USA vs. Brazil, A.K.A. Thanks USA for a fun World Cup!

Suffering from World Cup withdrawal, the USA vs. Brazil game at the New Meadowlands Stadium was the perfect elixir to deal with the blues and for the fans to get their cheer on.
The New Meadowlands Stadium is rather impressive looking from from the outside.
And a lot of fans enjoyed the view while drinking a cool brewskie on a hot muggy summer day.
Inside from the top rows of the New Meadowlands Stadium it was an impressive site, seeing so many fans there for the friendly match. Over 77,000 viewed the action on the pitch.
The New York fans were there to cheer on the team...
And it was a large, loud, supporters section for the game.
Even Bill Clinton, the newest soccer fan in the USA made a guest appearance.
But the Brazilians out classed the USA on the field. So much so that the relaxed Brazilian fans (or fans wearing Brazilian shirts) decided to start a wave during the second half.
Michael Bradley came the closest to scoring a header for the USA in the second half, but was ruled offsides.

And the USA fans waved their flags and cheered throughout the second half.
But in the end it was a disappointing result for the fans.
They still cheered the players off the pitch.
And proceeded to carry the large American flag outside the stadium they had hoped to wave several times during the game after some goals, but never got a chance.
And when they finished folding the largest USA flag around...

They worked on folding the smallest USA flag around.

So all in all it was a not a great night for the US fans but it was a chance to see the World Cup squad one more time and thank them for a fun ride this summer. It will be nice to have a few months to remember the Cup, and then its the start of the long road to Brazil for the 2014 World Cup. I'm looking forward to it.

World Cup Finale

And so the finale. The end of the biggest sporting event and the largest party in the world. The event that places every one's life on hold. The finale. The end.
I made my way to Jozi from Cape Town for the final match and from the moment I touched down at the airport the colors and pride of the Spanish...and the Holland fans were on display.
A ton of Spanish fans had just arrived at the airport from Spain ready to support their nations quest for their first World Cup trophy.
As were the Dutch fans who had already been traveling in large numbers but thousands more also arrived at the airport the morning of the final match.
Dutch fans even added a little orange color to a band playing at a local shopping complex in Johannesburg.
And when I arrived at Soccer City it was literally a sea of Orange as far as the eye could see. The Holland fans had become one of my favorite nations during the Cup. They were passionate, fun, wacky, and a pleasure to hang out with and party.
And the smaller numbers of Spanish fans were also ready getting ready for the final.
Perhaps the fans were getting a little too close with each other before the match.
But in the end of the day there could only be one team that would not be crushed.

The game itself, well, I can't say that it was the most exciting soccer match I have ever watched. But having followed the Orange fans this far deep down I was in their corner hoping for a Dutch victory. I ended up finding the one location in the stadium where the Netherlands fans were actually able to stand and support their team. Almost everywhere else the fans had to sit down, per FIFA regulations. ( In my opinion having dedicated fans be forced to sit in their seats ruins the atmosphere of the game, but that is a separate post at another time.)

And as time went on and Holland missed some golden opportunities, it just began to feel like it was not the Netherlands day. Then extra time, a red card and the goal with 4 minutes left to effectively seal the game for Spain.
The Holland fans, many who I had partied and took photographs of long into the night after the semi-final were devastated. It was tough to behold and even harder to take photographs of such sorrow and sadness.

Tears flowed freely...
Glassy, watery eyes were the norm...
And once again a party that seemed would never end came to a quick, brutal ending met by an inconsolable sorrow.
Like a broken vuvuzuela.
But as the Holland fans hugged and thought about what could have been...
the long suffering Spanish fans were able to finally taste the sweet smell of victory.
And enjoy being the champions of the world.
Seeing such joy on the Spanish side tempered how bad I felt for the Dutch fans..
And their absolute pure joy was infectious as well. Congratulations Spain and your fans for a job well done.

Well this is it for me. The end of the World Cup. I am still just starting to go through my photographs and edit them down and try and put together a last collection of my favorite images. But I am afraid that might take at least a week.

But after spending the last month doing nothing but eat, drink and watch soccer I am glad to have a chance to come up for air, catch my breath and have a moment to decompress and savor all the memories.

However right now I can tell, in my mind, I am starting to plan out about the next World Cup in Brazil in 2014. After all it is only 4 years away!! :)

Der Oranje Invasion

Thank you Oranje! Photographing so many matches the past few weeks I had chosen who were my favorite fans this World Cup. My top choice was the Ghana fans, but a close second were the Holland fans. They were passionate and intense, but given the chance to party, not a moment would be put to waste.
I met up with the Netherlands fans and other fans in Cape Town which was a great place for a match.
Unlike Jo'burg where there was no central meeting point or possibility to walk to the matches, Cape Town had created a "Fan Walk" where after fans met up at the festival, they could walk the 2.4 km to the stadium.

It was a great place for fans all over the world to interact.
Blow their vuvuzuela..Grab a seat and a beer...
or 5 or 10....
and make their way down...

with the handful or Uruguayan fans who made the trip.

At the stadium the spirits of the Holland fans were sky-high before the match.
After a tense opening 60 minutes, when Holland scored their third goal the Dutch fans could not sit in their seats any more but had to get up and start dancing throughout the stadium.
When Uruguay scored a late goal there were some tense final moments....
But then the Netherlands fans erupted into celebration!
Carried their clogs sky high...And could feel the World Cup trophy within their grasp.
Even the Oranje General, who has been a fan since 1974, could taste the sweet scent of victory within his grasp.
From the hour long party outside the stadium, the Dutch fans danced all the way out of the stadium...
And partied for a bit with other fans along Long Street in Cape Town...
Before ending up together once again to celebrate their victory.
The Dutch fans also are a bunch of family. Some have been attending matches for years and the celebration was special.
A former secretary of state for Netherlands and the goalkeeper from the Netherlands Euro winning 1988 side partied with the fans...
But the moment, was sweet...
...the emotions, were pure, and the fun was nonstop. My best wishes to the Dutch on Sunday. I hope their long wait for their first World Cup will soon be over.