Chapter 2084 Kick-off
"...I announce that the 25th FIFA World Cup 2034 has officially begun!"
With this sonorous announcement, the Lotus Stadium, which has been specially transformed and can accommodate 70,000 people, burst into huge cheers.
After the wonderful theatrical performances, fireworks shows, drone light shows and leaders’ speeches, the much-anticipated curtain of this World Cup slowly opened.
At this time, the television broadcast camera was focused on the players' tunnel.
You can see the Chinese team players wearing red home jerseys and the Icelandic players wearing white jerseys, each standing in a line.
The captains of the two teams stand at the front of their respective teams, and in front of them are all the members of the referee team, with the referee in the middle.
This picture appeared on the big screen at the scene, and the fans cheered even louder.
Appearing on the TV broadcast, fans in front of countless TV sets also cheered.
At the home of Hu Lai's uncle Xie Zelin, there were still leftovers on the dining table that had not yet been cleared away, and people were sitting around the living room.
Although the game has not officially started yet, everyone is not willing to miss even a second.
The place where the founding ceremony of Andong Quanxing Football Club was held just ten days ago is now crowded with nearby neighbors. The big screen that previously played the short film about the establishment of Andong Quanxing Club was connected to the live signal of the World Cup opening game.
In the atrium hall of the shopping mall, which is usually used to display various discounted products, there are no discounted products at this time. The store has erected a large screen here to broadcast the opening game of the World Cup.
Although there were not even a single chair at the scene, there were still many people focused here. Those who were close to each other were sitting on the floor, while those who were further away were standing and watching.
……
Scenes like this appear in tens of thousands of living rooms, shopping malls, bars, food stalls, and squares across the country.
Today is Saturday, June 17, 2034.
Although they have to go to work as usual this Saturday due to the Dragon Boat Festival holiday, there are still many people waiting in front of the TV to watch CCTV's non-stop live broadcast special program starting at 8 o'clock in the morning.
This is the first time China has hosted the World Cup, and it is also the first time CCTV has conducted such a 12-hour uninterrupted live broadcast of a football match.
From the lineup configuration of both sides, tactical analysis, to various off-field news reports, everything is available, all aspects are displayed in front of the national audience without blind spots.
Some people even said that they would record the twelve hours of live broadcast and keep it as a collection for later...
For many people, this is the first time in their lives, and every minute and every second of these twelve hours is extremely precious, and they are delicacies that can be recalled and tasted for the rest of their lives.
※※※
After the World Cup was announced as officially open, although the players were already waiting in the tunnel, they did not enter immediately.
This World Cup in China has an entrance ceremony for every game.
Now the lights on the stadium outside the players tunnel suddenly turned off!
The fans at the scene shouted excitedly.
There were also many fans who turned on the flashlights on their mobile phones. At a glance, it was as if there was a galaxy dotted with stars in the stands.
The live broadcast shouted in a passionate voice: "Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the Lingnan Lotus Stadium. This is the opening game of this World Cup. The two sides are the Chinese men's national football team and the Icelandic men's national football team! The show is about to begin! First of all, let us welcome the national flags of the two countries!”
The cheers roared like thunder, and the swaying and changing lights turned the stadium into a nightclub dance floor.
Amid the exciting music and cheers, the caddies at the entrance of the players' tunnel held the national flags of both participating teams in turn, walked into the court, and lined up on both sides.
After the flag was in place, the lighting was restored.
"Next...athletes from both sides are invited to enter!"
Thunderous cheers.
※※※
"Gone!"
Wang Guangwei, wearing the captain's armband and holding the team flag, did not follow immediately after the referee team started. Instead, he turned around and shouted to remind his teammates.
Then he caught up with the referee team.
Next to him, Aaron Thorgrimsson, the captain of the Icelandic national team, was also encouraging his teammates: "Come on, come on!"
Behind the two captains, the spikes of the players on both sides made a dense and clear sound on the hard floor.
The on-site commentator He Feng said excitedly after seeing this: "Players from both sides came out! We can see that the expressions on the players' faces are relatively calm... I think this is a good sign!"
Yan Kang next to him echoed: "Yes. Maybe the fans will be excited because of this special day. But for the players, no matter how much meaning the outside world gives to this game, it is actually just a game... Let's face it... God, it's just a football game, and it's not fundamentally different from other games. I think it's right for the Chinese players to be calm. It's precisely because of their calm expressions that I feel sorry for them in this tournament. Looking forward to the performance in the World Cup!”
"Yes, Yan Kang. In fact, the Chinese team gave us a great surprise in the World Cup four years ago. And after four years of training and growth, this group of international players has made new progress. And there is one thing I don’t know if you have noticed..."
