Newark Ironbound Soccer Community: It Means Everything

NEWARK – Newark’s Ironbound was filled with fans who watched two important soccer games of the UEFA European Championship Tournament (Euros) on Friday, July 5. The Spanish population was happy to see Spain knock out Germany, but the Portuguese population was despondent after their loss to France. Even with mixed results, it was obvious how much the games meant to both groups.

The Ironbound area, located in the East Ward of Newark, is home to about 55,000 people. Roughly 40% of the population is ethnically Portugues, and 15% is ethnically Spanish. To the Ironbound community, soccer is more than just a game, it is a lifestyle.

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE FREE TAPINTO.NET NEWSLETTER

“It's a big deal to feel that piece of home, anything that we can do to remind us of our culture,” said Casa d’Paco owner Angel Leston, 36. “We always go big for it. We're all about soccer here, whether it's the regular league games or any other games. We're always very, very interested in soccer.”

Casa d’Paco is a Spanish restaurant/bar located on Warwick Street and was packed with over 50 people for the noon quarterfinal knockout game between Spain and host nation Germany. The walls of the bar were decorated with Deportivo de la Coruña memorabilia. Deportivo is a second-division soccer team in Coruña, located in the Galicia region of northwest Spain, and is the hometown of Leston and his family.

Casa d’Paco also had Spanish flags displayed inside the bar and in the restaurant area outside, and many of the customers were wearing Spanish soccer jerseys. There was a smaller number of patrons wearing other Hispanic/Latin American countries’ jerseys to support Spain.

The first 45 minutes of the game were filled with many chances for both teams to bag a goal, but the score stood at 0-0 at halftime. The restaurant was filled with the voices of fans excited about the plays Spain was creating, eerie whispers when Germany had possession of the ball, and every shot, regardless of team, was quiet enough to hear a pin drop.

DOWNLOAD THE FREE TAPINTO APP FOR MORE LOCAL NEWS. AVAILABLE IN THE APPLE STORE AND THE GOOGLE PLAY STORE .

“Some people are working, but you see the diehards here,” Colombian fan/Spain supporter, Andres Jimenez, 43, said at halftime. “I would say [the soccer culture] is everything.”

The score was still 0-0 until Spanish midfielder Dani Olmo slotted a low-driven goal against Germany’s goalkeeper Emanuel Neuer in the 51st minute of the game. The restaurant was filled with synchronized cheers and celebratory fists in the air.

The game stood at 1-0 for over half an hour, until Germany’s Florian Wirtz tied the game 1-1 with a strike against Spanish goalkeeper Unai Simón just minutes before the end of regular time. The customers could be seen throwing their heads back in anguish and groaning at the idea of their team playing extra time.

Extra time was two additional 15-minute halves, and it took Spain until the 119th of 120 total in-game minutes to find an answer. Mikel Merino scored a header goal to win the game for Spain, 2-1. When the final whistle blew, customers rejoiced with more cheering, hugs, and some chanting in Spanish.

“It was a close game, but Spain did have the upper hand throughout most of the match, they played well, and they buttoned up their differences from the beginning of the tournament to what they played today. Very competitive, especially going into overtime,” said Brian Dias, a Portuguese fan from Elizabeth who attended the restaurant to support Spain. “Now let's see how Portugal does in the game against France.”

Shortly after the Spain game, the 3 p.m. match between Portugal and France was shown on dozens of televisions inside Sport Club Portugues. The club was founded in 1921 to help preserve and promote Portuguese culture in the United States. The organization's clubhouse, located on Prospect Street, is hard to miss. The massive white building is adorned with Portugal’s coat of arms, and on game day hoards of people swarm in and out wearing Portuguese soccer jerseys.

“The Portuguese community of Newark is very passionate. Soccer is a big part of its culture. This really connects the second and third generations back to their grandparents,” Alberto Coutinho, 55, said. “This is more than just a soccer game. This is part of who the Portuguese community is. Obviously, it doesn't get much bigger than Portugal's national team playing either in the Euro or the World Cup.”

Friday was no different, with over 1,000 people showing up to watch the important do-or-die game. The two floors of bar seating were a never-ending wave of green and red, the Portuguese colors. The most common name on peoples’ backs was (Christiano) Ronaldo, widely regarded as one of the best soccer players of all time.

“Today is a special day. The bottom floor is full, the top floor is full. We just sang the national anthem, and it gave me goosebumps,” President/Director of Sport Club Portugues Jack Costa, 48, said. “Soccer is one thing that is almost guaranteed to unite all of us, like today.”

The game itself was electric, each team took several shots, with a lot of very close misses and good saves from the goalkeepers. The supporters were entranced every time Portugal had the ball, every shot led to a collective gasp for air, and every goalkeeper save was met with a thunder of claps.

At halftime, many people collected themselves outside, including Adelaide Paredes, who committed to playing soccer at Mount St. Mary’s University and represents Portugal’s Under 19 (years old) Women's team.

“Being in the locker room with your teammates and putting on the uniform and going out singing the national anthem. It's just something you can't describe in words. It's amazing,” said Paredes. “There’s nothing better than being Portuguese, it means everything.”

The scoreboard, however, was still 0-0 after halftime and continued until the end of 120 minutes, both regular and extra time. The game was to be decided by a penalty shootout, in which both teams take turns shooting the ball inside of the box, and the team with more goals after 5 attempts wins.

The Frenchman Ousmane Dembélé was the first to shoot and scored against Portugal’s goalkeeper Diogo Costa. Then Portugal’s Christiano Ronaldo scored a shot just inches from France’s goalkeeper Mike Maignan. Then France scored their second, and so did Portugal. The fans in the clubhouse shifted their emotions with every kick, from rage because of France’s goals, to screaming at the top of their lungs with every Portuguese goal. France its their third goal of the penalty shootout.

Portugal’s third shot belonged to João Félix, another player adored by the fans. He took a short run-up and hit his shot against the outside of the left post of the net, bouncing back to the penalty area. No third goal for Portugal, and for the first time that afternoon, the crowd at the clubhouse was dead silent.

Every shot after that one, from both teams, went in, making the final score 5-3 in favor of France. France shot first, so Portugal was mathematically eliminated before they could take their fifth/final kick.

“It's heartbreaking, you know, people here, they live the Portuguese culture, with intense passion evident. Any losses like this, people take it almost personally,” said Coutinho. “But everybody's proud of the national team. And just above everything else, extremely upset.”

“You know, as a Portuguese fan, losing against France, you feel robbed. Honestly, we didn't finish when we needed to. It's a very hard loss. But we have the team, and two years from now we have a better competition to go after.” Kearny resident Lewis Cerqueira, 30, said, referring to the 2026 World Cup. “A lot of people are gonna be hurt, maybe talking good things about the team for a week or two but honestly, we're gonna rally and the next time a major competition comes around. We do what we always do. We rally behind our team, and we push forward.”

Spain will play France in the Euro semifinal on Tuesday, July 9, at noon.

For more local news, visit TAPinto.net