When Iceland took on Portugal in their European Championship opener last Tuesday, the tiny Scandinavian nation virtually ground to a halt as thousands of fans packed into a central Reykjavik square.
When Birkir Bjarnason scored a second-half equalizer to earn Iceland a shocking 1-1 draw in its first match at a major international tournament, the nation known for its active volcanoes erupted in patriotic joy.
Watching sport has always been popular among Icelanders, the team's captain Aron Gunnarsson said Friday. "When they've got a team actually playing there, it's going absolutely mental."
Nearly 27,000 Icelanders bought a ticket to watch one of their team's Euro 2016 matches in France -- that's more than 8 percent of the country's 330,000 people.
Some of the fans who made it to France relaxed on sun-drenched sidewalk terraces in downtown Marseille on Friday, soaking up the atmosphere and a few beers ahead of their team's second Group F match, against Hungary at the Stade Velodrome on Saturday.
Iceland came close to winning its first match at a major tournament, but a late own-goal gave Hungary a 1-1 draw.
"We were so close," said Iceland forward Kolbeinn Sigthorsson, who was named man of the match. "It's quite a big loss for us, this draw."
Iceland and Hungary fans exchanged friendly greetings in scenes that were a stark contrast to the violent clashes here a week ago between England, Russian and French supporters, although Hungarian fans did cause a bit trouble, throwing road flares on the pitch as their players celebrated. The Icelanders remained calm.
"In the very old days, we used to be quite barbaric," Gudmundsson said, harking back to his country's Viking heritage. "These days we don't have an army or anything. We're just a peaceful people."
Magnus Magnusson, a 44-year-old Reykjavik plumber, was at home for the Portugal match, but he wasn't going to miss the chance to watch a match live. He was in Marseille on Friday ahead of the Hungary match and will travel to Paris, about 2,300 miles from Reykjavik, for his country's final group stage game against Austria on Wednesday.
"This is our country's first tournament," he said. "We just came to have fun, drink beer and watch the game."
Viking trash talk
Back home, Iceland fans were unashamedly excited about their team's participation in the European Championship, brimming with confidence even before last Tuesday's opener against Portugal.
Take a look at the first message from the Twitter account of English-language magazine, Reykjavik Grapevine: "And now the unfortunate Portuguese will feel the mighty thunder of Thor's Icelandic warriors."
And it only gets better during the game:
• "You can see the fear on our puny opposition's faces. They know the Norse hellfire that awaits them."
• "Even the breath of one mighty viking is enough to fell that Portuguese attacker, who fell without being touched."
• "And now we smite them into tiny pieces of dust & destroy their goal with a ball set on fire by our volcanic thunder."
• "Goalie like the cliff face at Dyrholaey the only thing that will destroy him is centuries of coastal erosion."
On Saturday, after the 1-1 draw against Hungary (a victory lost by a late own-goal), Grapevine acknowledged that "Thor's Icelandics warriors" might be a little too powerful.
• "Match Review: Crackling With Vast Power, Iceland Smite Hungary (And Themselves.) 2-0 Draw."
About time
The Detroit Lions plan to add a sideline cheer staff this season because, they say, "the Ford Family is unwavering in their commitment to improving the Detroit Lions fan experience."
As Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times put it, "Hey, don't laugh: It was either that or try to field a winning football team."
Sports quiz
What country has won the most UEFA Euro Championship titles?
Answer
Spain and Germany have won 3 each.
Sports on 06/20/2016