BETHLEHEM, Pa. - A sea of red, white, blue (and beer) crowded around giant screens in South Bethlehem on Friday to watch the World Cup, while soccer fans also gathered at St. Luke's Metro Field in Allentown.
They came together to watch England vs. USA, and the vast majority of supporters at the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks were rooting for the U.S. But a few brave England fans also showed their faces — some even waving flags — in the crowd. They were met with lighthearted jokes from the American supporters.
To begin the public showing of the game inside and outside the ArtsQuest Center, ArtsQuest Director of Programming Ryan Hill took the mic and riled up the crowd.
"Most importantly, who is here to root for the United States?" he asked, apparently with no concern for neutrality. The crowd cheered and waved their American flags.
Team England
"Do we have anybody here to root for England?" Hill asked on the loudspeaker. One person cheered and waved her flag — Cheryl Strampel, from Liverpool.
When asked if she felt "outnumbered," Strampel laughed and said yes. She was waving the flag of the English team, and said she is from just outside of Liverpool, but now lives in Bethlehem.
"You know what, I'm fine with it," she said. "I'm absolutely fine with it. Because you know, I'll be rooting for my team, but I've got my son with me — he's both."
Bronson Strampel was cheering for both the U.S. and England — and even had the T-shirt to prove it. His shirt had a round logo on it, colored with the U.S. flag on the top and the Union Jack on the bottom.
Bronson Strampel said he did feel a bit of pressure to support both countries.
"Well, I'd be shunned from the family if I didn't probably, so I didn't really have a choice," he said with a laugh.
Another person in the crowd rooting for England was Luke Bitteneur from Austria.
"The chances are quite good of them winning," he said. "Around 66%."
Team USA
Another American supporter was Robert Smith, who was there to watch the game with Bitteneur.
"He's a sinner," Smith said, joking about the fact that Bitteneur was an England supporter. "He shall die for his crimes."
Wrapped in body-size U.S. flags, cheering on their team from the outdoor bar, were Megan Hunsberger and Colleen Touhey.
When asked how many beers they planned to drink, Hunsberger replied: one for every goal the U.S. team scores.
She then changed her answer to one beer for every minute of play.
"We're going to be back at this bar probably quite a few times today," Hunsberger said.
"Team USA all the way!" shouted Touhey before the pair grabbed their handful of beers and walked back into the crowd.
The game ended later in the afternoon in a 0-0 draw.
The outdoor World Cup viewings in Bethlehem are scheduled to go on through Friday, Dec. 2, as part of Lehigh Valley Soccerfest.All of the games are free to watch at the viewing sessions.
Pizza and soccer in Allentown
Allentown also hosted soccer fans Friday at St. Luke's Metro Field, an indoor facility located on the city's east side.
Free pizza and soda were plentiful, but the real draw was the England-USA game. Fans spread out on the turf, sitting in chairs or on blankets to take in the action.
A big pop came in the final minutes of the first half, as USA's goalkeeper Matt Turner made a sprawling save to keep the score tied at 0-0.
This save by Matt Turner 😱
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) November 25, 2022
(via @FOXSoccer)pic.twitter.com/2mi612B71F
Fernando Carrizo, the manager at St. Luke's Metro Field, said the watch party was "about sharing this with the community."
"The majority of our rentals are Hispanic [members of the community]," Carrizo said. "We host a Sunday night co-ed. Last month we hosted an event called Kicks-and-Treats. We had about 30 kids here and did drills and skills and we had fun. It was a good time."
Carrizo said the indoor soccer and sports facility offers "turf time" to the entire Lehigh Valley and he's hoping to start an after-school program for kids.
He's also hoping to host more watch parties in the future.
"The World Cup brings people out. It's a good energy. A good time for the community."
