Philadelphia
CNN
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The scene in Philadelphia on Friday was what FIFA wanted when they came up with this super-sized version of the Club World Cup.
The clash of football culture was on full display as Brazilian club Cr Flamengo played against British Giants Chelsea at Lincoln Financial Field. Under the beautiful early summer afternoon sun, LINC, a venue unfamiliar with noise as the Philadelphia Eagles home, was bouncing forward as 54,000 fans screamed at their lungs.
Flamengo fans were making incredible noise from the moment they were filled at the northern edge of the stadium, fresh from the club’s finest season in recent memory of capturing Brazil’s Supercopa and Campenato’s Carioca. A few Chelsea Blue fans who bought tickets must have noticed pretty quickly that they were having a long day.
The strange mix of world football and American football collided again early in the game. The president of FIFA’s Gianni Infantino likened the tournament and next year’s World Cup as the equivalent of three or four Super Bowls every day for a month, and his organization has undoubtedly tried to bring that American talent to the world’s games.
The starting lineup for each team was introduced individually to the music thrills. This is far from the modest team strikes that generally mark the beginning of soccer matches around the world. As the music rocked the concrete on the stands, it seemed like most fans (both black and red and white fans) were waiting for things to go quiet, so they could start singing again.
And they sang – especially Flamengo fans. Each forward attack was filled with screams and urged the player. The whistle and booth met Chelsea’s property, and as Pedro Neto scored the opening goal for the Blues in the 13th minute, cheers from the blue edge of the field were overtaken by screams of rebuttal from Flamengo fans scattered around this massive stadium.
Neto’s goal was followed by a squelching performance of Blur’s “Song 2.” The soccer purists at the end of the London Club were shady at the performance of music to celebrate the goal. Another very American trend that has been increasingly used by clubs around the world is heavily used to the frustration of hardcore supporters.
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said the atmosphere in the team’s first match in Atlanta on Monday was “a little strange” as he played in front of an almost empty Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The tournament served as an opportunity to settle details before the World Cup Host Nations arrived at the Quadrennial tournament, as did the Confederations Cup in previous eras, but the match was seen as a sign that FIFA’s new competition could be flattened in the US.
The Philadelphia crowd would have eased those horrors. Despite the start of the workday at 3pm, much of the stadium was filled – although most of the east was empty under the sun on this warm June day, the noise was eye-opening.
In the tournaments critics said, Flamengo fans sometimes sounded like a hair dryer directly to their ears. Their players played with the same effort and fire that their supporters had shown in their seats.
And it appears that Chelsea is not treating this as a state summer break because of the team that just endured the long Premier League season they fought for qualifying in the UEFA Champions League. Neto celebrated the goal by pointing to the name behind the shirt in front of Flamengo fans, and denied the penalty after the denial of the referee’s penalty brought about a passionate complaint to the referee after Enzo Fernandez was put in the box.
In the 54th minute when Flamengo’s Gerson shot from the left side of the box, there was no other idea as to whether this competition was important for players on the field. This attempt took a flexion and drips towards the goal. Chelsea keeper Robert Sanchez collided with the goal post and threw himself into the ball as Gonzalo Plata tried to tap on Flamengo’s first goal. The shots got bigger and both Sanchez and Plata felt pain in the grass.
It was a complete commitment. It is expected that we will see the stadium hosting five World Cup group games and 16 knockout matches next year.
Flamengo supporters felt the goal was coming, so massive saves from both teams’ supporters in the 61 minute period were sent upwards from both teams. And that was Bruno Henrique. He had entered the game a few minutes ago as a second half replacement.
The stadium shook in the jump, and the black and red smoke quickly filled the air above the northern edge of the Lincoln financial field. The noise has risen to 11. Just a few minutes later, another short-range goal from Danilo from a headed flick from Henrique – the shirt was torn and shaking the air as Flamengo ascended to ascenk into football heaven.
The atmosphere seemed to be approaching deep within Chelsea’s spirit. A 68-minute rash tackle from Nicholas Jackson, who had just entered the game four minutes ago, caused a straight red card on Ayrton Lucas. Chelsea were forced to play the final 22 minutes with 10 men.
The third goal of the 83rd iced Flamengo’s game and turned LINC into a carnival. The strike, past Sanchez by Wallace Jan, was the result of Sharbolic’s defense that has been plaguing Chelsea since the golden generation left the team. The forward took advantage of a sloppy attempt to clear the Blues’ ball to launch a 3-1 victory party in the sunshine that the Brazilians are proud to be present.
This was a gorgeous preview of what the stadium feels like, just as 48 countries send national teams to the US, Mexico and Canada for the World Cup. The US is not a country that has been hit by football, as is the case with Brazil or the UK, but Friday’s scene in Philadelphia marked a football festival heading to North America within a year.
