I admit that I’ve always enjoyed watching soccer, not only for the fast pace but also to admire the player’s legs. In high school, I went to prom with the exchange student from Spain. I used to watch his soccer games and sign happily. But that’s a story for another time…

If you’ve been paying attention, we’re down to the final four: Italy, Portugal, Germany and, or course, France. It’s natural that everyone roots for his or her country. This makes for a phenomenal amount of support for a single team. We really don’t have this is the States. Usually we have favorite teams, but rarely does the whole country backing a single team.

Watching a game with French people is quite the experience. I’ve had the pleasure of watching a couple games at a local bar, and I’m equally entranced by the fans as I am by the game. Although I’m still not fluent, I can certainly understand what they’re saying as their eyes are glued to the television. When things are going well, it’s popular to chant, “Allez Les Bleu” (Go Blue). When a player makes a mistake or the other team is close to scoring a goal, it’s “Oh la la la” with the number of “la”s increasing with the severity of the situation. When someone scores, the bar erupts in totally chaos and screaming. Even when I was in Chicago when the Bulls won the playoffs, the French games can’t compare. There’s more passion, more excitement, and more dedication than I’ve ever seen.

For one of the games, I stayed home and watched with Madame. At one point we muted the television. We had no problem knowing what was going on in the game by listening out the window. Thousands of fans had their TVs on and we knew what was happening just by listening to their reactions.

At the park this weekend, handfuls of young children kicked the soccer ball pretending to be Zidane – the country’s best player. He’s reached god-like status here and is admired by young and old alike. He’s very easy on the eyes, so he has Brad Pitt celebrity anywhere he goes.

During the France and Brazil game where Brazil was the hands down favorite, I was having dinner with friends. Very few people were in the restaurant, but we knew when France scored by listening to activity on the street. When France beat Brazil, the streets erupted in celebration. Thousands of people took to the streets, yelling, singing, honking and waving French flags. I’ve never seen so many people happy at one time. We were stunned since Brazil was expected to play in the finals.

Tomorrow I’ll be spending my 4th of July at a classmate’s house watching the Italy and Germany game. The celebration won’t be the same as in the States, but there will be fireworks!

Allez Les Bleu!!!

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