WHITEFISH — It was a fun afternoon for U.S. soccer fans who watched the men's national team secure a 2-0 victory over Australia in the World Cup on Friday.
While some people just showed up to the bars and watched, people like Nathan Evans, who runs a Flathead Valley youth program, the Glacier Surf Soccer Club, organized a watch party at Black Star Brewing in Whitefish so the young players could be inspired.
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“Events like these just help inspire the next generation,” Evans said. “Kids watching these players on TV here locally just want to help inspire the next generation.”
A little further south at the Thomas Meagher Bar in Missoula, the business was just as packed with fans from Montana and beyond.
Meagher Bar general manager Stephen Hernandez said people from all around the world have visited since the tournament started.
“We have international fans coming in,” Hernandez said. “We have people from Scotland, Colombia, Mexico. We have everybody from across the world.”
You cannot forget the passionate fans from across the pond who rooted for the opponent, like J.D. Daniher from Australia.
Daniher had his American friends over at his house to watch the game together while he watched alone in his divided household.
“My wife is a very proud American, and I'm a very proud Australian,” Daniher said. “I love being in the U.S .as well. So if you could spend six months in Australia, six months in the U.S., particularly in Montana, you're living the dream life.“
But Daniher has a message for all soccer fans who have gathered either in Montana or anywhere else in the world to watch the tournament.
“You know, the world could be fractured at times. This is the unity of the World Cup, bringing everyone together, everyone having a good time together,” Daniher said. “At the end of the day, everyone's after the same thing. It’s celebrating, having a good time, and looking out for each other.”
