Photo: La Nacion – Cancha Llena

Today’s match against Nigeria began at 11 am, Buenos Aires time. My mum, my sister and I were chit-chatting in the kitchen over cups of coffee and rounds of mate when we heard honking, wild cheering and even firecrackers. We’d missed the beginning of the match and Gabriel Heinze’s goal 6 minutes into the game. That was fast!


Photo: La Nacion – Cancha Llena

We did watch the rest, which was pretty uneventful. Nigeria had a couple of chances of scoring but (luckily for us) didn’t score. Argentina could have done more, but failed to do so. Maybe they’ll get their act together against Korea next Thursday.

I communicated via Twitter and Facebook with my friends back in Dallas. They were at a pub watching the game and supporting Argentina. Out of solidarity, I’ll have to support England later today. It was fun to share our enthusiasm for the game across the continents.


Diego Maradona handing the ball back. Credit: La Nacion – Cancha Llena

After the match I went to the shops and saw groups of teens wrapped in blue and white flags cheering and chanting and beating on drums, celebrating the national side’s first victory in South Africa 2010.

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About the author

Ana Astri-O’Reilly is from Argentina, where she lived until five years ago. She currently lives in Dallas, USA with her British husband, but they move a lot. Previously a translator and English and Spanish teacher, Ana first started writing to share her experiences and adventures with friends and family. She speaks Spanish, English and a smattering of Portuguese.