All We Need Is Just A Lot Of Patience

The World Cup has come to a close. It was good while it lasted.

We, well maybe mostly Erika, set out to try as many different fan experiences as possible during the World Cup. The idea was to make the most of getting together with other people who love the game. Celebrate the once in a lifetime energy of the most popular event in the world coming to our town. So we tried a lot of different ways to capture the magic. 

It was an exercise in patience.  A lot of the options looked great but suffered from bad or incomplete information or difficult logistics. There were experiences we never tried because we couldn’t show up several hours ahead of the match, or figure out what we needed to bring with us, or didn’t want to pay a lot of money for an uncertainty. Some of the bigger watch parties and VIP experiences fell into this category. 

Businesses wanted to cash in, and who can blame them, but some didn’t seem to understand that they needed to do more than put up a big screen to keep people comfortable for several hours.  People packed in together needed shade outside, or AC inside, on hot days. Places to sit were few and sometimes there wasn’t even a place to eat the food you were supposed to be buying. If you got a seat there was pressure to continually order.  We left our local neighborhood place and the big soccer bar before the match even started due to serious party fouls. A cover charge might have been more productive to help business make money and manage crowds more humanely. 

The downtown Seattle vibe was crowded, sometimes hectic, but mostly fun, as we’ve already written about. We also got tickets to watch a round of 32 match on the floating soccer barge in Elliot Bay. Pictures made it look more epic than it actually was, but despite some stormy weather we had a good time. Drinks and snacks were reasonable,  an emcee helped rally the crowd, and there were a few other little things to do. Seattle worked because you didn’t have to put all your eggs in one basket. Celebrations throughout the city made it easy to find your fit and you didn’t feel stranded if your original plan didn’t work out.

However the best experience we had was the watch party in downtown Renton’s newest community gathering space, Legacy Square. People brought lawn chairs, kids, and dogs. Food trucks and a beer stand were conveniently located, but several people ordered take out from nearby restaurants, or brought their own food. A little crew from the city entertained people between matches and at the half. Guido ran into an old friend and Erika made new friends. It reminded Erika of watch parties she had seen while traveling during the World Cup in Europe or Brazil.  This kind of fun, relaxed event, designed with people in mind was exactly what we chased during the whole World Cup run. 

Kudos to Renton for investing in a space not just for the World Cup, but for the community to enjoy for many years to come. Congratulations to Spain on their victory!