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THE NETHERLANDS
Last Updated by Tonia 5 days ago
School Bakery and Café
70 Fraser Ave.
(416) 588-0005
National intel: Over 200 Dutch soccer fans will gather at School Bakery.
URUGUAY
Last Updated by Tonia 5 days ago
Club Uruguay
101 Freshway Dr., Concord
(905) 660-2467
National intel: Situated between perennial soccer powerhouses Argentina and Brazil, the small South American nation somehow managed to win two World Cups in 1930, 1950. Occupying a nondescript commercial unit near Highways 400 and 407, the social club has been a popular gathering place for Uruguayans in Toronto for more than 40 years. The club's roster of 400 members gathers most weekends for movie nights, dances, televised soccer games and asado - traditional Uruguayan barbeque.
MEXICO
Last Updated by Tonia 5 days ago
El Rincon Mexicano
653 St. Clair Ave. W.
(416) 656-1059
653 St. Clair Ave. W.
(416) 656-1059
National intel: Though Mexico is playing in the opening match against South Africa, the odds aren't looking muy caliente. Mexico is 0-6 on opening day, and the host team has never lost.
The pitch: Well-reviewed, accessibly priced restaurant will offer brunch menu during the morning games.
CAMEROON
Last Updated by Tonia 5 days ago
Chez La Belle Africaine
1239 Weston Rd.
(416) 543-4378
National intel: "Everywhere I go, when I tell people I am from Cameroon, they think I am talking about a soccer team," says Pascal Dissock, laughing. "They forget Cameroon is a country, not just a team." He doesn't mind. Still, Sports Illustrated called the team - not the nation - "a paragon of Third World mobility."
The pitch: Mr. Dissock, president of the GTA's Cameroonian association, says he thinks the Cameroonian team will take strength from playing in an African nation and surpass all expectations. There is no "everyone will do a boffo job" for Mr. Dissock. "We are the lions," he says. "There is a law to the forest. No one dominates a lion. We will dominate."
The pitch: Mr. Dissock, president of the GTA's Cameroonian association, says he thinks the Cameroonian team will take strength from playing in an African nation and surpass all expectations. There is no "everyone will do a boffo job" for Mr. Dissock. "We are the lions," he says. "There is a law to the forest. No one dominates a lion. We will dominate."
SPAIN
Last Updated by Tonia 5 days ago
Club Hispano
3465 Dundas St. W.
(416) 760-7210
3465 Dundas St. W.
(416) 760-7210
National intel: There will likely be many Spanish flags out on cars in Toronto this year, but that might say more about the strength of the team than the Spanish community. According to the Consulate General of Spain, there are fewer than 20,000 Spaniards in Canada, let alone Toronto. But if Spain advances far in the tournament, as many are expecting they will, soccer fans from Spanish-speaking countries are liable to jump on the bandwagon.
The pitch: A more official kind of fiesta hosted by a not-for-profit community centre dedicated to the preservation of Spanish culture. For the World Cup, they'll be breaking out the big-screen TVs.
