The 100th-anniversary edition of the Copa America has arrived the U.S.
The Copa America, which is essentially the South American championships, is arguably the second biggest international soccer tournament in the world, following the World Cup. The European Championships would argue about which tournament deserves recognition as second biggest, but there’s no bigger soccer country than Brazil, and the likes of Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia, etc., are right up there as well. For some reason the organizers decided the Centenario would be held in the U.S., despite the fact we’re not actually in South America, but it provided the chance to see what it was all about.
The first of three games at CenturyLink Field in Seattle took place Saturday afternoon, featuring Peru vs. Haiti. In all honesty it was about the least sexy match-up possible in the tournament, but with the Seahawks holding their minicamp when the other two games take place — Argentina vs. Bolivia on June 14, then one of the quarterfinals on June 16 — this was my opportunity to see things for myself.
Anyway, here’s my blow-by-blow experience of the Copa America Centenario:
– Let me begin with my concern about even getting into the stadium in the first place. The process for obtaining media credential was all done online, and it was a bit of a convoluted process. Therefore, when I left my home for the stadium I was armed with nothing more than a PDF with a bar code on my phone, hoping that would get me into both the parking lot and the stadium. Turns out it wasn’t enough, forcing me to go on a pre-game hunt for where to obtain credentials. After being pointed to multiple different gates, I finally found the right place. And the process of searching gave me the opportunity to see banks of Peru fans colorfully dressed in white jerseys with a single diagonal red stripe across the front and back. So yay!
– One of the big questions about this game, particularly given the match-up, was whether anyone would show up. Peru may be in soccer-mad South America, but it is not one of the traditional South American powers. Meanwhile, Haiti isn’t even much of a factor in CONCACAF. In the FIFA rankings Peru is ranked 48th in the world while Haiti is ranked 74th. In addition, there is not a particularly large Peruvian or Haitian community in Seattle to draw upon.
In the end, the attendance of 20,190 was not as bad as I feared. It didn’t look good at the stadium as the upper level was opened up, something that isn’t even done at most Sounders games, thus spreading the fans out even further. But the Peru supporters, who dominated the crowd, kept the atmosphere festive throughout.
– One nice thing is they put an actual temporary grass field down on top of the FieldTurf. I’m certain installing the grass was a requirement for hosting. I suspect the Sounders are hoping they leave the field down for a couple home games.
– The game was dominated early by Peru, which seemingly outclassed Haiti by pouring on the style with flicks and tricks in the early proceedings. But Haiti grew into the game as it went along. Peru had the game’s best chance in the first half when Edison Flores smacked the inside of the right post with a one-timed shot in the 45th minute.
Peru then scored the game’s only goal on a delicious play in the 61st minute. Flores played a scrumptious cross from the left that Paolo Guerrero put away at with a diving header. Haiti probably should have tied it in the final minute of stoppage time, but Kervens Belfort somehow missed with a free header from point blank.
– After the game we were herded to the interview room for the coaches press conferences. We were given headphones for instant translation, which may be the only time in my life I ever feel like I was a part of the United Nations.
All-in-all, it was a good experience taking in Copa America, even if it wasn’t a marquee match-up, and my fears that the crowd wouldn’t break five digits proved unfounded. If you get a opportunity to take in the Argentina-Bolivia game or the quarterfinal, I suggest you take it. It’ll likely be a long time before the Copa America comes to Seattle again.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
