Football fever steady across the continent

ADDIS ABABA — Ethiopia was a far cry from qualifying for this year’s World Cup, but that hasn’t dampened Ethiopians’ enthusiasm for the game on this soccer-obsessed continent. Every game sees downtown Addis Ababa’s largest public square packed with fans hoping to catch some action on the Coca-Cola-sponsored big screen devoted exclusively to World Cup content.

On Friday evening I headed over to Addis’ iconic Meskal Square to cheer on the Americans in their match against the Slovenians. For a number of reasons—prominent among which is the fact that Ethiopia is the number one recipient of US aid in Africa—the crowd was overwhelmingly rooting for the Red, White, and Blue.

Unsurprisingly, reactions were muted as the Slovenians took an early 2-0 lead. But when the US club clawed back to a 2-2 tie powered by goals from Donovan and Bradley, the crowd erupted.

Yet these reactions paled in comparison with the mayhem that followed the Americans’ third goal in the 87^th minute. Pandemonium broke out as hundreds of Ethiopians danced in the streets and backed up traffic on the capital’s main thoroughfare.

Once the raucousness subsided and it became clear that the goal was left uncounted, however, the contagious enthusiasm quickly cooled. Almost on cue, the clouds opened up and unleashed a torrent of rain, sending Ethiopian soccer fans packing. Such was the metaphorical conclusion to the Americans’ disappointing performance against Slovenia.

—Matthew Keshian

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