FIFA 2014: Fans gear up for action

Catching up with pals, going for big-screen telecast, bunking office and making new rules for the bedroom — football fans are doing everything to catch the World Cup action
Lights will be on all through the night, rounds of drinks and snacks will be the order of the night and everything will take a backseat as football fans will stay glued to the TV screens to watch the FIFA World cup 2014.With the kick-off of the most
awaited sporting event tomorrow, excitement among fans is rising — no wonder then, many Hyderabadis have special plans to be able to catch all the action.
Rahul Gupta, a 22-year-old management student, who lives with two friends, says, “We are thrilled that the World Cup action is set to begin. We will have friends coming over and we all will watch it together. We plan to stock up drinks and snacks that we can munch on during the matches.”
Karthik R, a 25-year-old marketing professional, says, “Watching matches with friends is so much better than being home. You build a rapport with them. They reassure you that things will work out even if your team is performing badly. You can talk about strategy and improve knowledge about the game. And obviously, celebrations go on a different level when you are with friends.”
While some will stay home and enjoy with friends, few will hit some lounges in the city that are organising screenings of major matches — unofficially though, as all the matches are pretty late. Punit Taparia, a 30-year-old businessman
says, “Some lounges in the city will be screening important matches, so I will be going for that.”
The craze for the game is so high among fans that many have been planning for months and are taking planned leaves to catch the action. Siddharth Koya, a 25-year-old software developer is one of them. “I knew I won’t be able to concentrate on work while the tournament is on. So, I am taking three weeks off from work to support my favourite team.”
For 29-year-old IT professional Sourav Datta, being in office will be extremely tough. “Given the timing of the matches, this would be one of the toughest times to be at work. So, the plan is to miss as few games as possible.”
Sourav, who is taking a two-week leave for the knockout stage, says, “I will be going home to West Bengal, where almost all of my family follows football.”
And how do the dynamics of the bedroom change when it’s football time? Argentina fan, Sourav says, “Though my wife is not an ardent soccer fan, I have been teaching her about my favourite team so that clashes at home can be avoided.”
“Game takes the priority. So during World Cup, no going out in the evening unless we are going to a sports bar; and no cross talk during the game other than about the game,” he adds, telling about rules of watching the match with his partner.