France fans rally in Dallas ahead of Spain vs. France FIFA World Cup semifinal
On the eve of Tuesday's semifinal between France and Spain, fans of the French team held a gathering Monday night in Dallas.
French fans gather at Klyde Warren Park before semifinal
Red, white, and blue filled Klyde Warren Park in Downtown Dallas, but it's the flag of France, not the U.S.A., flying over hundreds of fans who gathered for a pep rally the night before Tuesday's FIFA World Cup semifinal match.
Some of the fans just arrived from overseas on Monday, like Laurence Hernandez, who admits she is as nervous as she is excited.
"I'm feeling very excited for us and, well, afraid," said Hernandez.
A DFW group for French transplants organized the pregame party in the park.
"So, we teamed up with the French Federation of Football to all get together and give us a chance before the game to get to know each other, for the fans that will be at the game," said Quentin Hernandez, with Oui Dallas.
Many fans at the pep rally don't have tickets to Tuesday's game, which local ticket retailers say are still available for around $1,000 each.
"It's France versus Spain, two of the top arguably, two of the top three teams in the world, and we've got them here playing in the final four," said Rob Lodes, who owns Metro Tickets.
Supporters travel from around the world for Spain-France match
Lodes said FIFA prohibits ticket sales within four hours of a match if you want one last chance to watch the 2026 World Cup in Arlington.
"Prices have actually settled down," he said. "I think they're half of what they originally are, so there's bargains out there to be had."
This is the ninth World Cup for Pierre Marie, who has followed the French team on all of its matches this year. He says being able to do that takes a lot of work.
"I'm used to the ticketing, which is a big story because you have to fly one year before the event," said Marie. "So, I got the ticket actually six months back, and I was lucky to be in the ticketing."
We did not come across any large gatherings of Spanish fans in the DFW area, but you can bet there will be plenty in the stadium when the two nations collide on the pitch Tuesday at 2 p.m.
