German defeat brings Japanese, Saudi and Brazilian fans together in Doha
As the Japanese fans came out of the Khalifa International Stadium in a jubilant mood on Wednesday evening following their team's stunning win over Germany in the Qatar World Cup, there was one couple who were battling completely different kinds of emotions.
Yurika's face was brimming with joy and happiness after Japan had just beaten one of the biggest teams in world football.
And yet she was respectful of her German husband Oliver's emotions.
“Well, not the result I expected from Germany today (Wednesday). So yeah, you can say that I am very disappointed now,” Oliver told this reporter, while putting his arm around his wife's shoulder.
“Overall, for us as husband and wife, it was a great experience of watching a World Cup game between Germany and Japan,” he said.
“We wanted to watch this match and finally got the tickets last week. So as a family to be able to watch this match with our daughter, it was great. It's been very nice in Qatar. Now we are ready to go back.”
Yurika could no longer hide her joy after her husband went looking for a food stall with their Uk-born daughter who was wearing a Germany shirt.
“It feels great. I am married to a German, but I am still Japanese, you know. So obviously you can see how happy I am now.”
As Japanese fans were wandering around the stadium long after the final whistle was blown, they were joined by Saudi Arabian fans who were still celebrating their team's unforgettable victory over Argentina on Tuesday.
The Saudis hugged the Japanese fans as both groups started singing and dancing in their own languages.
The language certainly was no barrier as these football fans celebrated two historic victories for Asian teams over two football powerhouses in the first-ever World Cup in the middle east region.
Soon, the Japanese and Saudi fans were joined by a group of Brazilians who were waving their own flag and taunting Germany and bitter rivals Argentina.
“Bye, bye, Germany, bye, bye,” the Brazilians sang, before mocking the Argentinians.
“Bye, bye Argentina. Bye, bye Messi, bye, bye, bye. Cry, cry cry, Messi, cry, cry, cry….” the Brazilians kept singing until they were halted by reporters.
“Oh, being Brazilians, we are just so happy to see Germany and Argentina lose,” Willian, who came to Qatar with a group of friends from Brazil for five matches, told this reporter.
“We always celebrate when they lose, especially Argentina. It's the same, when we lose, they celebrate. We are big rivals. But it's all for fun, we are just rivals in football, that's all.”
Meanwhile, Tara, a Japanese fan, hoped that her team would build on the great start in Qatar.
“We are obviously very happy now, beating Germany is a big thing,” she said.
“But we must do well in the next two games. We have a chance to qualify for the next round!”