Kimanin masu goyon baya 15,000 na Netherlands sun taru a Rice University a safiyar Asabar, kuma tunanin matsalar injin da ta faru tsakiyar mako ta ɓace gaba ɗaya. Tutoci sun yi firi-firi, waƙoƙi sun yi amo cikin tituna, kuma a gaban jerin mutanen launi orange na Oranje Bus mai shahara ya yi gudu zuwa NRG Stadium a Houston.
Kwana biyu kawai a baya, nakasar fasaha ta dakatar da motar bas mai ɗakuna biyu na shahara na ɗan lokaci ƙarami — wani ɗan lokaci na "Houston, we have a problem" a birni wanda ya ba da sannar wannan magana. Ƙungiyar ta warware matsalar cikin lokaci, kuma bas ɗin ya jagoranci Oranje Fanwalk cikin tsakiyar Houston ba tare da wata damuwa ba. A maraice na wannan rana, Netherlands ta doke Sweden 5-1, tana ƙara wani babi mai ban al'ajabi zuwa labarin wannan bikin da ke yawo.
Bas ɗin da ya zagaya duniya
Frans Peeters ya kasance yana tukawa Oranje Bus shekara 22, yana ɗauke da al'adun masu goyon bayan Netherlands zuwa kowace kusurwa ta duniya. FIFA World Cup 2026 shine Kofin Duniya na biyarsa a matsayin direban wannan ababen hawa na musamman. Daga Germany zuwa South Africa, Brazil, da Qatar, babbar motar bas mai launi orange tana nan kullum lokacin da Netherlands ta fito kan matakalar duniya.
«A duk inda muka zo, mutane suna waka, suna rawa, suna dariya,» in ji Peeters. «Muna kawo farin ciki da murmushi ga mutane. A ƙarshe, dukkanmu dangi ɗaya ne manya.»
Labarin ya fara kafin UEFA EURO 2004, lokacin da ƙungiyar abokai suka sayi tsohuwar motar bas ta Ingilishi mai ɗakuna biyu suka sake zanta da launukan Netherlands ba da niyyar farko ba. Wannan ra'ayi na kwatsam ya bunƙasa ya zama alama ta dindindin ta al'adun masu goyon bayan Netherlands. Bas ɗin ya yanzu ya ƙetare sama da kilomita 70,000 a teku da ƙari da yawa a kan hanyoyin duniya baki ɗaya. A wucewa sama da tafiye-tafiye masu goyon baya 60, ana ƙidaya cewa ya jan hankalin masu goyon baya sama da 450,000.
Ga Peeters, bas ɗin ya wuce kawai ababen hawa. «Babu wata motar bas a duniya da ke bi wa ƙungiyar ƙasarta duk inda ta je,» in ji shi. «Yana ɗaukar lokaci, kuɗi, da wani lokaci haƙuri — amma muna ci gaba da yin hakan.»
Houston ta zama orange
Tafiyar masu goyon baya a Houston ta jawo dubban mutane, ba kawai masu goyon bayan Netherlands ba har ma da mazauna birni mai masaukin baki da suka jera gefen hanya — wasu ma sun shiga tare da ƙungiyar masu yawo. Daga cikinsu akwai Paul Hirschel da Caroline Dessing daga Rotterdam, waɗanda suka yin ado a matsayin mutum-mutumin 'Yanci masu launi orange. «Mutum-mutumin 'Yanci yana tsayawa don 'yanci, abota, da haɗin gwiwar duniya,» in ji Dessing. «Waɗannan su ne daidai ƙimomi da suke haɗa dangin ƙwallon ƙafa na Netherlands.»
A bene na sama na Oranje Bus sai ga fitattun ƴan wasa na FIFA Wesley Sneijder da Edwin van der Sar, waɗanda suka ji yanayi na musamman daga kusa. «Ba ya taɓa zama tsufa,» in ji Sneijder wa tashar NOS ta Netherlands. «Ba kawai masu goyon bayan Netherlands kake gani ba — mutanen da ke zaune a nan ma suna shiga da yin biki. A ko'ina da Oranje ke wasa, mutane suna magana game da wannan tafiya. Ya zama al'ada ta gaskiya.»
Chris Canetti, shugaban FIFA World Cup 2026 Houston Host Committee, shi ma ya yi mamaki sosai. «Isowar masu goyon bayan Oranje yana kawo ƙarfi mai ban al'ajabi ga birninmu. Houston tana alfahari da zama mai masaukin ɗaya daga cikin al'adun masu goyon baya mafi shahara a ƙwallon ƙafa na duniya.»
Marianne van Leeuwen, daraktiyar ƙwallon ƙafa na ƙwararru a KNVB, ta ƙara da cewa: «Abin da ke sa wannan ya zama na musamman shi ne alaƙar da ke tsakanin ƙungiyar da masu goyon bayanmu. Tare, mun ƙirƙiri wannan yanayin na musamman wanda muke jira da farin ciki a kowane gasar.»
Lokacin da ƙwallon ƙafa ke haɗa duniya
Ga Peeters, Oranje Bus na da ma'ana da ta wuce iyakar wasan kansa. Da aka tambaye shi game da ƙwaƙwalwar ajiyarsa mafi ƙaunata, sai ya tuna UEFA EURO 2012 a Ukraine ba tare da jinkiri ba.
«Mutanen can sun bayyana ƙwarai da yin kunya a farko,» ya tuna. «Bayan wasan farko, kuna ganin ɗan murmushi. Bayan na biyu, babba. Kuma bayan na uku, suna yawo suna waka suna rawa tare da mu zuwa filin wasa. Ya kasance kamar fure da ke buɗe a hankali.»
Wannan gogewa, ga Peeters, tana bayyana ma'anar aikin: haɗa mutane ba tare da la'akari da harshe, asali, ko al'ada ba. An sake ganin haka a Houston, inda mazaunin Noe Contreras ya kalli taron yana wucewa. «Ganin mutane daga al'adu da yawa mabambanta suna taruwa haka abu ne mai ban mamaki kawai,» in ji shi. «Wannan shi ne daidai abin da ke sa wannan gasar ta zama ta musamman.»
«Mu ne ɗan wasan goma sha biyu a bayan ƙungiyarmu,» in ji Peeters, «a lokacin albarka da a lokacin wahala.» Da Oranje Bus ya ƙarshe ya isa gaban NRG Stadium da dubban masu goyon baya a bayansa, kowane kalma na wannan ta kasance gaskiya — Netherlands ba ta kawo wasan ƙwallon ƙafa kawai ba zuwa Houston, ta zo tare da al'adar da ta kasance sama da shekara 22 wacce ke mai da garuruwa orange kuma ta tunatar da duniya cewa wannan wasa na kowa ne.
