About 45 minutes into the United States’ World Cup game against Iran, someone opened a glass garage door that serves as the front wall of the Bulldog Pub in Morningside. Cool air wafted into the small bar, packed shoulder-to-shoulder with heat-generating soccer fans. A few people let out small cheers and applauded, but most didn’t notice. They remained focused on five large TV screens mounted above a wall behind the bar.
Four of those screens displayed the U.S.-Iran contest, but the fifth was tuned to a second game — England’s battle against Wales. Sean McCann stood on a bench placed against a wall on the far side of the pub. This gave him a view over the heads of those packed in front of him. He did his best to keep up with both games.
McCann was born in Runcorn, England, 24 years ago. His family moved to the United States in 2004, when he was 6 or 7 years old and — it was hard for him to concentrate on a reporter’s questions during the game. He watches soccer intensely.
Now a resident of Ross, McCann came to the pub to support his birth country, but when Hershey native Christian Pulisic gave the U.S. a 1-0 lead over Iran in the 38th minute, he joined the crowd and roared his approval. Though British blood flows through his veins, McCann said, “I consider myself an American at the same time, even though I’m not a citizen.”
Those surrounding him were thoroughly American — they occasionally chanted “U-S-A, U-S-A” — though they occupied a space flashing international colors. Small flags representing every country in the World Cup dangled overhead.
Soccer’s a thing at Bulldog Pub. Jesse DiRenzo, who co-owns the bar with his older brother, Joe, said the doors open early on weekend mornings so fans can watch Premier League games live, played in England’s time zone. Tiny replicas of jerseys and team banners decorate a brick wall behind the bar.
It’s a bit odd that Bulldog exudes such a strong soccer vibe, DiRenzo noted, since the place is named after a local (American) football team. The Morningside Bulldogs, established in 1950, prepared youths ages 13 to 15 for high school football. Its win-loss record is insane: 271-19-8. DiRenzo said it’s the winningest football team of all time. At least that’s the local yore. “That was hammered into my head as a kid,” he said.
For most of the game, DiRenzo moved swiftly behind the bar, pouring drinks and regularly stopping to glance up at the screens. Like everyone else, he alternately cheered and fretted. He’s a jovial guy, and he dressed appropriately for the game — his jacket looked like a patched-up American flag — red-and-white stripes one one side, white stars on a blue background on the other. A tricorn hat perched atop his head. After a while he needed a break from the bar work so he stepped outside for some fresh air.
On the sidewalk, he chatted with a few regular customers and nodded at the packed bar in front of him. “They’re all here for one communal purpose — to watch the match,” he said. Fans come from nearby neighborhoods, as well as from places such as Mars and Moon. “People are just happy to have a place to watch the games,” he said.
The soccer presence at Bulldog has grown the past four years, DiRenzo said. It started when he and a few friends began watching English Premier League games every month. The group started off tiny with 10 people.
“Pittsburgh will always be a football town, but there is no reason soccer can’t carve a niche,” he said. The fan base is certainly dedicated. Some arrived at the bar when it opened at 8 a.m.
At halftime, with the U.S. winning 1-0, Sean McCann stepped off his bench on the far side of the bar. A woman wandered past, offering promotional shots of tequila. McCann demurred. “If I try tequila, I’m gonna be sick,” he said.
He’s in a unique position to compare soccer with American sports, specifically Pittsburgh sports, since he’s attended Premier League soccer matches as well as Steelers and Penguins games. “In America, fans from different teams sit together,” he said. “In England, that would never be allowed.” Why? Because the opposing fans would knock each other’s brains out.
In addition, he said, soccer fans engage in a lot more “fierce chanting and singing.” Penguins games come closest to the soccer experience, he said. Fans have their own chants — “Let’s Go Pens,” among others — and the noise reverberates inside PPG Paints Arena.
Elsewhere in the bar, Murrysville resident Douglas Aitay, 48, assessed the U.S. team’s performance. “We’re playing in the heat,” he said, “but playing cold” — a nod to World Cup host Qatar’s summer-like temperatures.
Meritt Donoghue of Morningside took a half day off from work to catch the match. She enjoys the community surrounding the sport. “It’s a universal experience,” said Donoghue, 28. “It’s cool to think someone in France is watching the same game as I am at the same time.”
Scott Ressler has been watching soccer since the 1990s. He appreciates how grassroots oriented the soccer community is. He has tried to watch all the soccer games he can at the pub.
“I like the atmosphere and fan base,” he said. “It feels different than other sports.”
When the second half got underway. Ali Wyrostek sat at the bar, her face and body reflecting every close call and painful fall. She covered her mouth with her hand. She gazed prayerfully at the ceiling. She laughed. She cheered.
“I’m an avid soccer fan,” she said. “I watch all of the United States and Poland World Cup games here.”
Her family hails from Poland. “Let me show you something,” she said, then unzipped her jacket and pulled down the collar to expose her left upper arm, which bore a large tattoo of a bear carrying what looks like an artillery shell. “That’s Wojtek, the rocket-carrying, beer-drinking bear,” she proudly declared.
The game grew increasingly tense, as the U.S. clung to its 1-0 lead. Jordan Long sat at the bar, covered his face with his hands and peered at the TV through his fingers. “I’m a little nervous,” he had earlier admitted. “People are underestimating Iran.”
In the back, McCann was back on the bench, holding his hands on his head. Finally, after 90 minutes of play and nine minutes of added stoppage time, the pub erupted in one collective cheer that ricocheted off the bar’s brick wall and echoed down the block. Long cast aside his nerves, jumped from his seat and thrust his arms in the air. DiRenzo reached across the bar and hugged a patron. Wyrostek raised a red, white and blue U.S.A. scarf above her head.
“It’s good to be an American,” a fan shouted above the roar.
Tanisha is a digital content producer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but she's currently on strike.
Steve is a photojournalist and writer for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he is currently on strike and working as a Union Progress co-editor. Reach him at smellon@unionprogress.com.