He Feng further added.
"... Even during the first two World Cups, we actually paid close attention to the team's performance during training and warm-up matches... We paid close attention to these details, trying to find any clues that would benefit us from these details. , if you haven’t read it When we see what we hope to see, we can’t help but feel disappointed... But this year, the World Cup seems to come naturally and logically to the opening game, whether it is a training camp or a warm-up match, there seems to be nothing to say.”
"Ha! When you say that, He Feng, that's really what happened..." Yan Kang said with a smile. "Now you ask me to recall the preparation stage before the opening game, and I really can't think of any very profound memory points."
"Really? This shows that our team is very mature from top to bottom, inside and out, whether it is mentality or procedures."
As the two commentators chatted, all the players from both sides were already on the stage. They held caddies and stood in a row in front of their respective flags.
The live broadcast reminded: "Ladies and gentlemen, please stand up and play the national anthem of both participating parties. First, please play the national anthem of the Republic of Iceland..."
Everyone in the stands, regardless of nationality, stood up from their seats.
A large number of Chinese fans remained politely quiet while the Icelandic national anthem played from the speakers.
There is no enmity between China and Iceland, and Chinese fans naturally do not have to boo the opponent's national anthem like they did when the South Korean team came to China to play in the top 12 in 2025.
After the Icelandic national anthem was played, the audience cheered again.
Then the voice of the live broadcast was obviously different from before, more exciting and exciting:
"Play the national anthem of the People's Republic of China!"
After a brief burst of cheers, the stadium quickly fell silent.
The silence is also short-lived.
Because as the music sounded, all the Chinese fans in the audience roared along at the top of their lungs.
Not only the fans at the scene, but also countless people in front of the TV, saw this scene and couldn't help but sing along.
Some people sang loudly, as if they were there, some people opened their mouths and sang silently, and the children sang very seriously.
The television cameras scanned the eleven Chinese players who started the game, and then scanned the coaching bench and bench.
Everyone was singing seriously.
The fans in the stands of the Lotus Stadium, the national fans in front of the TV, the players and coaches, it seems that they are not performing a program, but really singing a song about going out.
Just like what is written in that lyric.
"Forward! Forward! Forward!"
After the singing, the cheers started again.
The players of the Chinese team, led by captain Wang Guangwei, took the initiative to walk towards the Icelandic players and shake hands with them.
Then the captain took sides.
"Okay, audience friends, the game is about to begin. Now it's the captains of both sides who are picking sides... Speaking of this pick, I think of the World Cup game four years ago. Although it wasn't the opening game at that time, it was also the Chinese team. In the first game of that World Cup, it was against the host Spain. In that game, Hulay scored a classic goal that is still talked about..."
Yan Kang smiled and interjected: "I wonder if Wang Guangwei will also have the kick-off right in this game?"
He Feng laughed: "It's useless to ask for it. Since that World Cup, Hu Lai has never used a kick-off opportunity to score a long-range shot from the center circle. Nowadays goalkeepers have learned how to kick off when facing Hu Lai. When the time comes, you must stand honestly on the goal line..."
※※※
The commentators He Feng and Yan Kang mentioned the "famous scene" four years ago. In fact, Wang Guangwei, who was standing next to the referee, also thought of it.
Four years ago, Hu Lai took the initiative to ask him for the right to kick off the ball. He had not yet figured out what Hu Lai was going to do.
I just thought I wanted to take advantage of the kick-off opportunity to attack, but I didn't expect that the attack was so thorough in the end...
But now he also knows that it will be difficult for Hu Lai to take advantage of the kick-off opportunity to score directly.
But when the referee asked him to choose which side to bet on with a special edge picker, he still made the same choice as four years ago.
He pointed to the side with the World Cup pattern and said to the referee: "This side, I choose this side."
Of course he didn't want to relive the old dream again.
He chose this side just because it has the World Cup pattern on it - which player who comes to this stage doesn't want the World Cup?
After confirming the results of their selections to the two captains, the referee threw the coin in his hand into the sky.
Then instead of catching it with his hands, he let the coin fall.
The edge picker, also known as the coin, tumbles in the air and keeps changing sides.
Finally landed on the turf.
The three people looked down at the coin at the same time.
World Cup facing up.
The referee pointed his finger at Wang Guangwei, indicating to him to make a choice, pick the side or kick off.
Wang Guangwei made a football gesture to the referee:
"Kick off."
※※※PS, there is only one chapter in the archive, so for the time being, I can only update it alone...Sorry!
(End of chapter)