Greetings and Salutations,
Like the rush of scoring a go-ahead goal in extra time to make it out of the group stage in a World Cup, Welcome to Thursdays comes at you again this week as we travel to the footy favorite Highbury Pub! This Milwaukee bar is all about all things soccer, er…I mean football. Tie that with amazing drinks and an equally great staff and you got yourself one heck of a good time ahead of you. I personally love this place because whenever the Stars and Stripes play, I know I will be surrounded by equally fanatic USA fans at the Highbury. Writing this article, unfortunately, is also a constant reminder of the ultimate disappointment: you see, the United States failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup this past year, something that should never happen. Nonetheless I still support my team through good times and bad, and look forward to many more games at the Highbury Pub. Looking away from the upcoming, let’s talk about one past World Cup that shocked the world, a match that many do not know of.
1950 World Cup Official Poster (Photo Credit: New Hampshire Public Radio)
Let me paint the picture for you. The year: 1950. The stage: Independencia Stadium in Brazil. Down one loss already, many threw out the match for the United States national team, as they were up against a strong, powerful England team. Known as the “Kings of Football” at the time, England had 3-1 odds to win the entire tournament that year. Compared to USA’s 500-1 odds this was a clear mismatch on paper. Heck, one newspaper, the English Daily Express, even wrote:
“It would be fair to give the U.S. three goals of a start.”
Team USA and their secret weapon. (Photo Credit: Who Ate All the Pies)
However, England and the rest of the world didn’t realize the resilience of the Stars and Stripes…and the 12 pack of Old Milwaukee that was snuck into the Americans’ locker room before the game. That’s right, the Americans went out and shocked the world beating the English national team 1-0. Unfortunately, USA would not make it out of the group stage, but for a moment they were victorious. For a moment these semi-professional players who had other jobs to support their families looked down upon fallen kings. Legend has it that the news of this upset was so shocking that many publications thought the scoreline was a typo, and that England won the match, so they accidentally reported an English victory 10-1. This just shows you, with determination and Old Milwaukee you can accomplish anything. Chase your dreams, my friends!
Cheers!
Your Co-founder and Friend,
Jeremy Blandin
*Keeping your glass filled and spirits high one Thursday at a time, this is Welcome to Thursdays: a local social group determined to make your Thursdays more fun. Each Wednesday, The Squeaky Curd features a (generally) fictitious story of a Milwaukee County bar that we gather at on Thursday evening. Join us this Thursday, February 15, 2018 at The Highbury Pub, 2322 S Kinnickinnic Ave, (Bay View), at 7:30pm.*