World Cup Fever Brings Nations Together in Beijing
China is gripped with World Cup fever, only barely diminished by the fact that the nation's team failed to qualify for this year's competition. Chinese fans are watching, listening to and discussing the games all over Beijing. The games are also, of course, huge happenings for the members of the expat community, who gather in bars to watch their home teams battle it out. Because of the six-hour time difference between here and Germany all games start between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m., a fact that has not cooled the ardor.
I haven't noticed an allegiance to any one nation, and every person I ask seems to be rooting for a different team, but many are avidly following the event. Large inflatable soccer balls displayed outside of bars indicate establishments that will be showing the late night games. Many Chinese ask me if I am following the Cup, curious to know if an American cares.
I am a borderline soccer fan. Or at least I was before I too began being overtaken by World Cup mania. I have been coaching eight-year-old Jacob's soccer teams for two years, both here and in New Jersey, starting to feel more and more like I understand and enjoy the sport. It didn't occur to me that I had only watched a handful of real matches.
A few weeks ago, I flipped on the TV searching for the NBA Finals and instead came across a replay of the previous night's Ghana-Czech Republic match. (The government-owned CCTV has exclusive broadcast rights for the World Cup in China and they show each match live and then repeat it twice the following day.) I was stunned by how good the players were, wowed by the almost full-length goalie kicks, amazed at the speed and power of the players, and fascinated by the orchestrations of the offenses. I laughed at myself for thinking I understood a game I had rarely seen anyone over 10 play.
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I called Jacob in and we watched the rest of the game together, rooting hard for Ghana, mostly because the professional coaches who ran his practices back in New Jersey were all former members of the Ghanaian National Team. We celebrated their victory with high fives and when Ghana played the U.S. a few days later, I told Jacob that I was rooting for America, but wouldn't be unhappy with any outcome. I told him he could choose whom to root for. He thought about if for a while then said he was pulling for Ghana: "We're from America but I've never met anyone on the U.S. team."
When Ghana beat the U.S. to move on to a quarterfinals match against defending champs Brazil, I knew I had to see the game and was happy when my Ethiopian friend Nathan asked if I wanted to join him and our friend Jim at a bar for the game. I gladly accepted, then invited my Kenyan pal Charles to join us. All of Africa was pulling hard for Ghana and I was happy to watch the match with two natives of the continent.
The four of us arrived at Brown's, a large, downtown sports bar/English-style pub at about 10:40 p.m., walking in to a raucous Brazilian-themed bash, complete with waving flags. Pennants from every competing nation hung from the ceiling. At least half the crowd was Chinese but the 100 or so Brazilians dominated the large room. All of them, young and old, men and women, were dancing to loud, pulsating Brazilian music being pumped out by a DJ wearing a Ronaldo jersey.
As game time approached, the music stopped and two huge screens descended from the ceiling. The English-language broadcast was a satellite feed from South Africa. The Brazilians filled the left side of the bar, while the right side was mostly packed with Chinese viewers mixed with a variety of expats. We were in the front and dead center. All of the Brazilians sang along with the national anthem then erupted in whoops and cheers as kickoff approached. A handful of Chinese behind us were also rooting for Ghana, but we were a distinct minority.
The place erupted when Ronaldo scored a goal to give Brazil a 1-0 lead five minutes into the game. The party was really on when they scored again just before the half. The large Chinese bar staff sprung into action, installing a series of U-shaped brass rails behind the large wooden bar. Then the Brazilian music began blaring and scores of fans scampered onto the bar and commenced wild, joyous dancing. This is a hard country to root against. The bar-top party started again when the game ended with a 3-0 Brazil victory. As we filed out into the late night, with my African friends feeling truly let down, the Brazilians boogied and the bar staff prepared for the 2:50 a.m. Spain/France kickoff.
Five nights later, when the next round kicked off, Rebecca and I were out to a late dinner with a group of friends at a Middle Eastern eatery famous for its belly dancers. The women entertained the packed crowd of diners, a mix of Chinese and foreigners, until about 10:58 p.m. Then the loud music stopped and a screen dropped down from the ceiling above the stage where the dancers had been undulating seconds before. Portugal and England were set to kick off, and not one person objected. One departing friend bid us adieu with the information that the games were being screened in the middle of Ritan Park, one of the oldest parks in the city and one our favorite spots downtown.
