[an error occurred while processing this directive] Early risers take in U.S. win over Portugal

06/05/2002

By MIKE McALLISTER / Dallas Web Staff

The world's most popular sport. National pride at stake. Revved-up fans crowded around a big screen TV at the neighborhood sports bar.

And no beer.

Since bars aren't allowed to sell alcohol between 2 a.m-7 a.m., the 150 or so soccer fans who crawled into Ben's Half-Yard House on Greenville Ave. at 4 a.m. Wednesday didn't celebrate the U.S.'s improbable 3-2 World Cup win over Portugal by clinking mugs and knocking back a few cold ones.

Nor did they need to. Their passion for the sport and their support for the upstart American team offered plenty of incentive to wake up in the wee hours to watch a match most everybody else slept through.

"Cheering for your country is always easy," said Dallas native Nick Gannon, who plays soccer at St. Louis University.

Nick Gannon (foreground) of Dallas celebrates Wednesday's U.S. World Cup win at Ben's Half-Yard House.
MIKE McALLISTER/Dallas Web Staff
"This is the biggest sporting event in the world. It doesn't matter if there's food or drinks.

"But it does feel weird knowing that a good portion of the country is asleep right now."

With the World Cup being played in Korea and Japan, the time difference means most games don't begin until 1:30 a.m. Texas time at the earliest.

Ben's Half-Yard is opening its doors for many of those games, although Wednesday's U.S. game was the first time the bar had ever opened for a 4 a.m. start. Co-owners Debra and Ben Williams, who on Wednesday also celebrated the 13th anniversary of the bar's opening, are working with the Dallas Burn to provide a place for local soccer enthusiasts to cheer together.

Three big screens show the games - two in English, one in Spanish. (Hint: Those watching the Spanish version get to cheer first, since the English version is on a longer time-delay).

Supporters of teams from France, Ireland, England, Italy, Argentina, Brazil, Belgium and Mexico have come for games. A large group of Argentine fans showed up last Saturday, but that game started at 1:30 a.m on a weekend night.

The American fans certainly had a bigger challenge, with a later start time on a work day. But still they arrived - some, like Gannon, wrapped in an American flag. Others came wearing robes and pajamas. Some brought their kids. Some drove from as far away as Fort Worth.

"I got a ton of calls from people who said they were coming," said Debra Williams, busy working the buffet bar and filling coffee containers. "But their feet still have to hit the floor at 3:30 in the morning. I'm really kind of surprised at how big of a turnout we got."

2002 World Cup
Whew! U.S. hangs on, beats Portugal, 3-2
Preview
Second round or bust!
Schedule (.pdf)
Official site
More coverage
More stories
Team USA schedule:
June 10 vs. South Korea, 1:30 a.m.
June 14 vs. Poland, 6:30 a.m.
(All times Central)
"When the alarm goes off, it's tough," said Anthony Mungioli, who cheers for both the U.S. and Italian teams. "But once you get here, then it's fine.

"It's the kind of thing you wait for four years. It's more than just a soccer game. It's an event."

One U.S. follower at Ben's was even a professional soccer player: Burn defender Ryan Suarez, who would love nothing more than to one day play on the U.S. national team. For now, he's completely altered his schedule to watch as many games as he can. He eats dinner at 2 in the afternoon, and usually sleeps from 3:30 p.m to 10 p.m.

"I'm sure (Burn coach Mike Jeffries) doesn't like hearing that," Suarez said with a laugh. "But it's one month every four years. I think we can handle that."

Last week when the Burn played at Kansas City, the team stayed at a hotel that didn't offer ESPN2 or Univision, the networks showing World Cup games in English and Spanish, respectively. That forced the players to sleep in that night, and the next day, the fully rested Burn managed a 2-2 tie.

Stroke of luck or savvy coaching move?

"We changed hotels at the last minute," Suarez said. "I think it was all a plan. A conspiracy. I had to keep calling my old man to get him to tell me what was going on."

Charlynn Helms, a Burn season ticket holder since Day 1, attended World Cup games four years ago in France. She was planning to go to Korea/Japan, but a sour economy squeezed her out financially.

Instead, she donned an official U.S. team polo shirt and rode the wave of emotions that swept through the bar. A quick U.S. goal got the fans off their seats early. A stunning 3-0 lead within the first 36 minutes created delirium and disbelief. And then Portugal's rally, aided by an own goal from Richardson's Jeff Agoos, forced the fans to nervously wait out the outcome.

Afterward, Helms and many others in the crowd still had an eight-hour work day ahead of them. Not that it really mattered.

"Soccer's more important than sleep," Helms said. "It's like acting or car racing or horses. If it gets into your blood, it becomes a way of life."

Even when everybody else is asleep? And at a sports bar that can't serve alcohol?

"Right now, this isn't a sports bar," said local bartender Breen O'Reilly, wearing a robe and pajamas. "It's basically a locker room.

"It's amazing. The parking lot's full. And it's 4 in the morning."

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