Brazil emerged triumphant as this year’s champion of the University’s 28th annual Indoor World Cup last Saturday, hosted by International Student and Scholar Services at CRCE.
The tournament consisted of 16 games, each 16 minutes long. Competing nations included Brazil, the championship’s winning team for the second year in a row, as well as China, Ecuador, Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan and Vietnam, for a total of eight teams.
China came in second overall in the competition, and Ecuador took third place. In the final, Brazil beat China with a score of 3-0.
Both students and staff members participated, many of whom are not part of a formal team. Players were invited to register for the tournament by Oct. 21, with the only requirement for teams being that at least four members had to be from the country the team represented.
“We have about 12 thousand international students and 125 different countries represented on our campus, and so it’s just so fantastic to see so many different nationalities coming together for a love of the sport,” said Kathryn Burden, an associate director at ISSS who helped organize the event.
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Martin McFarlane started the tradition of holding an Indoor World Cup before he assumed his role as ISSS’ director in 2015. According to Burden, McFarlane created the annual event partially because of his personal interest in soccer. McFarlane is Scottish and grew up with the sport.
While American football is the most popular sport in the United States, soccer is more popular in 152 countries spanning the majority of Europe, South America and Africa.
“So many of our international students grow up playing football and really miss having as many opportunities to play here,” Burden said. “I think that’s why we get so much interest.”
With games running from 10:30 a.m. to 5:20 p.m., the tournament’s energy echoed through CRCE almost all day. Several players said that their home cultures informed their passion for the sport.
Pedro Cabaline Mazzi, a freshman in Engineering and Brazil’s goalkeeper, said that he has been interested in soccer since he was a child.
“Being a Brazilian, I just feel like everybody is a fan there,” Mazzi said. “My dad is a big fan of soccer; he always showed me soccer games when I was little, and I just feel like I fell in love with the game.”
Mazzi said that hearing call-outs in various languages during games and witnessing each national team’s different play styles offered glimpses into the various cultures represented on the court.
“That’s what it means to be in a World Cup,” Mazzi said. “Just to embrace everybody, and come together to play.”
One of the most spirited teams, in terms of call-outs, was Turkey’s. Supporters of the team blasted Turkish music through the multi-activity court when players scored goals.
Niranjan Keskar, a graduate student studying finance, has been practicing soccer at the courtyard near Ikenberry Commons with the Turkish team since joining the University this fall. He was among their supporters who came to watch.
Although the captain and several players on the team were Turkish, Keskar said that Indian and Italian members also played on Turkey’s team. Keskar has been watching soccer since he was 10 to 12 years old.
“I’d say there was a lot of healthy competition,” Keskar said. “Although the tackles were rough in there, right after the game was over, everyone knew that it was just a game.”
The 23rd FIFA World Cup kicks off in June next year. Soccer fans across campus wait to see their countries represented on the global stage after getting a taste this weekend at the University.
