A month dripping with drama, punctuated by a whiplash of emotions, comes cascading to a close Sunday morning as the 2018 World Cup in Russia proved to Canadian sports fans that soccer is anything but slow or boring.
Many Island pubs applied to the Liquor Control Board for special early opening hours and will be ready to pour bright and early at 8 a.m. as France takes on Croatia in the championship game from Moscow.
But without the team many Islanders wanted to see in the final.
鈥淓ngland is a big draw in Victoria and has been the biggest draw for us through the World Cup,鈥� said Joel Chudleigh, sales and catering manager of the Sticky Wicket Pub.
Same over at the Irish Times and Shark Club, where passionate fans clad in the red of the Cross of St. George have taken over the past month.
鈥淚 [was] cheering for England. With a name like Chudleigh, it is a no-brainer. Regardless, the final is going to be a winner for us, no matter what,鈥� said Chudleigh.
"Our doors open at 7 a.m. and we鈥檒l be ready to go.鈥�
Real passion will be expressed at the Croatian Cultural Centre in Gordon Head, where Islanders of Croatian descent will be in full-throated roar as their small homeland plays in its first World Cup final against the favoured French.
sa国际传媒 is a nation of cultural centres. Never is that more evident than every four years during the World Cup.
The World Cup brought great joy to Islanders of Italian descent, who crowded into the Leonardo da Vinci Centre in Vic West in 2006, and the same to German Canadians who packed the Edelweiss Club in James Bay in 2014. But there was heartbreak at Holland House in Royal Oak in 2010 as an orange-clad throng sadly sat through their homeland鈥檚 third loss in a World Cup final while Spain won its first title.
Will it be happiness or sorrow for the Croatians in Gordon Head? They will know that answer by about 10 a.m.
鈥淔rom Zagreb, to Commercial Drive [in Vancouver] to the Island, this is enormous for the Croatian community world-wide,鈥� said Rudi Ranogajec of Victoria, who is helping to organize the Croatian game-viewing festivities. 鈥淚t鈥檚 going crazy.鈥�
Ranogajec, born in a refugee camp in Italy as his family fled the communist former Yugoslavia, said the Croatian team has taken on a feel-good underdog status that resonates with soccer fans in general.
French support across the Island appears to be dispersed and not as concentrated as that for other teams. 鈥淔rench fans have been among the smaller groups we鈥檝e had, but a few of them have been here,鈥� said Travis Felts, assistant manager of the Irish Times Pub. 鈥淩egardless of teams, we again expect to be full because it鈥檚 the final and that鈥檚 big on its own.鈥�
And, of course, everything changes for Canadian soccer after this World Cup as sa国际传媒 looks forward to co-hosting in 2026 with the U.S and Mexico.
Former Victoria Croatia and Athletics goalkeeper Garth Downs has been at the Croatian hall viewing parties during this World Cup in support of his former Victoria Croatia teammates. He said he was also proud to play on teams in the Vancouver Island Soccer League that featured 1986 World Cup players George Pakos and Ian Bridge from sa国际传媒鈥檚 lone appearance in the global showcase.
鈥淪occer is definitely going to get more exposure and grow in sa国际传媒 because of 2026,鈥� Downs predicted.
