Atlanta Fan Fest: Thousands gather downtown for World Cup celebration
Atlanta World Cup brings global community together
Thousands of soccer fans packed downtown Atlanta for the World Cup Fan Festival on Saturday.
ATLANTA - Thousands of soccer fans packed downtown Atlanta on Saturday to cheer on their favorite teams and celebrate the U.S. Men's National Team advancing to the knockout stage of the World Cup.
Atlanta Fan Fest excitement
What we know:
Thousands of fans flooded the downtown watch party to celebrate the tournament, creating an electric atmosphere as people from all over the world gathered together. The celebration followed Friday's 2-0 victory by Team USA over Australia in Seattle, where Folarin Balogun and Alex Freeman scored the decisive goals to clinch first place in Group D.
Local fans expressed deep personal connections to the global game. "So my father was a professional soccer player. He used to play for my country, Jamaica. He used to love the World Cup. Everyone would come to our house and watch the World Cup when I was a child. Unfortunately, he passed away when I was 15, so this is a way for me to feel close to my dad," soccer fan Shanice Gaynor said. Another fan, Kurt Rosenhauer, brought his family to experience the historic moment, noting that hosting matches in the city is a surreal, once-in-a-lifetime experience.
World Cup upcoming matches
What we don't know:
Officials have not yet confirmed how many total visitors will pass through the downtown events by the end of the weekend. It also remains to be seen how Team USA will fare in its next high-stakes match against Turkey, which takes place Thursday night at 7 p.m. local time in Inglewood, California.
Tournament schedule progression
What's next:
The downtown watch party is expected to fill up again on Sunday as the city hosts its third World Cup match, featuring Spain against Saudi Arabia at noon. Fans can watch all the tournament action live on FOX 5 Atlanta, followed by special coverage on Match Day Atlanta at 11:30 p.m.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from FOX 5 reporter Larry Spruill, who reported live from the downtown Atlanta Fan Fest, as well as FOX 5 anchor Eric Perry and broadcast sports footage.