Washington D.C. is perhaps the pre-eminent international soccer city in America, drawing the highest World Cup ratings in the U.S. in 2014. So even without the US Men鈥檚 National Team this summer, there are plenty of soccer celebrations going on in and around the District for nations that are competing. This is the first installment of World Cup Watch, a series featuring those celebrations.
WASHINGTON 鈥� Four years ago, for the last World Cup, Jason and Yeganeh (Yegi) Rezaian were living in Tehran, Iran, where they both worked as journalists. They hosted a gathering at their house to watch one of the games because they鈥檙e big sports fans, yes, but also because they had little other recourse. In Iran, women are neither allowed to attend games, nor to watch soccer in public.
鈥淪occer is everyone鈥檚 national, favorite sport in Iran,鈥� said Yegi. 鈥淭here are millions of fans, everybody loves watching it. But unfortunately, the only way we can watch it, especially when it鈥檚 World Cup, is to watch it at home.鈥�
That鈥檚 a freedom nearly every American takes for granted. Watching sports together 鈥� at stadiums, in bars, even in the streets 鈥� is one of our foundational pastimes, one of our strongest bonds across racial, gender, and generational gaps in our communities. It pained Jason, who grew up a rabid sports fan in Northern California, not to be able to share that joy with Yegi outside their home.
鈥淭he last couple of years since we鈥檝e been living in the U.S., I haven鈥檛 seen my wife happier than when we were at sporting events,鈥� he said. 鈥淲hether it was a Major League Baseball game or an NBA game, she loved it. But I know she would have loved it even more if we were watching Iran鈥檚 team play soccer.鈥�
A lot has happened to the world in the four years since the last World Cup, but few people have had their lives as dramatically uprooted and forever altered as the Rezaians have. Just nine days after Germany beat Argentina 1-0 in Brazil to close the last competition, the couple was arrested by the Iranian government and imprisoned.
Yegi was let out on bail after a few months. But Jason was held for 545 days before his release was finally negotiated. They moved to the states, and eventually to Washington, settling in Park View. Jason returned to work at The Washington Post earlier this year, and will release a book chronicling his experience in January. But right now, he and Yegi are just looking forward to some soccer, and the ability to host a watch party at a proper establishment where anyone can attend. They’ll do just that on at Dirty Water Sports Bar, as Iran takes on Morocco in their opening game of the World Cup.
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To get to Dirty Water (no “s” on the end, no matter what the search engines tell you), takes a leap 鈥� or, rather, a climb 鈥� of faith. The entrance to the Boston-themed sports bar is two floors up a dark stairwell, above Mythology Lounge in the 800 block of H Street Northeast. Reach the very top, up on the roof deck, and you’re rewarded with sunlight and a view of the Capitol in the distance.
So how did such an establishment, with Boston gear hanging from the walls, end up the choice for an Iran World Cup party? One of its owners Chris DeFelice, a longtime college basketball coach at University of the District of Columbia and a handful of other schools, was Jason鈥檚 college roommate his freshman year at Tulane University.
Once Iran qualified, DeFelice was Rezaian’s first call.
鈥淚t was just an automatic yes,鈥� said DeFelice. 鈥淒o whatever you want. You can have the place, you can have the run of it. You tell me what to do.鈥�
He wasn鈥檛 fazed by hosting something for a non-Boston group. In a place as multicultural as D.C., he understands the shared real estate that comes with the territory.
鈥淓ven though we are the Boston bar, we have been identified by all the Hill staffers from South Dakota as their spot,鈥� said DeFelice. 鈥淪o we鈥檙e the Boston bar, and then on the side we鈥檙e the South Dakota bar, and apparently now we鈥檙e an Iranian bar. So we鈥檙e open to everyone.鈥�
One of the decisions to help transform the venue into a more immersive cultural experience was to call on Sebastian Oveysi聽 鈥� Chef Seb, for short 鈥� to cater the event. Oveysi is also Iranian born, his family escaping persecution across the Turkish border before being granted asylum in the states when he was a teenager. He moved to Northern Virginia, where the family opened Amoo鈥檚 in McLean in 2007, and he followed with Saffron Gourmet, D.C.鈥檚 only certified organic food truck, in 2014.
