Canadians love their men's national team, and rejoice in their successes. But it's 'measured' in comparison to the true soccer fanatics in South America. They ride the agony and ecstasy of their home side with a fervor that borders on insanity at times.
And when their home side goes down--like Brazil did in the COPA quarter-final, it's almost a day of 'national mourning'. Watching those Venezuela fans despair, as they tried to come to grips with their penalty shoot-out loss to Canada, gives you more than pang of sympathy and is a little unsettling.
For Canadians, the comparison might be like watching your favorite NHL hockey team do down in the 7th game of a Stanley Cup playoff. But I'm not sure that's even an apt comparison.
One thing is for certain--being a coach or even a professional soccer player in South America, isn't for the faint of heart.