The compelling rivalry leading to the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia has begun. To put it in just a few words: another excuse to drink beer. The amount of beer consumed during the World Cup is roughly equal to the amount of water in the Indian Ocean. In fact, some of the beer served looks and tastes just like the ocean. It’s amazing what you can get people to drink if you put it in a bottle, stick a fancy label on it, and serve it during a soccer game.
Soccer (or football outside of North America) wasn’t a tabletop topic around these parts for most, including myself. But, since columns regarding soccer have appeared in a local daily newspaper, on a regular basis cleverly written by a local chap who knows the sport inside out, not only drew attention to the World Cup but to professional leagues across Europe and two pro divisions in Canada, while raising awareness of the game overall.
Not all soccer fans drink beer, of course. The Russians, for example, prefer vodka. And the Algerians – well, they’ve been in good spirits ever since they qualified for the last World Cup. Some say that FIFA, the governing body of soccer, is an acronym that stands for “Football is for alcohol.”
“Numero Uno”. On July 11, 1982, around 300,000 people flocked to Toronto’s Italian neighbourhoods to celebrate the first Italian World Cup tournament victory in 44 years. Such a large gathering of people had never taken place in Canada to celebrate a sporting event. The unprecedented size of the audience has become legendary; it is also remembered as commendably non-violent. Italians continue to boast of demonstrating the greatness of Italy. I was living in Scarborough and recall that within minutes of the final whistle, thousands of vehicles thronged onto the roads, horns arrogantly blasting and flags flapping from them. This ruckus continued for hours until they finally assembled in Little Italy for night-long festivities.
Since last September until October next year, those countries eligible are vying to become one of the 32 teams to qualify for the World Cup and fans of every team believe their team has a chance to win it all. That’s what beer can do for you. About one-third of the teams have a good chance, a quarter have a slight chance, and the remaining teams have a minuscule chance – about the same chance as Pele of Brazil, the best striker to ever grace this planet, coming out of retirement.
South Africa 2010 was the first World Cup that most armchair fans preferred to watch with the volume turned down. All because of the vuvuzelas, a meter-long horn that when collectively blown sounded like a herd of elephants.
Columnist Jon Qwelane described the device as “an instrument from hell”. FIFA proposed banning vuvuzelas from stadiums but South African football authorities argued that the vuvuzela was part of their culture. In the end, FIFA agreed to permit their use during the 2010 World Cup. Although vuvuzelas achieved great popularity, TV spectators suffered a lot due to their noise pollution. A company was already selling foam ear-plugs designed for fans at the games. Viewers at home at least had the option of remote control.
The World Cup is a sporting event that is unrivaled. I prefer Blue Light for my brew but in 2018 while witnessing the World Cup games, I will drink any beer that is within reach.
