The US soccer team arrived at Hamburg with a chorus welcoming them with “We will never walk alone” and “We’re the Champions.” The team was then whisked off to their hotel on a bus that did not display the US flag unlike the other 31 teams that will have their national colors displayed on the rear of the bus. Security was tight but not overwhelming.
Bruce Arena was questioned on the policy of having the players families stay in the hotel with the players rather than having the squad sequestered away in an isolated location, like many other World Cup teams had chosen to do so.
“We were told we were stupid and crazy and ignorant in Korea, as well, with the families, so we’ll just accept that as being dumb Americans,” Arena said.
The choice of Hamburg is interesting, as it is home to one of Germany’s notorious night spots, the Reeperbahn. The red-light district was immortalized by those Merseyside lads, the Beatles during their early career. Hopefully, the US soccer lads staying with their families will not get too distracted.
More from Slam