For some Philadelphians, Club World Cup opener brought their favorite teams close to home

Philly kicked off its FIFA Club World Cup action with Brazilian side Flamengo taking on Tunisia’s Espérance de Tunisie at Lincoln Financial Field Monday night, with Flamengo winning, 2-0. 

The game was far from a sellout — attendance was just shy of 25,800 —  but the sound and excitement from the stands could have convinced anyone with their eyes closed otherwise. Each team’s supporters, gathered at opposite ends of the field, battled to be the loudest noise in the humid South Philly evening air.

On the field, the club from Rio de Janeiro was dominant for most of the game and found the back of the goal net by the 17th minute through Uruguayan midfielder Giorgian de Arrascaeta. 

Espérance was mostly pinned back in their own half of the field early on, but grew bolder by the second half and had a couple close chances, before Flamengo found its second goal through a curled strike by forward Luiz Araújo in the 70th minute.

The tournament to crown the world’s best club team has been dogged with questions about attendance, and stadium totals at seven of the 12 venues so far have ranged from a little over 21,000 in Cincinnati to over 80,000 at the Rose Bowl. The Linc’s record soccer attendance of 69,879 was set last July in an exhibition game between Premier League giants Liverpool and Arsenal.

Despite being the most successful clubs in their respective countries, most soccer fans had probably circled the upcoming Philly games with more familiar European teams like Chelsea, Manchester City and Juventus on their calendars. Tickets for Monday night’s game were priced as low as $33.45 at the time of kickoff.

‘You’re never going to see this event anymore’

For fans of each side though, this was a rare opportunity to see their team in an unprecedented new place. Khemaies and Lamia Marzouk are both from Tunisia’s capital, where Espérance is based, but have lived in the U.S. for the past 27 years. The South Philly couple never thought they would see their hometown team in their current home.

“This is why we celebrated this occasion, because this is one in a while … if you let it go, you’re never going to see this event anymore,” Khemieas said.

Wellean Geremeas, from Paraná state in the south of Brazil but now studying in Plainfield, N.J., was also excited for the opportunity to see the club he supports in the U.S.

Fans of both teams had been making their presence felt around the city in the hours leading up to the match. Espérance fans cheered and sang at Liberty Point and Reading Terminal Market (and New York City’s Times Square the day before), while Flamengo fans took over the Rocky steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

At the game, both ends of the field, where each team’s most fervent supporters congregate during soccer matches, had standing fans throughout the game. The energy and noise was relentless from before the start to finish. The Brazilian fans in red and black matched up against the Tunisian supporters in red and yellow (their team played in its green-and-white away kit, to avoid a color clash) and traded off chants and songs, during which they bounced, drummed and whistled. Espérance’s fans only wavered briefly after each goal and kept singing even after the final whistle was blown.

“That’s the fun of this tournament, I think, to know teams from all over the world, to get to meet the fans, and to have a nice time together,” said Flamengo fan Daniel Mariani, from São Paulo.

The Linc’s next match is English club Manchester City against Morocco’s Wydad, on Wednesday at noon. Philly will host seven more games in this tournament, including a quarterfinal on the Fourth of July.