Latvian fans brought a wonderful supporter culture to the World Cup, writes journalist Jussi Paasi.
Jussi Paasi Sports reporter
The result of one match saved the atmosphere of the World Cup in Finland. That match was played in Riga, the capital of Latvia, on Thursday.
Latvia beat Sweden. It was a lottery win for Tampere.
The atmosphere at Härmä’s World Cup games had been more or less quiet until this weekend. Kunnon’s supporter culture was conspicuous by its absence.
Corporate guests cheered the Lions’ matches. The only exception was Hungary’s loud fan base.
On Saturday, fan culture took over the entire center of Tampere. The Latvians arrived. They brought with them to the event just the kind of excitement that these hockey Eurovision fans need on the side of the stands.
The hunt for the first World Cup medal made thousands of Latvians travel at high speed to Pirkanmaa.
With them, a beautiful sports culture entered the arena. Latvia lost to Canada, who advanced to the final. It did not curb the fandom of the Latvians at all.
The song did not end in defeat. The supporters stood behind their own throughout the game and after.
After the match, I interviewed a Latvian family of three.
Lelda, Marcy and Eva were in Finland for the first time. They had come to witness the historic moment when Latvia played in the semi-finals of the World Cup for the first time.
– This has been my dream for a long time, so to get to a World Cup game like this, Evija said.
To top it all off, it was the girl’s birthday.
– A perfect day, Evija said.
That’s what it was for the Latvians, despite the defeat. The pursuit of dreams and their realization is exciting to watch. We Finns also know very well what it felt like to wait for the first hockey medal.
Sunday’s bronze medal match is guaranteed to be an unforgettable spectacle. In Kaukalo and beyond.
Mayor of Tampere Kalervo Kummola could send Latvian fans some kind of gift, at least a thank you. They saved the atmosphere of this tournament in the last meters.
Latvia will face the United States in the bronze medal match of the World Cup at 15:20. In the final match, Canada and Germany will face each other at 20:20. The medal games of the World Cup are followed moment by moment in ‘s World Cup hockey tracker here.