Cup Crazy (or at least mildly amused)

The Verdensmesterskabet i fodbold, more commonly known as the FIFA World Cup is well under way now and people have literally gone Cup Crazy. I can tell you firsthand that all the stories about European soccer hooliganism are one-hundred percent true. Cars flipped over and torched. Storefronts smashed and looted. Emergency sirens blaring incessantly. Marshall law is now in effect in Denmark. I'm fearful to leave my apartment.

Okay, perhaps that's a little bit of an exaggeration. Alright, a HUGE exaggeration, but still, it's pretty neat to be in a country that actually does get 'football fever,' as opposed to one that just gets a case of the sniffles during the World Cup. Signs, billboards, posters, print ads, television, you name it, everything has something to do with soccer. Cashiers and store clerks are wearing red and white jerseys (for Denmark) and all manner of tacky hats can be seen walking that streets at any given time. My personal favorite is one that has a pair of red and white hands on the front with a pullstring attached, allowing the wearer to clap at his or her leisure. Ingenious.

I enjoyed watching the Team USA in action on Saturday night, playing to a 1-1 draw with mighty England in a rematch of the American Revolution. Many Danes were quite thrilled with this performance, still bitter towards the English squad after a dropping a 3-0 match during the 2002 World Cup. I watched with some guys from the team waving an American Flag bandana sent to me from home and I look forward to using this again during another game, preferrably out in public at a pub.

Yesterday however, was Denmark's day as they had their first action against a very good Dutch team. The Netherlands are regarded as one of the top teams in this year's field and the Danes faced similar odds that the US team saw several nights ago. People here were unfazed though, as the better part of Aarhus seemingly shut down about an hour or so before the game began. The streets and stores gradually emptied and buses were packed with people eager to get to wherever it was they were going to watch the match.

Teammate Nick Holmelund asked if I wanted to join him in watching at the cafeteria of his school at the University. I accepted and that's we were started out. The school was all abuzz with anticipation; students and faculty were milling in and out of the cafe as the 2010 Danish World Cup Anthem played on. Below is a link to the video of this song, which thankfully features a keytar. Many people love the tune, many hate it; you decide for yourself:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kvkaFKoYlI&feature=PlayList&p=6FEE153E9EA54EE7&playnext_from=PL&playnext=1&index=50

Soon after, the match was underway but the online video feed projected on to the big screen continually cut out, prompting many to exit and find other means to view the action. We quickly left as well and bussed a shortways downtown to the Square to watch with several thousand other people. This was a great decision. Right in front of the Aarhus Cathedral, the tallest in Denmark, there was a gigantic videoscreen set up in all its HD glory. Huge speakers were on either side of it and echoed all throughout the surrounding buildings. People packed in and found a space to watch wherever they could: on rooftops, out of windows, on top of a large sculpture, on scaffolding, everywhere. Below is a video I shot with my iPhone, which should give you and idea of this:



I must note that I took this video shortly after we arrived and that people continued to pack the Square on through the second half of the game. The following picture was taken a little later after we switched spots and met up with some other Tigers guys. It shows you a different look at the crowd, as well as some of the aforementioned hats (check out the soccer ball with the Viking horns). I can tell you that the mass goes on well past the big green Carlsberg banners; in total there must have been 5,000 people there and that could be a low-ball figure:


The next shot shows you more people hanging out of windows and balconies, as well as the sculpture-turned-grandstand, just to the left of the church:


As for the game itself, the first half was marked by pretty solid defense by both teams. It was a scoreless affair until a Danish own-goal blunder early in the second put the Dutch up 1-0. From that point on, the Danes struggled to find their offense while the Netherlands played keep-away. The clincher came with about five minutes to play, a Dutch goal moving them to a 2-0 advantage. That would be enough to end things. The crowd dispersed without incident; not a single brick was thrown nor big screen TV looted.

To console our wounded soccer spirits, we naturally went to an Irish pub for a pint of Guinness. In the picture below, the faces aren't nearly as somber as I would have imagined:


Above is myself with Jesper ''Psycho'' Christensen, Anders Arnfast, Nick and Morten Sehested. Jesper and Anders were so distraught that they took their aggression out on a slew of unsuspecting patrons on the foosball table. It is a well-known fact that they are two of the most dangerous foosballers in Denmark and they showed no mercy yesterday, in the wake a Danish defeat. After six or seven consecutive wins on the table and soon, no one lined up anymore for their chance to be crushed:


I dubbed the ordeal 'Det ta'r kun fem minutter,' or 'It'll only take five minutes.' Borrowing this slogan from the grocery store Fakta (soon after learning how to say it properly - "Day tay-er kohn fem mi-noo-ter"), I felt it appropriately described the impending doom that victims would face. Justice was indeed swift and efficient.

And thus was the day. Denmark (the soccer team, not the country) is off until Saturday, when they will face Cameroon. Perhaps then, I will see some happy faces afterwards and won't have to witness the onslaught above. Oh, the humanity. Be back a little later.