Hugs, fernets and euphoria: Barcelona becomes Buenos Aires for a few hours
Catalonia transformed into Buenos Aires for a few hours, with cumbia, drums, and Argentine flags
L'Hospitalet de LlobregatFrom Barcelona to Buenos Aires there are 10,500 kilometers. About thirteen hours by plane that last night disappeared. For a few hours, the l'Hyatt Regency – a hotel located in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat – transformed into a small Buenos Aires. Thousands of people gathered to experience a historic match: England-Argentina.
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The surroundings of the hotel were filled with shirts of the albiceleste and Argentinian teams like Vélez, Huracán, Boca or River. Argentinian customs were also present: cumbia was the soundtrack accompanying the traditional fernet, a drink similar to ratafia. Argentinians cut a plastic bottle in half and burn the edge of the plastic to drink directly from the bottle.
Meanwhile, some local residents were perplexed to see so many Argentinian flags and shirts with the number 10 of Maradona and Leo Messi. The public buses were also dressed for the occasion with advertising featuring the ex-Barcelona player in the Argentina jersey.
Large queue outside to enter the hotel to see the five giant screens distributed throughout the room. Nobody wanted to miss it, adults and children gathered in the same place with the same objective: to be in the World Cup final again. The volume of the narration sounded in the background, but what could be heard were the drums –which didn't stop playing during the 90 minutes– and the chants of the thousands of people gathered in l'Hospitalet de Llobregat (or Buenos Aires). The majority of the people who gathered were Argentinians who, for one reason or another, came to live in Catalonia. “A change in lifestyle. We chose this place out of affinity and for the language,” explained Leandro, a young man from La Plata who now resides in Catalonia.
On the other hand, Federico –born in Bahía Blanca– came 35 years ago for his father's job. “I want a final between Argentina and Spain, which are the two countries of my life,” he admitted emotionally. Both expected to win, although Leandro knew it wouldn't be easy. “If you don't suffer, you don't win,” he assured with the characteristic Argentinian spirit, where the fight comes before everything else.
Euphoria in Barcelona
As if it were the stands of the Atlanta stadium, every English attack was booed – and England fans who appeared on screen, like Mick Jagger – and every action in favor of Argentina was celebrated. The atmosphere was so intense that the ground began to shake every time there was a chant to cheer on Lionel Scaloni's team. Muchachos,, from the 2022 Qatar World Cup, and Soy hincha de la selección, a chant from this World Cup, were not missing. Wherever you looked, there was a screen to follow the match. And where there was no screen, you could find Maradona flags, on which one could read "Diego lives", or River Plate flags, as the organizers of the event are fanatics of this Argentine team.
Not even the Barça-like Anthony Gordon could silence the room, which cheered even louder after the English goal. Pickford's saves were greatly regretted by the Argentine fans, desperate for a goal from their country. A goal to tie that arrived when they least expected it. The thousands of fans gathered in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat jumped, hugged, and sang to the rhythm of Enzo Fernández, who punished England's defensive approach in the face of the Argentines' euphoria. Some fernet also flew. And they did so even more with Lautaro's second goal, at which point the euphoria was already at its peak. Cheering non-stop, even if from Catalonia, paid off: Argentina will play in the final.
A match loaded with symbolism
In the minds of many Argentinians, the Falklands War continues, in which the English took the islands from the Argentinians in 1982. Four years later, the two teams would face each other in the 1986 Mexico World Cup, in which Argentina would go on to win their second World Cup. 40 years after that playoff, in the quarterfinals, the two countries would face each other again.
While chants remembering England were taking place in the room, Nazarena acknowledged that it is more than a game. “It’s not just football, it’s felt in the soul. It’s our final,” she stated. A final they will play again next Sunday, July 19, against Spain. The grand final will indeed be played.
Glòries, Catalonia's "Obelisk"
The celebrations did not end with the final whistle and continued in Glòries park, where thousands of Argentinians gathered to celebrate a new historic milestone. Fireworks, drums, trumpets, and many chants to turn Barcelona into Buenos Aires. For a few hours, Glòries park seemed like Argentina's Obelisco.