Iceland’s Euro 2016 run ends
Fans of underdog nation sad at loss, glad it gave good fight against France
Tom Tunney was cheering on Iceland during the UEFA Euro 2016 quarter-final match against France on Sunday, hoping the team’s fairytale run wouldn’t come to an end.
The Ottawa man watched the game with his 17-year-old son, William, at the Georgetown Sports Pub along with dozens of other soccer fans as France eliminated Iceland with a 5-2 win. The loss did little to diminish what the Icelandic club, playing in its first international tournament, had already accomplished, which included a huge upset of England in the previous round.
“I was hoping for the underdog just to see what could happen, maybe some magic,” Tunney said of supporting the tiny island nation. “I didn’t think they were going to win, but I wanted to see them put in a good fight.”
Not everyone in the Tunney family was rooting for the quarter-final minnow, though. William has played soccer since he was five years old and has become a huge fan of France. He was thrilled the French had established control of the game in the first half.
At the pub, Ólöf Sigvaldadóttir, a deputy head of mission with the Embassy of Iceland, handed out ribbons in the colours of her home country’s flag.
She said she wanted to help other Icelandic fans show their support during the quarter-final. The team from a country of only 330,000 people has made a remarkable rise in the soccer world over the past few years with versatile players, she said.
“We are very proud because only a few years ago we were in a very different situation.”
Lilja Jonsdottir and her son, Ingimar Poulin, wore Iceland flags draped across their shoulders as they cheered on Sunday.
Jonsdottir, who grew up in Iceland but has lived in Ottawa for the past 20 years, said it was incredible that the soccer team had such a long run at the European championship.
She was hoping for a miracle against France but said she would be OK with a loss as long as Iceland was able to score a goal or two.
“It’s sort of inevitable,” Jonsdottir said of Iceland’s loss to France.
Poulin, whose mother was born in Iceland, said being a fan of the national team is “in the blood.”
He said it was interesting to see how such a small country attracted so much attention as it moved into the quarter-finals.
Thierry Baldet watched the game with a table full of fans cheering on France on the other side of the pub. Originally from Montpellier in southern France, Baldet moved to Ottawa three years ago.
“It’s a pity for Iceland, but it’s good for France,” Baldet said.