Given that David Kuhn proposed to his wife Sandra amid the euphoria that followed Australia's qualification for the 2006 tournament, it is perhaps not too surprising the couple wanted to give their daughter an early taste of World Cup fever.
And so it was on Saturday that toddler Emmy was dressed up in a tiny green-and-gold replica shirt and joined some 10,000 fans from down under cheering on the Socceroos in their Group C opener against France.
At 15 months old, Emmy made little contribution to the wall of noise created by the passionate Australians as their team went down 2-1 to the French at Kazan Arena, but that suited mum just fine.
"She slept during half of it so that was good for me. I got to relax and watch the game," Sandra Kuhn told Reuters.
"And then the second half she was just flirting with everyone around her, she was so good with all the noise and everything."
Emmy's parents are hoping they will have a similar experience in Australia's last two group matches against Denmark and Peru before they make the 13,000-kilometre trip back to their home in Sydney's beachside suburbs.
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More fun World Cup-related stories:
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Australian supporters endure disappointing day at World Cup, rugby and cricket
Outrage after Pat Cash says real men do not play football in dig at World Cup
Lionel Messi-loving Indian football fan paints house in Argentina colours
World Cup proving elusive? Replicas are selling fast in Vietnam
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The two Socceroos fanatics will also be hoping for a couple of wins for their team as Australia look to get into the knockout stages of the World Cup for only the second time in five attempts.
The second of those five appearances at the finals came 32 years after the first and was secured in 2005 with a win over Uruguay in a penalty shoot-out at Sydney's Olympic Stadium, a result which was to have lasting consequences for the Kuhns.
"When John Aloisi got his goal to make it to the World Cup, which I never thought would happen, yeah, I proposed to Sandra," David recalled.
"It all began there, that was our falling in love with the World Cup."
Sandra remains convinced that the proposal might not have come but for Australia's win.
"I think he was on such a high, he didn't realise what he was doing at the time," she said, laughing. "And by the next day he was thinking: 'Oh God! what have I done?'"
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
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Company Profile
Company name: OneOrder
Started: October 2021
Founders: Tamer Amer and Karim Maurice
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Industry: technology, logistics
Investors: A15 and self-funded
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
AndhaDhun
Director: Sriram Raghavan
Producer: Matchbox Pictures, Viacom18
Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Tabu, Radhika Apte, Anil Dhawan
Rating: 3.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
The Dictionary of Animal Languages
Heidi Sopinka
Scribe
AUSTRALIA SQUAD
Aaron Finch, Matt Renshaw, Brendan Doggett, Michael Neser, Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Mitchell Marsh, Tim Paine (captain), Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Jon Holland, Ashton Agar, Mitchell Starc, Peter Siddle
Draw
Quarter-finals
Real Madrid (ESP) or Manchester City (ENG) v Juventus (ITA) or Lyon (FRA)
RB Leipzig (GER) v Atletico Madrid (ESP)
Barcelona (ESP) or Napoli (ITA) v Bayern Munich (GER) or Chelsea (ENG)
Atalanta (ITA) v Paris Saint-Germain (FRA)
Ties to be played August 12-15 in Lisbon
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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