At halftime, Rebecca and I and two friends jumped in a cab to check that scene out. We followed the lights through the dark park to the large central square, which was, I believe, originally built as a place to make sacrifices to the sun god. Two giant screens were rigged above the old altar, one airing the game with English commentary and the second at a 45-degree angle with Chinese commentary (and at least a 30-second tape delay). Several hundred people, mostly Chinese, sat in plastic chairs sipping Tsing Tao beers and eating skewered meat and peanuts. The entrance fee was 30 Reminbi (about $3.50) and included a beer. It was pleasant, warm evening and a pleasant, inviting scene. The crowd seemed to be pulling for England though with no goals being scored it was hard to be sure.
When regulation ended with a 0-0 deadlock it was past 1 a.m. and felt like time to head home. We hailed a cab and the driver was blasting the game on the radio. We asked whom he was rooting for and he smiled and said, "Ying-guo! Hao!" (England! Good!). Several times, the announcer grew excited and screamed and we tried to figure out what was going on, but he just kept saying, "Ying-guo! Hao!"
We got back after 1:30 a.m. and I felt bad to have left the babysitter, one of Eli's assistant teachers, working so late. I entered to find him sprawled out on the floor chin propped in front of his hands in front of the TV, avidly watching the game, which was still tied nil-nil. Now I felt bad for making him leave before the game ended, so I said that the cab was waiting and the game was on the radio. He wouldn't have to miss a minute.
The semifinal games were played at 3 a.m. Wednesday and Thursday mornings and I couldn't quite bring myself to join the friends who were going to be watching. (It's not a Steelers playoffs game, after all.) The final will be played at 2 a.m. Monday here and I am noncommittal about attending, but I bet Ritan Park would be beautiful that time of the morning.
世界杯热潮席卷京城
中国人对世界杯足球赛的狂热丝毫没因中国队未能参赛而减退。在北京，到处都有球迷观看、收听和讨论世界杯的赛事。当然，在外国人居住的社区中，世界杯也是一件盛事，他们纷纷聚集在酒吧中，观看自己国家球队的比赛。由于北京同德国有6个小时的时差，比赛基本都是在晚上10点至次日凌晨三点之间开始，但这并未降低人们的热情。
