Henry Winter’s World Cup Diary, Day 31
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It was at the end of “Mr. Brightside” that fans wearing Argentina jerseys and fans wearing Shearer’s No. 9 jersey from the European Cup 1996 hugged each other. It was just after midnight last night at a bar in downtown Atlanta, where the karaoke area was shared between Argentina and England fans. I walked in with two friends who were England fans, met three other people and ended up getting a table overlooking the dance floor. It is in these conditions, with whistles damp and guards relaxed, that the city’s mood will be tested. England versus Argentina, old rivals, fighting for a spot in the World Cup final.
This caused trouble for some Argentinian fans, who wore T-shirts with a giant photo of Diego Maradona proclaiming “Malvinas Belongs to Argentina”. When we walked into the bar, an Englishman outside was shouting at an Argentinian who was leaning out of his car window and waving a Messi shirt. He dropped the “F” bomb. Falkland Islands.
To their credit, both managers, Thomas Tuchel and Lionel Scaloni, were at pains to stress that “it’s just a football match”. Both men are well aware of the sensitivity between the two countries over the Falklands issue and are determined not to add fuel to the fire. Fans in the streets were not expected to be so diplomatic, so police launched a massive operation in secret last night.
The bar we were in didn’t require it, although a police officer was coming in when we left just after 1am. The two pairs of fans seemed happy to share the karaoke machine. The British ruled it for a while and first staged “Vindaloo” which included a brief performance of “f*ck the Argies”. Two fans stand facing each other, receive their badges, see who can grab them and kiss the most, and then get tired. “World In Motion” is followed by “Bittersweet Symphony”, which has a lot of “England” elements in it. Inevitably, “Wonderwall” is given a raucous listen amid many familiar keys.
The almost carnival-like “Three Lions” is a Christmas version, including “The Christmas Tree Formation” and “Three Lions on the Sleigh”. The Argentine performed some songs and many people at the tables in the restaurant upstairs stood up to join in.
The Queen unites everyone. There were about 25 British people and 15 Argentinians at “We will rock you.” There was some brief confrontation after an England fan gave a young Argentinian the middle finger, but the atmosphere was much calmer than expected. Courteneers’ “Nineteen No More” became “Football Comes Home Again – With Thomas Tuchel”. We’ll see later, but last night showed that some are ready to give peace a chance.
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The stars of the tournament undoubtedly shine: England’s Jude Bellingham and Harry Kane, and Argentina’s Lionel Messi. Kylian Mbappe, Michael Olise, Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard improved their reputations and statistics despite being beaten. Much to the delight of England manager Thomas Tuchel, it was his performance that stood out. “The whole World Cup has shown that all superstars are committed to the concept of team, team spirit and playing for their country,” Tuchel said. England certainly are now.
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I talked to a brilliant 50-year-old female cab driver who loves Atlanta, but now that her daughters have graduated from college, she wants to hit the road and explore the world. She briefly thought about going to Italy, but struggled to grasp the ancient nature of the place or the watery element of Venice. I’m encouraged that she is among the 47% of Georgia adults who have a passport. She wanted to travel, but where she really wanted to go was Las Vegas, with $300 and playing slot machines.
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It’s sad to leave Kansas City for Atlanta forever. If you love ribs, brick-sized cheesecake (but softer), sports, Civil War history, and people who want you to have a great day, look no further than Kansas City, Missouri. I do three to four radio or TV interviews a day, most of them visual, so the hotel set up a studio in a spare business suite with the various colors of the major World Cup teams in the background. It feels good in hand. Early BBC broadcasts required a book or two to support the computer. I looked around, but soon realized I was in one of the few hotels in the Midwest within easy reach. The hotel gave me a box of Trivial Pursuits to support my computer. They always had a pot of coffee on the go, day or night.
Catch up on the rest of Henry Winter’s World Cup diary here