Time Out
Samuel Gonzalez caught peeks of the big game on his television set as he mixed the bread dough at Los Hornos bakery in Santa Ana.
At the nearby El Paso Shoes, manager Florencio Alcocer and customers seemed more interested in the game than in selecting the right pair of tennis shoes.
Throughout Orange County’s Latino community, the Saturday morning routine was brushed aside as people gathered to watch the World Cup soccer match in Lyon, France, between Mexico and South Korea, which began at 8:30 a.m. It was Mexico’s first game in the 1998 World Cup.
“I was able to watch a little, but I wasn’t as comfortable as I would be at home,” said Alcocer, 29.
At his 4th Street shoe store, one father remained entranced by the back-and-forth action of the game, even when his kids yanked his sleeves to show him their favorite shoes.
More serious soccer fans caught the game at local restaurants and bars--bursting out in cheers for the Mexican team.
At Super Antojitos, a Mexican restaurant in Costa Mesa, about 20 people feasted on hot soup, gulped beer and watched the match on a big-screen TV. Owner Jesse Sandoval was surprised at such a big crowd for the 8:30 a.m. game but said he could understand why they came.
“At home, you’re going to be fighting with the wife who wants to watch a telenovela,” he said with a smile.
Each time Mexico came close to scoring but didn’t, the restaurant filled with desperate groans. But even when Mexico was down 1 to 0 at the end of the first half, fans remained faithful.
The stakes were even higher in Los Angeles, where there are many immigrants from Mexico and South Korea.
Many Los Angeles fans elected to watch at home. Some made a brunch out of it, inviting friends over to share native delicacies. But others gravitated to restaurants, hotels and other public places, the better to share their passion with like-minded fellow nationals.
At halftime, spirits were high in the city’s Koreatown district. But the atmosphere in Huntington Park and other parts of the Eastside was funereal.
“Right now, I’m supposed to be at the airport, picking someone up, but I can’t leave,” said Don Cha, hotel limousine driver at the Seoul Palace Hotel. About 30 people, mostly men, gathered at the hotel’s Cafe Fontana, sipping morning tea and soft drinks as they observed their beloved Red Devils.
Likewise, Miguel Arciel, 27, was missing time from his job as a warehouseman.
“I hope my boss understands,” Arciel said as he sat in a booth at El Gallo Giro in Huntington Park, waiting for the second half to begin. “I just have to be here.”
The restaurant’s 24-hour kitchen staff prepared extra orders of chicharrones (pork rinds) in green-chile sauce to accommodate an influx of World Cup watchers.
At the Costa Mesa restaurant, Mexico fans predicted their team would rally back in the second half.
“They’re going to tie and then they’re going to win. We have to send them positive vibes,” said Marcos Nava, 48, of Irvine, wearing a polo shirt emblazoned with Mexico green.
Nava and other fans thought their vibes reached France when Mexico’s substitute Ricardo Pelaez scored the team’s first goal early in the second half. Fans stood, shouted praise and applauded loudly.
“I think they’re going to win it this year for some reason,” predicted Carlos Elizalde, 21, of Santa Ana. “They’re going to bring the trophy back home.”
Others at the Costa Mesa restaurant were impressed by the energy of the South Korean team, which was playing one man short after losing a player to a red card ejection.
“The Koreans have a lot of pride in their country. They don’t seem tired,” said Elizalde’s brother, Miguel, 20.
Mexico ended up winning the game, 3-1, and some local fans said the game brought them closer together.
“With soccer, people become united,” said Jorge Zamarripa, 36, who watched the game at El Rey del Marisco restaurant in Santa Ana. “It’s a pretty thing.”
*
Times staff writers Patrick J. McDonnell and Susan Abram contributed to this report.
* MEXICO WINS: Mexico defeats South Korea, 3-1, in opening match. It will play Belgium on Saturday. C1
