Colombia Fans Make Final Day of Group Play at Miami Fest Memorable
Colombia played Portugal to a 0-0 draw on the final day of play in Group K on Saturday. That scoreline belied the importance of that result for the thousands and thousands of Los Cafeteros fans that piled into the Miami FIFA fan fest, making for an unbeatable watch party atmosphere.
I foolishly thought that showing up at the gate to the festival two hours before opening and five and a half hours before the actual match everyone was showing up to watch began would be sufficient, but I was quickly proven wrong.
I should have realized that this is Colombia in Miami, and no amount of expectation or preparation was ever going to actually measure up to what was in store for this evening.
I was thankfully able to meet up with a couple I had met at the Uruguay-Spain watch party the night before, so I’d like to shout out Walter and Wendy for coming through in the clutch. If I hadn’t been able to join them in their spot in line, there is a chance I would not have gotten in.
But waiting in line with Colombians can be a party all by itself, as I soon found out, as the thousands of yellow-clad fans cheered, sang, and danced through the line, making the minutes tick by faster than I ever could have expected.
I already knew based on the line that Saturday would be the fullest FIFA fan fest I’d yet attended, and even then, any expectations I had about what the crowd would look like would soon be surpassed. That said, the police volunteers and event staff notably did an excellent job ushering everyone in quickly and safely.
The Miami FIFA fan fest features four main viewing areas with large screens and several smaller screens, and what became evident very early on is that every single screen would be just about maxed out in terms of space in front of them.
We chose not to line up for the main amphitheater, as that was where the main rush of fans decided to pour into after the gates opened. Instead, we watched as the empty spaces throughout the festival around us filled up in the time leading up to the match with a sea of Colombia jerseys.
The national anthems are always among my favorite moments watching World Cup games, and the bigger the watch party crowd, the better that usually translates in terms of atmosphere. Therefore, Colombia’s, of course, was phenomenal.
The match itself was about as tense as any you’d be likely to see despite the lack of goals. Every chance or sniff of a chance was met with the corresponding swell in excitement, as thousands of pairs of eyes were glued to the screens.
The Colombians were dead-focused on watching every minute of play when the match was on leading to some eerily quiet moments despite the massive size of the crowds. It’s the kind of spectacle that I’ve grown familiar with watching football with big, passionate fanbases and it never disappoints. Very few people get distracted by their phones, conversation or other innocuous diversions when the game is on and they’re locked in on the result.
The highest point of drama came all the way in the 91st minute when Davinson Sanchez appeared to head home a set piece that sent the crowd into the kind of hysterics that I, and everyone else at the festival, had been waiting for.
Unfortunately for them, the goal was ruled offside by the absolute slimmest of margins, a literal toe. As one tv commentator pointed out, a difference in shoe size might have changed the ruling from no goal to goal, draw to victory.
Despite the disappointment in not taking three points off of Portugal, the crowd rebounded surprisingly quickly. Rather than moan about the decision at the final whistle, they raucously celebrated the 0-0 result, as well they should have, as it secured a Group K victory for Los Cafeteros.
The crowd, being the knowledgeable and grateful fans that they are, understood the magnitude of that moment as an accomplishment for their national team, and their pride in that achievement shone through their celebrations, even in the face of what could have been had the goal stood.
The vibes walking out of the fan fest were cheerful, as the fans flooded the streets and bars to celebrate a hard-fought result against a powerful European opponent that many saw before the tournament as a favorite to lift the trophy.
It was another night, another unforgettable scene, and the perfect sendoff for the group stages, as the knockouts were set to begin the next day. And what a finale it was for the Colombians, as they continued to stay unbeaten in one of the World Cup’s more challenging groups.