With the opening whistle moments away, Arcadio Salas Jr., 22, and a clutch of friends in bright green soccer jerseys, braced themselves at the Lion & Rose Bar Friday morning for the start of a familiar ritual of hope and anguish.
“I'm very nervous right now. I really want them to do well,” said Salas, who was playing hooky from his job to watch the Mexican national team play in the opening game of the World Cup in South Africa.
And Mexico, the most incorrigible of heart-breakers, was about to face the host country before 90,000 fans at Johannesburg's Soccer City Stadium and tens of millions more watching the game around the globe.
“I think this is our best team ever, but we can never get past the second round. That's what gets to me,” groaned Salas, whose Mexican-born mother initiated him at a tender age into the cult of “El Tri,” as the national team is known.
Despite it being the national sport, soccer has not always been kind to Mexico, as “El Tri,” has never made it past the third round in a World Cup.
Mexico's dreams of joining Argentina and Brazil to become the third great soccer power of the Americas are fantasy. It now plays second-fiddle to its richer northern neighbor, the United States, whose culture barely grasps the game.
But hope springs eternal every four years, and for a country beset with drug violence, a struggling economy and a host of other problems, success here would provide a distracting salve for the national psyche.
President Felipe Calderón even came to South Africa for the game. This time, with a savvy coach, leading a group of dynamic and talented young players, a long run in the tournament was seductively plausible. A recent 2-1 win over Italy reinforced the optimism. But oft-burned Mexican fans know to guard their hearts.
“We always have high hopes, but at the same time there is disenchantment,” said Francis Wearden, 42, born in Puebla, as he waited for the game to start.
“Once they start playing there is fatalism. They may not have what it takes,” he added.
And for the first half, the Mexicans dominated the South Africans, who seemed a step slow and without an offense.
The young stars, led by Giovani Dos Santos, Carlos Vela and Javier Hernandez, unloaded on the South African goalie, who answered with a series of acrobatic saves. Meanwhile, the Bafana Boys managed only two weak shots on goal, and the half ended a scoreless tie.
And as the second half began, it all seemed to be going Mexico's way, until disaster struck. Free on a breakaway, striker Siphiwe Tshabalala blasted a left-footed shot past “El Conejo,” as Mexican goalie Oscar Perez is affectionately known.
Across town on Interstate 10, the raucous crowd at the bar in El Taco Tote, another soccer hotspot, went meekly silent. Gone in an instant were the hearty “Ole's” and beery choruses of “Cielito Lindo.”
As the second half drained away, El Tri seemed deflated, incapable of scoring, and the unthinkable — an opening game loss — slowly seeped into the El Taco Tote bar room, where a cut-out of Cuauhtémoc Blanco flanked the television.
“This little victory means everything right now. If there is a win today, it will reinforce your self esteem, your pride, your human beingness, if that makes any sense,” said Hugo Alberto Lugo, 31, as he tried to reignite the crowd with chants of “Si Se Puede.”
And finally, with time running out, Rafael Marquez took a cross and pushed one into the South African goal, tying the score at 1-1, which is how the game ended, disaster averted, national pride intact, and some fans happy to take it.
“This is better than okay. They are the home team. We can go on to play France with absolutely high confidence,” said Cris Juarez, 35, who watched the game with Nidia, his Mexican-born wife.
With France on the horizon, the dream of World Cup glory remained alive.
This is what Mexicans live for. They may come to the U.S. but they keep their national pride. Soccer is their flag. This is it,” Juarez said.
