World Cup: Long Island's Ecuadorian soccer fans dedicated to their team and hard work

Everywhere you looked at MetLife Stadium on Thursday, the color yellow popped.

The majority of fans in attendance for this World Cup match were pulling for Ecuador to defeat Germany in a de facto win-or-go-home 90 minutes. (Ecuador won, 2-1, to secure its advancement to the knockout stage for the first time since 2006, and the MetLife crowd erupted after Gonzalo Plata’s winner in the 78th minute.)

A flat-out sensational Ecuadorian crowd. A must-have 78th-minute goal by Gonzalo Plata keeps Ecuador alive. The reaction at MetLife: pic.twitter.com/4wNpLEtcLZ

— Ben Dickson (@bendickson__) June 25, 2026

FINAL: Ecuador 2, Germany 1 pic.twitter.com/V3VHTb1KaR

— Ben Dickson (@bendickson__) June 25, 2026

It’s no surprise that plenty of Long Islanders were part of that boisterous crowd, too.

According to Newsday reporting from earlier this month, the Ecuadorian population on Long Island is up a staggering 535% since 2000; Ecuadorians also are the fastest-growing nationality in the New York metropolitan region.

Among the local Ecuadorians: Many soccer fans.

“It’s exciting. I’m hyped,” said Hauppauge’s Omar Bueno, 26, who was born and raised in Ecuador, before Thursday’s match. “It’s really nice. It’s a different type of feeling that you feel when it’s all about soccer. The whole world, all the countries. It’s a whole different experience that we have.”

Though outnumbered in what felt like an Ecuador home game, especially late, the Germany fans made their presence felt as well. Thousands were sitting behind the goal that Germany shot toward in the second half and waved German flags. Many fans also were expected to watch the game at Plattduetsche Park in Franklin Square, which has authentic German cuisine and a beer garden and has been a popular spot to watch World Cup games.

Several of the Ecuador fans in attendance were part of Ecuadorians of Long Island, a community organization founded by Suffolk County’s Jennifer Toledo and Anthony Iniguez that is dedicated to celebrating Ecuadorian culture, fostering connections and supporting Ecuadorians across the Island. The group aims to strengthen the Ecuadorian community through cultural events, educational initiatives and community outreach.

Bueno attended the game with three family members and fellow Ecuadorians-turned-Long Islanders: his cousins Ronal Ulloa and Joel Ulloa, who are brothers, and their father, Jesus Ulloa.

“I’ve been to soccer games in Ecuador before, but it’s not — you can’t compare that with this,” Bueno said. “It’s a whole different thing.”

Ronal Ulloa, 41, of Patchogue, was born in Ecuador and moved to the U.S. in 1994. He has been a firsthand witness to the boom in the Ecuadorian population on the Island.

“Over the years, you go to Patchogue, everybody’s Ecuadorian there now,” said Ronal Ulloa, who also is the founder of the Elites United SZ youth soccer club. “But a lot of Ecuadorians have moved here. We come here to progress in life, work hard and try to accomplish something out here, become something good in life.”

To be able to watch his native country in the World Cup has been a full-circle moment.

“Everybody wants this,” he said. “This is a dream come true. We want Ecuador to make it to the next round. I know we have it hard. We didn’t play good the first two games [a scoreless draw vs. Curacao last Saturday and a 1-0 loss to Ivory Coast on June 14], but hopefully this game is ours.”

It was.

Jenny A. Escobar, 45, of East Meadow, also was born in Ecuador and moved to Queens when she was 8. She bought tickets to Thursday’s match — her first World Cup game — about five months ago and took her mother, Susana, to the game.

“We bring a little extra something,” she said of the Ecuadorian population on the Island. “We’re very caring. We’re also very upfront about things, and we’re very enthusiastic. And most of all, we’re very hard-working.”

Escobar is a financial adviser who runs her own business. But since the World Cup started, the Ecuadorian soccer team has become priority No. 1.

“I had my office manager put all my matches into my phone so that I don’t meet with clients during the matches,” she said.

Oscar Orellana, 33, of Patchogue, is another native Ecuadorian who moved to Long Island, doing so when he was 13. Orellana, a Patchogue-Medford High School graduate, estimated that the amount of Ecuadorians moving to New York has “been tripling” over the last five to six years and said it’s a lot different than it was years ago.

He attended Ecuador’s game in Philadelphia on June 14. He called that atmosphere a “chill environment” with “people respecting people.”

For locals who aren’t too familiar with Ecuador soccer fans, what should they know?

“Ecuador soccer fans are pretty chill,” Orellana said. “They’re pretty nice people. I’m sure you’ll see a lot of people dancing, jumping. Very respectful people. So yeah, that’s pretty much it.”