Fans celebrate World Cup win at Carlstadt sports landmark

Fans in Argentina jerseys and Spain colors streamed down Washington Avenue in Carlstadt on July 19, walking past Redd’s Restaurant and Biergarten toward the World Cup final at MetLife Stadium.

Some had planned the trip for months. Others were still searching for tickets as they approached the stadium.Robert Muñoz bought his while walking there.

Muñoz, 29, of Manhattan, paid $3,500 after waiting for resale prices to fall. He said the purchase amounted to nine months of savings. He called the final a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Having the match close to home spared him airfare, a hotel and other travel expenses, but Muñoz still said FIFA needed to address the price of attending the tournament.

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Delphina Hall, 26, of Santa Barbara, California, walked toward the stadium in a Lionel Messi jersey with relatives from Argentina. She said her family takes the national team seriously and wanted to attend what could be Messi’s final World Cup match.

Dominic Thomas, 54, traveled from Mumbai, India, after buying his ticket with friends eight months earlier. He had also attended Argentina’s semifinal victory over England in Miami but was rooting for Spain in the final.Spain, he said, would have to contain Messi.

“He is a genius,” Thomas said.

He said he hoped the final would be as good as the semifinals.

At Redd’s, Renee Palsi said many fans had purchased pregame packages that included shuttle service to MetLife Stadium. Even after they left for the match, the downstairs was packed at 2:20 p.m., 40 minutes before kickoff.The staff opened the upstairs about 10 minutes later, and more fans gathered beneath a tent outside.

“It’s nuts in the best way possible,” said Palsi, who works at Redd’s on weekends. “Exactly what we’d hoped for.”

The restaurant offered merchandise giveaways and raffled off two sets of Giants tickets.

Palsi, a teacher, said Redd’s had hosted large one-day events around the Super Bowl, but nothing that brought sustained crowds from so many countries. Her husband, Douglas, owns the restaurant, and their three children work there in several roles.

“People have been so wonderful from every single country,” she said. “There’s nothing like it.”Before kickoff, Argentina supporters stood and sang their national anthem, their voices filling the restaurant.

Among them was Hector Jimenez Torres, 56, who came from Mexico City hoping to find a ticket to the final. Wearing an Argentina jersey bearing Messi’s name, he had already attended World Cup matches in Philadelphia, Los Angeles and New Jersey.

Jimenez Torres arrived in the area on July 17 and also attended a Yankees game, but a ticket to the final remained too expensive. He watched from Redd’s instead.

At halftime, with the match scoreless, Jimenez Torres said the play may have been too technical for a neutral fan. He still considered Argentina’s chances 50-50.

Spain supporters were outnumbered about two to one at Redd’s, but they grew louder as the match went on. The larger Argentina crowd answered with a scream when goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez stopped a header in the 80th minute.

By stoppage time, chances at both ends had the room reacting to nearly every attack. Jimenez Torres called a red card in the 93rd minute fair.

The crowd roared when Martínez made another save in extra time, then briefly celebrated an apparent goal that was waved off. A near miss minutes later brought fans out of their seats again.

Spain scored in the 106th minute. Its supporters erupted. Argentina fans responded with chants as their team pushed for an equalizer, growing louder as the final minutes slipped away.

A late Argentina chance went wide, and Spain held on for a 1-0 victory.

Rodrigo Velasquez, a Bilbao native who lives in Rutherford, said Spain had controlled the match and deserved the result.

“They dominated,” he said. “They totally deserved it.”

Velasquez was over the moon as Spain supporters celebrated around him.

Jimenez Torres said Argentina had been too passive, but he still enjoyed the match.

“It was a good game,” he said.

The final also ended a sustained run of World Cup crowds at Redd’s.

Palsi said the restaurant would soon turn its attention to concert season, but she was already sorry to see the tournament end.

“The people that we’ve met have really made the difference,” she said.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Fans celebrate World Cup win at Carlstadt sports landmark