{"id":2738,"date":"2026-06-15T04:04:55","date_gmt":"2026-06-15T04:04:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=2738"},"modified":"2026-06-15T04:04:55","modified_gmt":"2026-06-15T04:04:55","slug":"world-cup-passion-takes-over-fenway-park-red-sox-clubhouse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=2738","title":{"rendered":"World Cup passion takes over Fenway Park, Red Sox clubhouse"},"content":{"rendered":"<article>\n<div>\n<p><span>For a few minutes on Sunday, Red Sox center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela was dreaming big about Curacao\u2019s soccer team.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=2736\">Daichi Kamada\u2019s equalizer in the 88th minute helps Japan draw Netherlands in World Cup opener for both<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>In its first-ever World Cup game, Curacao quickly fell behind Germany before Livano Comenencia scored a shock equalizer in the 21st minute.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cIt was a great thing that we came back and scored,\u201d said Rafaela, who doesn\u2019t personally know any of the players from his native country but avidly followed the team\u2019s progress in the qualifying rounds.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><span>Alas, Germany scored the next six goals for a 7-1 victory. But Comenencia\u2019s goal had Curacao in a frenzy according to media reports.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cIt\u2019s a really big deal for Curacao to get this far,\u201d Rafaela said. \u201cEverybody back home is talking about it. It\u2019s exciting for the country.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Across the Sox clubhouse, Marcelo Mayer was keeping track of the scores on the televisions in the center of the room.<\/span><\/p>\n<div><span>Related<span>: <\/span><\/span>Romy Gonzalez and his \u2018thump in the bat\u2019 nearing return to Red Sox<\/div>\n<p><span>The shortstop described himself as a fan of Mexico and the United States, as a nod to his heritage. He also roots for Argentina because of his admiration for Lionel Messi.<\/span><\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div><span>Get Starting Point<\/span><\/div>\n<div><span>A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday.<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div><label>Enter Email<\/label><\/p>\n<div><button>Sign Up<\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>\u201cI really like the way Spain plays, too,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s an exciting style. If there\u2019s a game on, I\u2019ll watch it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Mayer played club soccer in San Diego until he entered high school, when he focused on baseball.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cI was pretty good, but baseball was my sport,\u201d he said. \u201cI had to stick with that.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>It was the right decision considering Mayer became the fourth pick of the 2021 amateur draft and signed for $6.64 million. He made his major league debut last season.<\/span><\/p>\n<div><span>Related<span>: <\/span><\/span>Pitch perfect: World Cup mania sweeps Boston<\/div>\n<p><span>But soccer is still part of his life. Mayer visited Spain during the 2022 offseason to see Barcelona play Valencia at the famed Camp Nou stadium.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cIt was beautiful, really awesome,\u201d Mayer said. \u201cBarcelona is one of my favorite cities. I want to go back at some point.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=2734\">Trump owns shares in company hosting UFC bout as part of his vast holdings<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>Yutaro Yamaguchi, who works for the Sox as a Japanese translator, was following Japan\u2019s match against the Netherlands on his phone while he was in the outfield with Masataka Yoshida.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Japan scored with less than two minutes remaining in regulation to escape with a 2-2 draw.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>As Mayer went out for batting practice, Ranger Suarez was watching the Netherlands-Japan game in the clubhouse before the Sox played the Rangers.<\/span><\/p>\n<div><span>Related<span>: <\/span><\/span>More World Cup coverage<\/div>\n<p><span>Suarez, who is from baseball-obsessed Venezuela, is a fan of Argentina.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cMostly because of Messi,\u201d he said. \u201cI like France and Spain, too. They have the best players. If there\u2019s a game on, I\u2019ll watch it. It\u2019s fun.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>What seemed like several thousand blue-clad Scottish soccer fans were at Fenway Park for the game, walking en masse to the ballpark and taking up much of the bleachers. Many were waving Scotland\u2019s flag.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Scotland beat Haiti, 1-0, in its first game of the tournament on Saturday in Foxborough. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cThey\u2019re everywhere,\u201d Suarez said. \u201cI like the atmosphere. It\u2019s like a soccer game.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The Red Sox marketing department, no fools they, had scheduled Sunday as Scottish Heritage Celebration Night around the World Cup.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The Scots are a singing bunch. They belted out \u201cCountry Roads Take Me Home\u201d before the game along with \u201cWhere Everybody Knows Your Name\u201d from the television show \u201cCheers.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>That was followed by a loud rendition of \u201cHey! Baby!\u201d before the first pitch. Our fun new friends also fully embraced \u201cSweet Caroline\u201d in the eighth inning, then \u201cI\u2019m Gonna Be\u201d by the Scottish duo The Proclaimers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>There were chants throughout the Red Sox\u2019 6-4 loss to the Rangers, too. It was the loudest night at Fenway since the Wild Card Game victory against the Yankees in 2021.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cIt was crazy,\u201d Sox interim manager Chad Tracy said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>For two teams with losing records, it was a playoff atmosphere in June. Or, more accurately, a World Cup atmosphere.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=2732\">Kai Havertz sparks Germany\u2019s 7-1 rout of Curacao after underdogs\u2019 historic first goal in World Cup<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Players like Ceddanne Rafaela and Marcelo Mayer kept tabs on matches played Sunday, while Scotland&#8217;s Tartan Army marched to the Fens to show Sox fans their passion for sport.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2737,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2738","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sport"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>World Cup passion takes over Fenway Park, Red Sox clubhouse - 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