我没有发现人们特别忠于哪支球队，我问的每个人所支持的球队都不尽相同，但许多人热衷于观看比赛。酒吧外面大大的充气足球表明这里将在深夜播放足球比赛。许多中国人都问我是否观看世界杯，很想知道美国人是否关心这项赛事。
我可以说是半个足球迷。或至少说在我也沉浸到世界杯比赛前是这样的。两年来，我一直在北京和新泽西给8岁的雅各布(Jacob)所在的足球队当教练，感受也越来越多，按说应该了解和欣赏这项运动了。不过我只观看过几次现场的比赛。
几周前，我在电视上搜索NBA总决赛，无意中看到前一天晚上加纳对捷克比赛的重播。（中国国有的中央电视台(CCTV)拥有中国境内的世界杯独家转播权，除了直播外，还会在次日重播两次。）我对这些选手的出色表现感到震惊，为守门员的大脚开球拍案叫绝，为球员的速度和力量惊叹，为流畅的进攻感到如痴如醉。我开始对自以为了解足球的想法感到汗颜。
我把雅各布叫进来，一起观看剩下的比赛。我们强烈支持加纳队，为它的胜利欢呼，这主要是由于在新泽西带领他训练的职业教练都曾经是加纳国家队的队员。几天后，加纳对阵美国，我向雅各布宣布我支持美国队，但对任何结果都不会感到不快，他可以选择支持哪个队。他想了一会儿，说支持加纳队。理由是：“我们是美国人，但我却不认识一名美国球员。”
当加纳战胜美国进入四分之一决赛，并将对阵卫冕冠军巴西后，我知道我要看这场比赛。当我的埃塞俄比亚朋友内森(Nathan)问我是否想同他还有我们的朋友吉姆(Jim)一起到酒吧观看这场比赛时，我很高兴地答应了，并邀请了肯尼亚的朋友查尔斯(Charles)。整个非洲都强烈支持加纳，我也很高兴能同两位非洲朋友一起观看这场比赛。
我们四人晚上10:40左右到了市区一个英国风格的体育酒吧Brown's，这里已成为巴西风格的狂欢，随处可见舞动的旗帜。各参赛国的三角形国旗悬挂在屋顶。至少有一半客人是中国人，但100多巴西人主导了大厅的气氛。身穿印有罗纳尔多(Ronaldo)头像运动衫的DJ播放著巴西音乐，无论男女老少，所有人都在边唱边跳。
随著比赛时间的临近，音乐停止了，两个巨大的屏幕从天花板上徐徐降下。用英语解说的卫星信号来自南非。巴西人坐满了酒吧的左边，右边主要是中国人，还有一些外国人。我们坐在前面正中央的位置。所有巴西球迷都跟著国歌一起歌唱，开球后不时爆发出惊叫或欢呼。我们后面的许多中国人也支持加纳，但我们明显是少数。
开赛5分钟，罗纳尔多攻入一球，巴西队1比0领先，酒吧顿时沸腾了。上半场快结束时，巴西队又踢进一球，气氛达到了高潮。酒吧的中国员工立即行动，在木制吧台后面安装了一系列U型铜杆。随后巴西音乐开始响起，许多巴西球迷涌入，开始疯狂欢快地跳舞。的确，人们很难不支持巴西队。当巴西3比0赢了比赛后，酒吧再度沸腾起来。当我们在深夜同垂头丧气的非洲朋友离开时，巴西球迷还在那里欢快地摇摆，而酒吧的员工则为凌晨3点西班牙对法国的比赛进行准备。
5天后，下一轮比赛开始时，白佩琪(Rebecca)和我同一群朋友到一家以肚皮舞闻名的中东餐厅吃晚饭。这些舞蹈演员一直跳到晚上10:58左右，然后喧嚣的音乐嘎然而止，就在她们刚才跳舞的地方，从上方徐徐落下一个屏幕。葡萄牙和英格兰即将开赛，满餐厅的中国人和外国人，没有一个人反对。一位提前离开的朋友告诉我们，日坛公园里也转播这场比赛。日坛公园是北京市最古老的公园之一，也是我们喜欢的景点之一。
半场休息时，白佩琪和我，还有两个朋友跳上一辆出租车，来到了日坛公园──这里最初是用来祭祀太阳神的。我们在黑暗的公园中顺著灯光的指引来到了中央广场，两个大屏幕呈45度角拴在过去的祭坛上，一个是英语解说，一个是汉语解说，至少有30秒的延迟。几百人（主要是中国人）坐在塑料椅中，喝著青岛啤酒，吃著烤串和花生。入场费为人民币30元（约为3.50美元），其中包括一瓶啤酒。这是一个愉快温馨的夜晚，也是快乐动人的一幕。观众看来支持英国队，不过由于没有进球，这点难以肯定。
90分钟的比赛结束时，还是0比0，已经是凌晨1点左右，我们要回家了。我们叫了辆出租，司机也收听比赛实况。我们问他支持哪个队，他笑著说，英国！好！有好几次，解说员都兴奋地尖叫起来，我们想问问发生了什么，但他只是说：英国！好！
我们1:30之后才到家，让临时保姆（艾力(Eli)的一位助理教师）工作到这么晚，我很不好意思。但我走进房间一看，他正趴在地板上，双手拄著下巴，聚精会神地观看比赛──比分仍是0比0。现在我开始觉得让他在比赛结束前离开有点不好意思了，所以我说，出租车还在下面等著，收音机也在转播比赛。不过他不愿错过1分钟的比赛。
半决赛在周三和周四的凌晨3点举行，我没有同朋友们一起观看。（毕竟，这不是钢人队(Steelers)的决赛。）决赛将在下周一的早上2点开始，我也许不会看，但我绝对相信日坛公园届时又将度过一个美好的夜晚。
ALAN PAUL
（编者按：本文作者Alan Paul是《吉他世界》(Guitar World)的高级编辑，同时也为美国篮球杂志《灌篮》(Slam)撰写文章。因妻子工作需要，他举家从美国新泽西迁住中国，现居北京。）
