Afternoon: Sankt Hans square in Copenhagen. The area is crawling with people in red and white, and beer is herring from plastic glasses. They sing along to the catchy football songs blaring out of the huge speakers in the middle of the square.
A football is kicked in the air and is immediately hit back by a passing stranger, and people slowly begin to move towards Parken Stadion about ten minutes away, where the match between Denmark and Finland is to be played.
The whole of Copenhagen is partying, and the city is completely turned upside down. The voices of radio and TV commentators come through the open windows of cafés and talk about the upcoming match, and people shout and toast each other, but among the happy Danish football songs, a darker tone suddenly begins to intervene.
It sounds from a group of Finns dressed in blue and white, who appear from the corner and sing their own football songs with as much desire as the Danes sing theirs. To keep the peace, the police follow the small group of Finnish fans and hold back the traffic so that people can cross towards ‘The Big Green’ without incident.
The Danish Roligans are openly looking forward to smashing the Finns. They are wearing clothes and have the Danish flag painted on their faces – and those who have not had it done at home willingly stop at random places in the crowd to be painted red and white before the match. There is a massive enthusiasm for football in the air, and on this lovely summer day, while many fans have butterflies in their stomachs, there is a firm belief that Denmark will win the match.
The winner was life itself
The bells are ringing and it’s time to take your place in the stadium. The match kicks off and fan songs like ‘We are red, we are white’ and ‘Schmeichel is a wall!’ call out.
The crowd whistles and howls in frustration as Finland endures a siege, but just minutes before the end of the first half the referee calls a halt. A player is lying on the ground. He’s not moving. This is Christian Eriksen, star player and playmaker.
Confusion reigns in the crowd. Was Eriksen fired? There was apparently no one near him. The entire Danish team has formed a circle around him: some turn towards him, some away. The park stadium camera reveals that some are visibly crying.
Slowly, fans, mostly through their phones, determine what’s going on: and that’s the worst thing imaginable. Eriksen has had a heart attack; his life hangs in the balance. As he leaves for the hospital, it is uncertain whether the game will continue today or tomorrow.
The mood has turned deeply gloomy. Adult men sit with tears in their eyes and parents try to explain the reason for the break to their children. All supporters, both Danes and Finns, speak in low tones and are almost silent. Nobody knows anything about Christian Eriksen’s condition. The wait for news is unbearable.
Finally, the news comes through, which everyone had hoped for – even asked for. Christian Eriksen has regained consciousness and will be okay. Of course, he will not be able to continue playing, but suddenly the outcome of the game is no longer important. Eriksen faced the ultimate challenge … and he won!
In the meantime, it is decided to let the game continue, which it does, but without the wild outbursts of the crowds and the violent singing.
The match ends with Finland winning 1-0, but they do not seem to be terribly happy with the result, which is otherwise one of the biggest victories in Finnish football history ever.
A 1-2 loss against Belgium then leaves Denmark with a mountain to climb.
Magical Danish victory
Despite the somewhat harsh baptism of fire, the last group game at the Park is expected to be tense. Expectations for a Danish victory against Russia are again sky high, and there are many parties and happy days long before the match starts.
Red and white can be seen everywhere in Copenhagen and of course among the supporters in the Park. People have dressed up and plastic glasses are thrown all over the place. The joy of experiencing the Danish Vikings again is like an adrenaline rush. Referring to the Danish player Joachim Mæhle, fans shout slogans such as ‘We’ll Mæhler (painter = paint) Wembley red!’.
The match preparations start, and people find their seats, and it seems that a huge collective breath is being taken just above the stadium to sing along with the Danish national anthem ‘Der er et yndigt land’. The whole experience brings out goose bumps, and the excitement generates a feeling of well-being throughout the body.
Due to the corona situation, there are no fans from outside to back the Russian team. A couple of Russians living in Denmark, however, have dared to show up at the stadium to hold the Russian flag high, and it is brave of them because the Danish team plays fantastic from the start.
The audience sends lots of positive vibes to the Danish players. Every time a goal is scored, beer is thrown into the air with ruthless abandonment.
We end up standing in beer up to our ankles, completely soaked in the sticky liquid, but truth be told, it’s fun to sing along to all the witty and naughty football songs and not least ‘Sailing up the stream’, an evergreen that we otherwise thought it was long since dead and buried.
It’s incredibly fun to participate and people hold each other’s arms and sing for all they’re worth.
The match ends with Denmark smashing Russia 4-1 and reaching the next round. Euphoria is reaching new heights and things are really hot for a street party. People dance and embrace each other and praise each other for what good football players ‘we’ are, and it seems that the whole of Denmark is swept along in the excitement of victory.
“Where can we go to drink more? Østerbro or Nørrebro? Ask a couple of sharp people from Jutland.
“Go to the red-light area in Istedgade,” is the answer from Copenhagen Post’s most experienced beer hunter, and the happy boys laugh, start singing the Danish pop singer Peter Bellis ‘Istedgade’ and disappear into the crowd.
Goals galore
After the fantastic party, we can not wait to experience the match between Spain and Croatia, which turns out to be somewhat different from the previous matches we have seen at the Park.
The atmosphere before the game is just not comparable to that of the other two games as it is pretty subdued and there is no sensuous bombardment of red and white as at the other games. It’s almost boring to walk around the stadium, and even though it’s summer and good weather, it feels like it’s turned gray and autumnal.
The fans behave well and take their place calmly and quietly. They greet each other in a friendly way and there are no naughty chants or football songs, but as the game gets underway, infectious Spanish rhythms begin to sound from every nook and cranny.
An enchanting exotic atmosphere spreads as Spain scores plenty of goals, but the Croatian team refuses to give up and fights back as their fans burst into joyful screams that can be heard far away. Now shouts and whistles and the Park is once again transformed into a melting pot for the two different football cultures, both of which go all out to win the game.
The game is an elongated affair, and after extra time, Spain wins 5-3, triggering a true fireworks display of a salsa party. Now beer flows freely and the Spaniards show that they can do more than just play football – they can also party, flirt and sexually shake their boots.
As neutrals, it is impossible not to let our hips start to swing and we enjoy participating in a party with eight goals, which means that the match between Spain and Croatia is the second highest scoring match in Euro history.
One thing is clear: You do not have to be specially initiated into the rules of football to go to a football match as a spectator. It’s both fun and nerve-wracking, and you have to be made of stone not to feel richly entertained. As a curiosity, it can almost be assumed that matches in Denmark take place without the violence that sometimes destroys games in other parts of the world.
In any case, the fans of the losers in these three matches wished the winners good luck and partyed with them without any problems.
Source: The Nordic Page