Only months after hosting a citywide snowball fight, Dupont Circle will switch gears to host a World Cup viewing party for soccer fans.
“Dupont Festival: Soccer in the Circle,” recently earned enough support from donors and the necessary permits to broadcast three matches on Saturday June 12.
The Dupont Festival, a local community event organizer, collected the $20,000 needed to set up two big screens in the circle through donations from businesses, individuals and pubcrawls, event organizer Aaron DeNu said. A $10,000 contribution came in from the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association, which is hosting smaller World Cup viewing parties.
Besides money, organizing the event also required licenses from World Cup host FIFA and from sports broadcasting giant ESPN to show their English-language coverage of the Cup. Both FIFA and ESPN have given the festival their approval.
Three matches will be broadcast in the circle: South Korea v. Greece, with a 7:30 a.m. kickoff; Argentina v. Nigeria, with a 10 a.m. kickoff; and the main event, USA v. England, with a 2:30 p.m. kickoff.
According to the festival’s Facebook page, the event will feature an appearance by U.S. soccer legend Eddie Pope and a public performance of the Diski Dance by 97 Fusion. Sponsors’ booths and tables will be scattered throughout the park, and organizers will give away plenty of swag courtesy of the South African Embassy.
Traffic – of the human and vehicle variety – in the West End Saturday afternoon and evening is expected to be messy because of the potential overlap between the soccer viewing party and the Capital Pride Parade, which kicks off at 6:30 p.m.
The parade celebrating the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community in D.C. begins near 23rd and P streets, travels around the north side of the circle, and then moves toward New Hampshire Avenue and Thomas Circle.
DeNu has been in contact with Dyana Mason, Capital Pride’s executive director, and, while neither is worried about clashing, both support the idea of intermingling.
“We welcome them to hang out. I think it will be a great day to be in the circle,” Mason told the Washington Post.
The two groups have also discussed exit strategies with the National Park Service Police, which have been hired to monitor activities at the festival.
Organizers of both events are advising attendees to take public transportation, bike, or walk to avoid the congestion.
If the group can collect enough donations, the Dupont Festival plans to screen the World Cup Final in the circle on Sunday July 11.
