They cheered and jeered. They flexed their team tattoos and jerseys on the jumbo screen with pride in their eyes. They booed whenever the opposing team tripped up a player in the heat of the match. On one side, a person chanted what sounded like a rooster crow and soon others in the crowd followed suit.
Although Manchester United bested Liverpool 4-0 to take home the Bangkok Century Cup at Rajamangala Stadium last night, what took place on the field was only half the fun. Equally attention-worthy were the rabid, red-clad fans scattered across the arena, who elevated the experience with their fiery devotion to their favored teams.
One fan named Louis posed for a photo as he spread his team’s scarf like an eagle soaring towards victory. A supporter of Manchester for several years, the 26-year-old ticket holder was gratified to see them compete up close.
“It was very fun, I’ve been a fan for many years now, so this was amazing,” he said.
While Thai fans made up the bulk of the crowd, football fanatics from across the region also flew in to see the match such as Man U superfan Yuda, who flew all the way from Indonesia with his wife.
“I think it was a very good game, all players played well tonight,” he told Coconuts. “Manchester United’s new manager Erik ten Hag is perfect in managing this team. I had to fly here because, of course, I’m a Man U fan.”
While the arena did not reach full capacity, some 40,000 or so, almost all clad in cherry red, converged in waves to witness the “Red War” exhibition match. From the front-row seats, where more reserved – and wealthy – fans sat on plastic folding chairs, to further up the stands, where supporters unabashedly chanted, heckled and screamed their love for their favorite players, everybody was enraptured by the spectacle of seeing the two powerhouse teams battling it out on the pitch.
Rappers Jackson Wang and Milli helped drum up the hype before the game with a bombastic one-hour performance while superfans brandished scarves and balloons and held up jerseys. They crept as close as possible to the players as they drilled during the pre-game hour. They took photos and videos of each other and leaped to their feet whenever a goal was made. The rival fanbases competed over who could scream the loudest.
Once the game started, the cheers grew deafening on one side of the stadium while the other turned to stunned silence as Manchester pulled ahead to a 3-0 lead in the first half.
In the last 30 minutes of the game, the sea of red became a rainbow as the crowd shimmered under a light rain that hit the stands. Neither the downpour nor the lopsided 4-0 final score could dampen the spirits of the fans still elated after getting to see the two football legends compete in the Thai capital.
“Today, it’s been a happy day,” one fan named Ton told Coconuts as he marveled at the Manchester players while the team received its trophy, accompanied by opening musical act Jackson Wang, who made Thais swoon with a wai gesture. “I got to see all my favorite players compete. It’s been a long time coming.”
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