Over 125,000 watched World Cup games at Providence’s FanZone over the past month and a half. On Sunday, July 19, thousands of people gathered at Station Park to see Spain beat Argentina in extra time for a thrilling final.
“I’m just so proud of how they played,” said Anna Young, who is originally from Spain but traveled from Rumford to watch the game at the FanZone with her fiancee. “And I can’t wait to get married in Spain in like six weeks!”
No matter which jersey attendees wore, with a fairly even amount of Spain and Argentina supporters, the crowd gave favorable reviews of Providence’s FIFA-endorsed watch party. Providence’s Arts, Culture and Tourism (ACT) Director Joe Wilson Jr. said that the City should take a lesson from the World Cup: investing in cultural experiences is critical.
Making the FanZone Possible
Despite the loss, Argentina fan Danielle McClary said “the vibe was great” during her first visit to the FanZone.
“I was a little sad that Argentina dropped the ball a little bit at the end of the game, but it happens,” said McClary, a personal trainer who lives on the Providence-Pawtucket border. “I was hoping that during the World Cup that there would be things like this to do, and it was great that this turned out so well.”
Friends John, Joel and Aaron from Providence all celebrated Spain’s victory and said the World Cup is creating more soccer fans in the area. John even suggested the City screen Champions League games in the future.
“This is something that doesn’t occur that often in Providence, besides PVD Fest,” said Joel. “This type of energy, it was amazing. If there’s something that they can do to gather more people like this, it’ll be nice for Providence.”
While Boston technically was the local FIFA World Cup host city, Providence acted as de-facto hosts approximately 20 miles from where they played the matches in Foxborough. Boston’s Fan Festival closed after 16 days, while Providence’s FanZone was open for almoFst every single match. The only five days the FanZone closed were due to heavy rain and extreme heat, with four of the days coming during the Fourth of July heatwave.
“Without their bid to be a host city, we would not have had this opportunity, and so we were eternally grateful to them,” said Wilson Jr. “We committed to showing every game. We had the infrastructure in place. It was being secured 24/7. So why not turn the TV on?”
Wilson Jr. said sponsorships from groups like Michelob Ultra, Casamigos and Coca-Cola and along with vending sales helped the city fund the “activation” of the space. While Station Park was chosen for this year’s FanZone, city officials noted that the park is not owned by the City of Providence.
“Different events have different space, infrastructure and logistical needs,” said City of Providence Press Secretary Austin Grondin. “India Point Park and 195 District Park offer larger, more open spaces that better suit large-scale festivals, while Station Park was selected for the PVD FanZone because of its Downtown location, proximity to surrounding businesses and ability to support a month-long event.”
Wilson Jr. said ACT is advocating for politicians and policymakers to invest in cultural infrastructure, and Sunday also contained its own political content.
The crowd booed when the broadcast showed U.S. President Donald Trump attending the game held in New Jersey. Later, an ad for Providence Mayor Brett Smiley’s election campaign appeared on the Telemundo stream. The TV spot attacks his challenger State Representative David Morales over public safety, claiming Morales would defund the police—a stance Morales backed in 2021 after an incident of police violence but is not campaigning on.
Wilson Jr. said their team opted to stream the Spanish-language broadcast after conducting an informal poll of the audience, but also because both teams are Spanish-speaking countries and Providence is a city with a 45% Latino population.
Bringing Together Cultures from Around the World
Colombia fan Katheryn Segura said she watched 80% of the World Cup matches at the FanZone, even for games when her team was not playing.
“It was nice to be able to come here, meet with other fans, hang out,” said Segura, who lives in Pawtucket and supports the idea of hosting similar events in the future. “I would think the businesses and community will benefit from it.”
Food trucks operated in the FanZone as well, including East Providence-based small business The Burrito Bowl. Co-owner Lita Thimas said they set up as a FanZone vendor eight times, and it’s been “excellent” for business.
“I think they need to utilize this grass area a lot more,” said Thimas. “I think [the World Cup Final] was probably the largest, and so was Cape Verde against Argentina, that game was also a big crowd.”
Thomas’s husband Edward, co-owner of the truck, is Cape Verdean, as well as Aliesia Lupo, who was working the truck that day. Cape Verde made a historic run at their first World Cup appearance as the third-smallest country to ever play in the tournament, and the smallest ever country to make the knockout rounds. Lupo said that after Cape Verde was eliminated, she “started rooting for everybody but Argentina.”
“I’m CV na top till I go,” said Lupo, who was glad to watch the World Cup for the first time with Cape Verde represented. Rhode Island and Massachusetts are home to the largest population of Cape Verdeans in the United States. “Being Cape Verdean, you have to explain exactly what you are, nobody knows… and now, everybody knows.”
The Cape Verdean Museum is putting on an event on Saturday, July 25 in India Point Park to celebrate both 250 years of the United States and Cape Verdean American stories. Wilson Jr. said cultural festivals such as The Puerto Rican Bay Fest, which occurred on the same day as the World Cup Final, the Dominican Festival, and more all show how Providence’s diversity is a strength.
“The biggest thing that I’ve seen with this is: let’s stop trying to out-colonial Boston and Philadelphia,” said Wilson Jr. “What makes Providence and what makes our region so special is the diversity of the culture and immigrant populations.”
Providence’s Life at Night report found that 32% of Providence residents are foreign-born, which is more than Boston (28%) and nearly at the levels of San Francisco (34%) and Los Angeles (36%). Though the World Cup only occurs once every four years and the U.S. may not host another tournament like it in a long time, the global presence of Providence residents remains.
“The fact that it’s free, family-friendly, safe—I just think all around it’s a great event, probably my favorite event that I’ve been to in Rhode Island,” said Young. Her fiance Hannes Ortmann, who is from Germany, chimed in to say soccer is all about gathering people on an equal playing field. “It’s just bringing everyone from the world together, and I feel like the FanZone is a representation of that.”
Eric Halvarson is a City News Reporter for The Providence Eye.
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