The World Cup boosts Hispanic-owned businesses in Oregon: 'Soccer was huge in our homes'

The World Cup is temporarily bringing back customers and business to numerous businesses owned by Hispanic business owners in Oregon. This comes after months marked by a sharp decline in foot traffic in recent months.

According to the Oregon Capital Chronicle, the restaurant and market La Pulga Fantástica in Gresham was once again packed during the match between Mexico and Ecuador, something that hadn’t happened since a private concert held last year. The establishment, like many other Latino-owned businesses in the state, had suffered a significant drop in customers following an increase in federal immigration operations targeting people living in the Portland metropolitan area and the Willamette Valley.

“There were months where we wouldn’t have anyone come into the restaurant. The vendors were also scared and they didn’t want to open and our employees too. It impacted us heavily, and it took a while for people to feel safe again,” said Miriam Martínez, who co-owns the market with her parents, in remarks reported by the Oregon Capital Chronicle.

During the match, fans reacted with frustration every time Mexico missed a scoring opportunity and celebrated with jumping, hugs and waving flags when the Mexican team scored its two goals against Ecuador. The 2-0 victory allowed Mexico to advance past a knockout-round match for the first time since 1986 and qualify among the top 16 teams in the tournament.

According to the Oregon Capital Chronicle, Martínez believes that the fact that the World Cup is being held this year in the United States, Mexico and Canada has helped bring the tournament closer to the Hispanic community and encourage support for local businesses.

“With the World Cup happening here in the U.S., Mexico and Canada, it just makes it feel closer to home. I feel like it allows people to want to come and support local Hispanic businesses,” he said.

Martínez added that the Mexican national team’s strong performance has restored hope in his community after months marked by uncertainty.

“Our community has changed a lot. This town used to be calm and relaxed, but we’ve never seen so much fear until now. It’s sad,” said Beto Hernandez, a Gresham resident originally from Querétaro, Mexico, who came to the market to watch the game.

The phenomenon has also spread to other businesses in the state. At Xicha Brewing, a Salem-based brewery, owner Maggie Antúnez noticed a drop in customers late last year. Despite this, the establishment organized events to watch the World Cup, including setting up a 20-foot screen to broadcast Mexico’s recent match.

“Growing up, soccer was huge in our homes, and this is how we want to celebrate it. We have a beautiful space where we are welcoming to everyone and people feel at home, people feel safe and people feel just happy to come in and share that with the neighbor on the other table," Antúnez explained.

However, the businesswoman emphasized that the recovery is still far from complete.

"We’ve had amazing support from the community with the World Cup, but on the days when games aren’t streaming, we’re not at what we used to be for numbers and guests coming in the door," she noted.

She also noted that the 50-cent increase in the minimum wage, which took effect this week, has made it difficult to retain permanent staff year-round, so she has turned to temporary workers to meet the increased demand.