England are worth every penny: fans shrug off cost to follow team to Brazil

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/jun/04/england-fans-shrug-off-cost-brazil-world-cup

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They've scrimped, saved, begged for tickets and scoured websites for affordable hotels. They've read the warnings, got the jabs and picked up a Portuguese phrase book. They have, undoubtedly, endured countless spousal negotiations. And now, finally, England's intrepid fans are packing their bags for Brazil.

A select bunch of hardcore England fans are leaving this week for Brazil, willing to face travel headaches, dengue-fever carrying mosquitoes and disgruntled residents for the pleasure of watching a team who – according to everyone who isn't Alan Shearer – stand a strong chance of getting knocked out in the group stages.

The land of Pelé, caipirinhas and the girl from Ipanema promises to provide quite a party, but news of violent protests, barely finished stadiums and warnings that Argentinian gangs are ready to target their old enemies have left even the most seasoned World Cup goers with a little trepidation. About 5,000 fans are making the expensive trip to Brazil, compared with 10,000 who flew to South Africa for the 2010 World Cup.

Doron Klemer, 36, has travelled the world skipping between sporting events for the past 15 years, attended both the South Africa and Germany World Cups and has spent the past six months learning Portuguese in Lisbon in preparation for the event. But he admits to a mild nervousness about Brazil 2014. "My Brazilian friends are worried – they think it will be a bit ad-lib and with the police threatening to go on strike, anything could happen." The news that the sister of a friend had been carjacked and her baby thrown into her arms from a car window in Salvador, his base city, was less than reassuring. "If I survive – I'm sure I'll have a great time."

Criminals may be put off by Brazil's armed riot police – the 400-stong Batalhão de Operações Policiais Especiais (BOPE) special forces unit – who will be on 24-hour standby during the competition, reportedly with grenades, knives and guns. But the law enforcers are unlikely to show sympathy to misbehaving fans. "If hooligans drink a lot of caipirinhas – our national cocktail – and do something crazy BOPE are the ones that will deal with them," says Lieutenant Colonel Joao Soares Busnello, although adding: "BOPE will also be called if someone is taken hostage or there is a terrorist act or a political or religious riot."

Yet even BOPE will be powerless against Brazil's weather, which could involve torrential rain, freak hailstorms and temperatures of about 30C (86F) in Manaus, the Amazonian setting for England's first game against Italy on 14 June.

Judith Mortimer, 69, a lifelong England and Fulham fan is part of a group of 21 fans organised through the London England Fans Forum at a cost which she says "I can't even admit to myself". She The grandmother is more scared of the mosquitoes than the firearms. "I've had all the jabs now and after the last one you do kind of think 'bring it on', but I am a little bit apprehensive," she says. "Mainly because I hate mosquitoes, but they really love me."

Despite reports of violence before the World Cup, the veteran fan – who went to all the games with her dad at Old Trafford in 1966 and cheered on England in South Africa in 2010 – isn't a bit afraid. "Well, if you were scared you wouldn't go, would you? This is a priority for me – everything else will fall into place."

With this World Cup estimated to cost, on average, up to £10,000 when tickets, flights and accommodation are factored in, many fans – like Mortimer – have opted to stay only for the group stages, although some like her vow to return in the unlikely event that England make it to the final.

But others, such as Asif Burhan, 35, have gambled on the competition's later stages. "I like to stay right until the end, so I know I am not running the risk of not seeing England," says the Royal Mail worker. To cut costs he booked flights early, will travel on overnight buses and is staying in the spare rooms of friendly Brazilians. "I don't have any children, I don't drive. Other people spend money on drinking and partying – well, this is my vice," he says. He reckons on a tight budget Brazil 2014 will cost him about £3,000 – and thinks it is worth every penny. "For me, going to a World Cup is the greatest experience you could ever have so, yes, it's worth it – you have this experience for the rest of your life."

Simon Harris, 56, a financier who has gone to every World Cup since 1998, expects to pay about £5,500 for his organised tour of the group games, but says that he wouldn't miss it.

"You ask yourself, 'Why do people do this?' It costs a fortune, you know we are going to do badly – so why go?" he asks, before answering his own question. "Really there's no reason to it – I'm England till I die, and there's no getting away from that."