外媒：中國隊缺席世界盃 但球迷熱情不減

Thirty-two of the world's best football teams are now competing for the iconic golden World Cup trophy -- but the planet's most populous nation is not among them.
三十二支來自各個國家的最優秀的足球隊都在爲爭奪金燦燦的世界盃獎盃而相互角逐——然而世界上人口最大的國家卻不在他們之列。

Team China failed to qualify for the "beautiful game's" showpiece event in Brazil. In fact China's World Cup dream turned into a nightmare as early as 2011, when it was eliminated in a regional qualifying round.
中國隊還不夠資格去參與在巴西舉行的這場精彩賽事。事實上，中國的世界盃之夢早在2011年就成了一場噩夢，當時其在亞洲區預選賽中失去了進軍巴西的資格。

Still, these setbacks have not deflated the football fever here.
然而，中國隊在球場上的失意並沒有挫傷中國球迷的熱情。

"There is a huge following for international football in China because local fans celebrate global talent," said Kronick, a long-time Beijing resident who plays football in a local amateur league. "The World Cup is about 'nationalism' at its finest, absent politics, and that's what makes it enjoyable."
“中國有一大批球迷關注世界足壇，因爲他們喜歡那些世界足球明星。”一位名叫克羅尼克的北京市民說，他長期居住在北京，還參加了當地的業餘足球隊。“世界盃是關於‘愛國主義’的，這種‘愛國主義’完全不具備政治內涵，因而也就具有最好的政治內涵。這就是爲什麼人們喜愛世界盃。”

Chinese football fans have been enjoying the action in Brazil despite matches taking place after midnight, Beijing time.
儘管巴西的賽事總是在北京時間的午夜舉行，中國的球迷們還是在享受這些賽事。

By hook or by crook, local fans are finding ways to stay up late for the games. Some took paid leave, others found excuses to stay home, such as getting doctors to sign sick-leave certificates. A man asked to take the day off ostensibly to attend a teacher-parent conference.
中國的球迷們爲了熬夜看球想盡了各種方法。有的申請帶薪休假，有的找藉口請假——比如請醫生籤病假條。某人聲稱請一天假是爲了去開家長會。

Since the month-long competition opened in Brazil, legions of Chinese sports fans have been gathering for viewing parties in their living rooms, in factory and school dormitories, and in restaurants and bars, many of which have opened late for the fans to watch matches live on Chinese television.
自爲期一個月的巴西世界盃開賽以來，大批的中國球迷集結成團、共同觀賽。他們聚集在客廳裏，在工廠和學校宿舍裏，在餐館和酒吧裏——許多餐館和酒吧營業直至深夜，還提供電視讓球迷們觀看直播賽事。

Of course, not all of these sleep-deprived folks are bona fide football fans. A posting on Baidu, China's largest search engine, noted that the Chinese have recently coined the word "wei qiumi," or "fake soccer fans," referring to people who watch the game only once in a while, who care more about the final scores rather than enjoying the actual games, and who think celebrity players play a more important role in matches than the coaches.
當然，並非所有熬夜不睡的人都是真正的球迷。中國最大的搜索引擎網站百度中，百度貼吧上有這樣一則帖子，說中國人近來杜撰出了“僞球迷”一詞，即指那些僅僅是撇兩眼賽事，比起賽程本身更關心最終比分，更關注明星球員而不是教練的人。