Ari Baylor served as a flagbearer during the Egypt vs. Iran World Cup game. (Images: Ari Baylor)
I got out of the Uber my dad called and took in the view. We were in Bellevue, Seattle, at a Coca-Cola factory on the outskirts of town. This was our meeting point where we boarded the bus to go to the soccer stadium.
I walked over a lady sitting at a table and got my complimentary backpack. Inside was my Coca-Cola clothing, sunglasses, a water bottle, and a nice $25 visa gift card. After I changed into my clothing we boarded the bus and started our 20 minute drive to the stadium. Since I didn’t really know anybody It was a relatively quiet ride that I spent mostly taking in the scenery of the frost tipped mountains and trees. Or using my phone to watch TV and take photos.
After we finally arrived at the stadium, we got fifa clearance wristbands and had to pass through security. We walked through the backside of the stadium where all the staff were preparing for the game, and ended up stopping inside of the Seattle Seahawks locker room. (The game was being played in the Seahawks stadium.)
There we received our turf shoes and adidas jersey we had to wear on the field. After that it was mostly a lot of watching the Spain vs Uruguay game playing on the TV, and passing the 5 hours on our phones.
At around 5 pm we had a dinner buffet of pasta and meatballs, chicken parm, veggies, and mini pieces of cheesecake for dessert. The hours after dinner were completely boring since the younger kids were using the PS5 hooked onto the wall. And the Uruguay vs Spain game had finally ended 1-0 Spain.
At about 7:20 they made us put away our phones and bags in lockers so we could get ready for the game to start. At 7:40 we all lined up inside the corridor with different flags (Iran or Egypt) and made us face each other facing the hallway up ahead. We started walking at a fast pace, all of us feeling nervous for the 70,000 fans to be staring down on us from the stands.
As we neared the tunnel entrance to the field it felt like an earthquake, because of the pounding of drums and many screaming fans waiting for the game to start.
Finally we started moving. We all looked up simultaneously and the amount of people watching us and all felt in a daze, because it didn’t feel real. The sound of the fans was the loudest sound I have ever heard. They were all chanting for their respective teams at the top of their lungs anticipating a battle between the two sides.
We stuck to the side of the sidelines so people could sneak by us and felt genuinely scared, because there was no room for error. One mistake and 70,000 people would start laughing at us. One slip and we would be the next meme on social media. But luckily none of that happened. The two lines followed the rope showing them where to line up and we all stood waving our flags with pride. After both teams' national anthems ended we all turned around and briskly walked back into the tunnel.
Once we all ended up in the locker room again the environment was electric, everyone happy it was over but also reeling from the experience we just witnessed. All of us Coca-Cola sponsored flag bearers walked into the stands to meet our parents, and enjoyed watching the rest of the nail-biting game together.
