This is what happens when sports fans ‘invade’ a city

In mid-June, nestled in the corner of an Australian pub of Vancouver, sit 10 Kiwi fans all cheering watching a small television screen.

One of the biggest sporting events in the world is unfolding around me, and I’m getting a taste of what happens when sports fans invade a city.

‘Up the Wahs’ movement reaches Vancouver

If you don’t know about “Up the Wahs”, bear with me. Among the group, there are two wearing Warriors NRL jerseys, while former coach of the New Zealand men’s national football team the All Whites, Ricki Herberts, also mingles with the group. 

This sight was one night before New Zealand were due to take on Egypt in the FIFA World Cup, a momentous occasion for a smaller football nation. 

In this pub, called Mooses Down Under, there are two bigger screens, all showing the Japan and Tunisia match. 

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But in the corner, it’s the Warriors vs Cowboys NRL match. The “Up the Wahs” movement has made it across the globe. 

The Warriors are winning on this day and one Canadian man walks over to the group and asks “you guys are going crazy. What game are you watching?”

“Rugby league,” one man responds. 

A look of confusion follows. 

At one point, the speaker in the bar must malfunction because instead of commentary for Japan vs Tunisia, Steve ‘Blocker’ Roach’s commentary can be heard for 10 seconds. 

The commotion continues when a section of the fans chant “ooo ahh up the Wahs” before a man in a Newcastle United jersey walks over and says “slow it down. What are you going on about?” Once again it’s explained. The Newcastle fan shrugs, and kisses his badge. 

Aussies almost drank a pub dry

While this is a sight to behold, it was nothing compared to raucous Australians who invaded Vancouver a week beforehand. 

Australia’s match against Türkiye was scheduled to kick off at 9pm local time on June 14, meaning fans were well hydrated hours before kick off. 

At 5pm, Australian fans were already chanting out the front of Vancouver spots bar Dublin Calling. 

The bar was ticketed, and anyone willing to try and lineup for entry had no chance. 

In fact, only two hours before, the good citizens of Australia had almost drunk the bar dry. 

Manager, Tyler Broers, had bought 200 kegs in preparation for the weekend, and it wasn’t enough. 

“That never happens. That was the first time I’ve ever felt like I was actually going to run out of booze,” he told CBC.

“The Australians were actually trying to drink us dry.”

Tyler said that at one point he had to tell one of the bar’s DJs that they’d need his ute to pick up 20 more kegs. 

In the end, that partying turned into more celebrations when Australia won, as Down Under played on repeat in BC Arena. 

Granville Street was packed with sports fans from around the world.

A week later, Egypt fans also celebrated in the streets after their win over New Zealand, with pink smoke and flags waving. Even the players wholesomely joined in.

The fun in Vancouver isn’t just isolated to bars and BC Place either.

Vancouver comes alive

The FIFA fan festival is at Hastings Park, which is a train ride away from downtown Vancouver. 

Festival isn’t a term to use lightly either, it’s literally that. There’s a stage for a band, endless food options like sushi tacos, loaded Doritos nachos, and plenty of barbecued ribs or beef brisket. 

There’s an interactive indoor football setup too with a mini field which is surrounded by an interactive screen showing all the different areas of British Columbia. 

Then came the amphitheatre, where I watched Germany and Côte d’Ivoire. It seemed Germany had a lot of the home support because there were many Canadian accents wearing the German shirt. 

A couple of Australian jerseys were spotted too. 

That’s no surprise considering at the start of the tournament, Australia was in the top 10 nations for tickets purchased, with the others being USA, Canada, Mexico, England, Germany, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina and France. 

This writer travelled as a guest of Destination Vancouver and Destination British Columbia.