While I haven’t been watching much of the World Cup, I do appreciate the effect it has on the city. I love walking by fansВ clad in their nationalВ colors, spilling out of bars or huddling around TVs in shop windows.
It makes me feel like I’m in another country—pretty much any other country than here, where this kind of communal viewing is common.
Today I stumbled upon an amazing site, Global Soccer, Global NYC , that wonderfully illustrates this phenomenon. Its founders,В Braden Ruddy, Owen Dodd and Rob Navarro, depict NYC soccer fans watching matches in gathering places (usually bars and restaurants) relevant to their home countries. The photos and accompanying text give a nice snapshot of the countries, their teams and NYC’s immigrant communities:
Ghana vs. Germany at Papaye Restaurant, The Bronx
Argentina vs. Iran at Boca Juniors Steakhouse, Elmhurst
Croatia vs. Cameroon at Veslo, Astoria
Uruguay vs. Costa Rica at La Gran Uruguaya Bakery, Jackson Heights
I’m definitely going to be keeping up withВ Global Soccer, Global NYC.В (And checking out some of those bars and restaurants!)
(Images viaВ Global Soccer, Global NYC )