't help but see and hear the American fans. Sam's Army, the unofficial supporters club for the US National team, was out in full force. It was hard to miss the sights and sounds in the platz: cheers of "U-S-A", singing of "God Bless America", supporters decked out in red, and an extraordinarily large American flag. Even the non-Americans stopped to stare in amazement at the Americans and the festivities.

And it was festivities. It was a group of Americans from all of the U.S. who love soccer and came to support our national team. Czech fans ran up to Americans to have their picture taken with them. Each wishing the other's team a good game. Americans passing each other were greeted with the cheer of "Go U-S!". Any and all who wished to join in were welcome. The love of soccer was the only thing that mattered, and people from all over the U.S. made friends with each other that day.

I was sitting in a café before heading to the stadium, and a group of four Americans asked if they could take the empty seats at my table. Turns out that 3 of the 4 knew each other and were traveling together. They had met the fourth person on a train, and invited him to join their little group. Throughout the trip, I met Americans from Ohio, New York, Florida, Colorado, New Jersey, California, and a dozen or so other states. People that under normal circumstances I probably wouldn't have talked to, but here we were all part of one big American family.

Even though the United States lost to the Czech Republic, it was still fun to be there. Thousands of Americans belting out the Star Spangled Banner, and proud to be American representing their country overseas. These are the best cultural ambassadors the U.S. could hope for. They are articulate about their sport, team, and country, and share a common love and interest with billions of others in the world. They are as dedicated to their team - our team --as any English or Scottish fan is to theirs.

After the game, I went to the World Cup Fan Fest a couple of miles from the stadium. There, fans from all over the world watched the late match, tasted cuisine representing World Cup final countries, and discussed the prospects of various teams. It was a place to meet and share with people from all over.

The Germans were great hosts. Not only were they organized, they were very nice and helpful. Ordinary Germans were helping confused foreigners figure out the train schedules, and offering sightseeing tips.

The whole World Cup experience is about the global community coming together in an atmosphere of fun and friendship. During the few days I was there, I met people from Australia, Germany, England, Sweden, Korea, Czech Republic and several other countries. No matter what team you supported, everyone bonded over the common love of football. Politics, religion, and race were forgotten. A beautiful goal could be appreciated by all. That is why the World Cup is a unique and powerful experience.

And, go USA! Let's beat Italy on Saturday.

Back to the Podcast index page.

back to top ^