On the evening of 7/7, hundreds of fans gathered at a cafe by West Lake in Tay Ho ward to watch the match between Argentina and Egypt in the 2026 World Cup Round of 16.

The atmosphere at the cafe was lively even before kick-off, with fans gathering to support both teams, primarily Argentina.

The area near the large projection screen was packed with fans, focusing on the performance of stars like Lionel Messi and Mohamed Salah. Argentina entered the Round of 16 with an impressive unbeaten run, never having trailed. However, the South American team surprisingly fell 1-0 behind Egypt in the first half, before conceding another goal early in the second half. This unexpected turn of events silenced Argentinian fans.

Argentinian fans looked dejected after Messi missed a penalty in the 20th minute.

When Egypt extended their lead to 2-0 early in the second half, scattered cheers quickly gave way to silence.

The atmosphere in the fan zone grew tense as most Argentinian supporters quietly followed every development on the big screen, hoping Messi and his teammates could stage a comeback.

In the 79th minute, Messi delivered a precise cross for Cristian Romero to rise and head the ball past goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir, narrowing the score to 1-2 for Argentina.

The goal immediately ignited the fan zone. Argentinian supporters erupted in cheers after a long period of suspense and tension.

When Messi scored Argentina's equalizer, Hoang Thi Thuy Ha, from Dong Da ward, was overcome with emotion. A loyal Messi fan, she stated that she had cried when her idol missed a penalty earlier, but the equalizer brought immense relief.

"I cried when Messi missed the penalty. When he scored the equalizer, the emotions truly exploded. I believe Messi and his teammates will continue to advance in this year's tournament", Ha said.

At another football viewing spot on Hang Buom street, a cafe was packed with customers even before kick-off. Local fans and many international tourists immersed themselves in the vibrant atmosphere of the 2026 World Cup.

As both teams continuously created exciting plays, the entire cafe erupted multiple times in cheers and applause.

The atmosphere here became particularly vibrant as both teams delivered an exciting performance. Viewing spots quickly filled up, with many spectators standing in front of the cafe, even close to the edge of the road, to avoid missing any part of the match.

Nguyen Van Dong's cafe on Trung Kinh street, Yen Hoa ward, welcomes around 40 to 100 customers each football season, primarily students and young people. "This World Cup season, I added more tables and chairs on the sidewalk and replaced all the wooden chairs inside the cafe with folding chairs to increase capacity," Dong said.

Customers filled the cafe and spilled out onto the sidewalk to watch the matches. The owner stated that there is a surcharge of 30,000 dong per customer for matches held late at night, while drink prices remain unchanged.

A man watches Enzo Fernandez's goal on a television screen in the security booth of a building on Hong Ha street, Ba Dinh ward.

Sitting in front of his house on An Trach street, O Cho Dua ward, Nguyen Xuan Hien (in a black shirt) and three friends prepared beer and snacks to watch football. He mentioned that the group only chooses to watch matches at convenient times. "We skip matches that are too late," Hien said.

The Bang - Hoang Giang