Hup Holland, Hup! Vijf tegen één! The phenomenal victory of the Dutch today over the voetbalwereldkampioen (soccer world champion) Spain. It is the first match that the Dutch elftal (“eleven” – the soccer team) played at the Soccer World Cup in Brazil. And it will not be the last one. For those that have no idea about voetbal, vijf-één is a landslide victory, and does not happen much. Especially not against a high-calibre team like Spain. This is still the group rounds, and so the significance of this win should not be overstated. But it is still a fantastic achievement!
Dutch fans! (Image by Martin Abegglen at flickr.com)
The Dutch celebrate this all in orange. Just like with other high times like King’s Day. Right now, I can assure you that the Dutch will be partying all night! After losing in the finale of the World Cup 2012 against this same opponent, the elftal yearned for the revenge. And it worked. Together with 5000 fans in orange, Van Persie, Robben and De Vrij made it happen. They scored the five goals.
So I think we can expect much of the Dutch elftal this World Cup! Time to have some Soccer World Cup vocabulary.
Wereldkampioenschap – World Championship
Wereldbeker – World Cup
Elftal – soccer team
scoren – to score
doelpunt – goal
hoekschop – corner kick
Buitenspel – offsides
voetballen – to play soccer/football
Oranje – Orange
voetbalfan/supporter – soccer/football supporter
Stadion – Stadium
voetbal – soccer ball/football
The next team the Dutch will play are the Australians on Wednesday, June 16. Let us see how that is going to be.
A small fact some do not realize: soccer is known as football in the rest of the world. And it is by far the most popular sport in general in the world. On the other hand, many do not know much about the popularity and the whereabouts of American Football and the Super Bowl.
What do you think about soccer/football? Do you think it is over hyped, or are you as excited about this as so many fans? What team do you support, and the big question, who will win the World Cup?
