Road-tripping Jordan fans hail World Cup debut

SANTA CLARA, California, June 16 : At the end of a 500-mile road trip from San Diego to San Jose, hundreds of Jordan fans marked the "small but mighty" nation's World Cup debut against Austria on Tuesday with singing, chanting and tributes to King Abdullah II outside the San Francisco Bay Area Stadium.

A convoy of cars festooned with the nation's red flags stopped in Los Angeles for a break then picked up steam for the final leg in San Francisco where members of the Bay Area's Jordanian community gathered to greet them.

Draped in a traditional red-and-white 'shemagh', Jordan's national scarf, IT student Rashed Kanawi said he was in tears when the team qualified a year ago for the North America finals.

"I'll be honest with you, my heart was broken when we lost to Uruguay in the 2014 qualification playoff," he told Reuters of the 5-0 aggregate loss to the Uruguayans in late 2013.

"It's so special. Everyone here is representing their nation in the best way they can. As you can see everyone's wearing the shemagh. This one I'm currently wearing is Bedouin.

"I'm just so happy to be here."

The U.S.'s Jordanian community numbered only about 120,000 in the 2020 census but they were well-represented outside the home stadium of the NFL's San Francisco 49ers.

"DREAM COME TRUE"

Hussien Eid and his 13-year-old son Moody travelled from Chicago to attend the game.

"It's a dream come true, and we are very proud of it. We waited for so long for this moment," 45-year-old Eid told Reuters.

"And it's officially happened now, and we are supporting our team from A to Z no matter what.

"Jordan made it. And finally it makes 11 million Jordanians happy. And they deserve to come from all over the world for them."

Coached by Moroccan Jamal Sellami, Jordan have become a power in Arabian football in recent years, reaching the finals of the 2023 Asian Cup and 2025 Arab Cup.

But in a tough group which also includes champions Argentina and Algeria, Jordan will need a small miracle to reach the knockout phase.

Win or lose, fans said they would support them just as passionately.

Mona Naffa, who works in the tourism industry back in Jordan, was just thrilled to be there to witness history.

"Jordan is small but mighty so this is very powerful for our country,” she said.