Hundreds pack Navy Pier for USA vs England World Cup watch party; "The atmosphere is unbeat"
CHICAGO (CBS) -- It's a draw. Neither USA nor England could pull off a goal in their World Cup match on Friday, but the game did pull in quite the crowd at Navy Pier, where more than 1,000 spectators donned their stars and stripes for a watch party.
Justin and Zach Laud screamed with USA pride alongside hundreds of U.S. Men's National Team fans inside the Aon Ballroom at Navy Pier.
"The atmosphere is unbeat. You can't have this in a bar. You can't have this at home," Zach said.
It's been 8 years since The U.S. Men's National Team made a World Cup appearance, after failing to qualify in 2018.
Their match-up against England, in particular, was long-anticipated.
"Well, A, it's England and the United States. So that's Revolutionary War history. But realistically, there's a lot of top players on both sides," Justin said.
USA and England put the crowd on edge over and over.
If anyone at Navy Pier was cheering for England, they were hard to spot, whereas Robbie Lopez wasn't easy to miss decked out in his red white, and blue Fourth of July outfit.
"I had to bust it out of the closet for a good reason. This is why," he said.
Soccer continues to grow in popularity in the United States. The turnout at the Navy Pier watch party proved people of all ages love watching it and playing it.
"I think it's a fun sport, because you get to play with your teammates a lot, and there's a lot of, like, passing, and a lot of including everyone," 7-year-old Matthew Terry said.
In the end, it was a good effort.
That means a lot to the laud brothers and many more.
"We're sons of immigrants, and it's the American dream just to be here to watch some young guys play in the World Cup," Justin said.
USA and England played to a scoreless draw, meaning USA can clinch a spot in the Round of 16 with a win over Iran.