Chef Seb will be operating a limited menu of a few items, including his saffron chicken wrap. It features bright, yellow-edged cubes of saffron-marinated chicken, skewered and grilled, wrapped in a garlic tortilla with lettuce, tomatoes and tzatziki, plus a chimichurri dip. It鈥檚 got that particular tang that the tongue indisputably identifies as saffron, but the accompanying veggies and spread keep it fresh and light.
He鈥檒l also feature a ground beef kabob wrap plus a veggie wrap, all popular items at both the truck and Amoo鈥檚. While Oveysi shies away at the idea of himself as an ambassador of Persian food in Washington, he is thrilled to be able to not just provide a taste of home for Iranian-Americans, but to expose others to his culture鈥檚 cuisine.
鈥淚 feel like in this area I鈥檓 able to introduce it to a lot of folks that haven鈥檛 been able to experience it before,鈥� he said.
More than anything, he hopes he can play his own small role in promoting unity through what he brings to the table.
鈥淭he one thing you will notice when you鈥檙e here for the game, you鈥檙e going to see a lot of different people from all types of backgrounds and ethnicities, and they鈥檙e all here together to celebrate the World Cup,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e need to keep our eyes on having a bunch of different people together, especially in today鈥檚 political climate.鈥�
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One could understand if the Rezaians maintained some animosity toward Iran, if they weren鈥檛 so keen on embracing their former home after what had happened to them. But the last four years haven鈥檛 dampened their passion or resolve.
鈥淚鈥檓 cheering my national team next to my people,鈥� said Yegi. 鈥淭hat team belongs to Iranians, wherever they are.鈥�
Jason also sees the separation between the people and the state apparatus.
鈥淚t feels completely natural, I think, to both of us and to the large Iranian-American community of people that feel disconnected to their homeland. They want to enjoy this too,鈥� he said.
Everyone involved is anticipating not just a big turnout, but a loud one. The only other food event Dirty Water has hosted was a recent crawfish boil for Tulane graduates. DeFelice expects a bit rowdier of a crowd this time around.
鈥淚 think this is going to be a packed house, enthusiasm like we haven鈥檛 seen,鈥� he said.
As the home for Boston sporting events, he has already hosted a Super Bowl viewing for a participating team. The Red Sox and Celtics each had playoff runs since the bar鈥檚 opening. But even the notoriously boisterous Boston crowds pale in the face of what DeFelice is planning for next Friday.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think it鈥檚 going to come close to what we鈥檙e going to experience on June 15.鈥�
There may not be any true Group of Death in this year鈥檚 World Cup draw, but Iran has as brutal a draw as any team. Based on the , they鈥檝e got the No. 3 (Spain) and No. 6 (Portugal) teams in the world their group, despite being a Top 25 squad themselves (21st). That makes the opener next Friday against Morocco as close to a must-win game as the first contest of a group stage can be.
But if Team Melli can find a way through to the knockout stage, is DeFelice up for a sequel?
鈥淎 thousand percent yes. This is an open invitation.鈥�
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Sports can often feel trivial, mere distractions from the real issues we battle each day in society. But this party isn鈥檛 a distraction. It鈥檚 a celebration, an embrace of freedom, not simply from confinement, but from the rules of society that divide and separate. And as the geopolitical sabers rattle on the other side of town, it鈥檚 a reminder that sports can give us a reason to unite, whether we鈥檙e from Iran, or Boston, or South Dakota.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 a really good opportunity to see the passion of this community of Iranians in the United States, to see that we can field an internationally competitive sports team, and to know that there are so many facets to any culture and any community well beyond politics, which are always contentious and something that folks rarely agree on,鈥� said Jason.
鈥淏ut the spirit of competition, the spirit of sports is something that I think is completely universal and everybody can get behind.鈥�
For more information and to purchase tickets to the watch party, .
