Iceland – 2018 Joseph, June 17, 2018June 28, 2018 I was slightly worried about finding fans of the smallest country ever to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, but the Icelandic Canadian Club of Toronto organized a viewing at The Football Factory on Bathurst and Iceland fans responded. Although we didn’t get a well organized thunder/viking clap in the bar, it was a rowdy environment, aided by a handful of Argentina fans. Despite dominant ball control by Argentina throughout the game, the 1-1 draw was an absolute victory for Iceland and they earned their first World Cup point. This is Iceland World Cup in Toronto. Date: June 16, 2018 Score of game: Argentina 1, Iceland 1 Location: The Football Factory, 164 Bathurst St, Toronto, ON Estimated number of fans at location: 25 The photo below is the moment Lionel Messi missed the penalty kick in the second half with the game tied 1-1. It was a huge moment. Awesome. I definitely caught the Iceland bug, as many people did during the UEFA Euro 2016. It’s a good story. Speaking of good stories, I have to mention a true Toronto World Cup super fan. Adam, pictured below, second from the right, thoroughly combines his love for the World Cup and his love for the multiculturalism and diversity of his adopted city. He’s amazing! Decked out in full Icelandic gear (he’s not Icelandic) along with a binder of knowledge, literally, he seeks out and celebrates the beautiful game with fans in Toronto from every part of the globe. He’s been doing it for years, and you can count on him attending many other venues with fans of many different countries through the tournament. I look forward to running into Adam again. Iceland is the 77th country to play in the FIFA World Cup tournament since it began in 1930, and my 50st team photographed here in Toronto since 2006. Update: Iceland supporters are invited to join a less formal viewing on Friday, June 22nd at 11am to watch their match versus Nigeria at Il Gatto Nero Caffè Bar, 720 College St., Toronto, ON. You can see the facebook event page here. Related
2018 Senegal – 2018 June 24, 2018July 19, 2018 Senegal, you won the hearts of the world in the opening round! With your glorious warm-ups, a magnanimous coach, fans cleaning up after themselves, not to mention, stellar play-making, you quite quickly became the team so many were cheering for. So humble, I had difficulty finding you anywhere. This is… Read More
2018 England – 2018 July 11, 2018July 19, 2018 This wasn’t my first attempt at Opera Bob’s to watch an England 2018 World Cup match. It’s a small place and they reach capacity pretty quickly, especially when England is doing something pretty magical. I had missed the previous match, apparently 15 minutes before the game was a little on… Read More
2018 Iran – 2018 June 21, 2018June 25, 2018 I’ve had some really great experiences with Iranian fans over my 12 years doing this project. In fact, an Iranian fan in 2006 was the first and only fan to hand me a flag from their country. I still have it to this day. In 2014, with the Iran fans,… Read More
Wow! Great coverage of our Icelandic Canadian Club of Toronto cheering Iceland on! Thanks for the interesting pictures. We were all so proud of Iceland!