Thousands of fans pack bars, trains on first weekend of World Cup in Boston
The World Cup continues to claim Boston's streets, transportation systems, and bars with fans from Scotland to Norway turning the city into a hotbed of celebrations. With the first weekend over, fans say the city has been a blast, but some parts could have been better organized.
Bars are the clear winner of these opening matches with fans spotted dancing on tables, chanting their lungs out, and depleting establishments of all libations. The Anchor ran out of beer on Sunday night, and they are the Scottish fan headquarters.
"They were in line at 10 a.m. on Thursday. They were ready to go," said Anchor General Manager Shelby Ewell, adding that they began planning for the Scots when snow still covered their bar. "We had everything fully stocked and they definitely lived up to their reputation as being able to drink us out of house and home."
Thousands of fans also packed the train systems. The MBTA says they had more than 19,000 fans ride to Foxboro for Scotland vs Haiti.
"I was on the first train, and the queuing and the heat was a lot. Once you got on the train it was ram-filled," said Scotland fan David Barclay. "My guess is we didn't pass 10 mph the whole journey."
The MBTA says every fan made it to Foxboro before kickoff with an hour or more to spare. The average wait time to board a train back home after the game was an hour and 10 minutes. Barclay didn't get back until 3 a.m. after choosing to take the last train out. The MBTA says it got in at 2:30 a.m.
"At this point I was a little worse for wear, so my memory is a little bit foggy, but I remember still queuing, zig-zagging all the way through," said Barclay of the long line to board trains.
Despite transportation complaints, fans are finding Boston a home away from home. Fenway Park was jammed with fans chanting and singing Sweet Caroline.
"The Scottish Tartan Army have been blown away by the friendliness of the Boston community," said Derek Brown.
The Fan Festival in City Hall Plaza has been a major hit that's giving fans a chance to feel like they in Foxboro without leaving Boston.
"This is perfect. It's well good with many people and lots of different nations," said William Skaara, a Norway Fan.
The commute this weekend was also friendly, with traffic less than expected, but that could change on Tuesday when Norway and Iraq face off in the middle of rush hour. it's pushing Skaara and his friends to stick to the train.
"I also have a family member in Boston, and he recommended taking the train because traffic is horrible," said Stig Hauge.
Leslie Oku is going to Ghana vs. England which will also be during rush hour. He went to the last World Cup in Qatar where he says the public transportation was free and smooth.
"I intend to take an Uber to the stadium," said Oku. "The buses, the trains, compared to Qatar, much to be desired."
MassDOT will be allowing travel in the breakdown lane in areas on Route 1, and the 93 South HOV lane will also open early at 1 p.m. on Tuesday. As for the train, the MBTA says they have only sold 50% of their tickets.
