There was no raining on their parade as hundreds of Dutch football fans marched through Dunedin to support their team against Portugal at Forsyth Barr Stadium last night.
While it was miserable and wet, Dunedin’s Dutch community did not seem to care as a stream of orange made its way from the city centre to the stadium.
Loud drums, singing and cheering created a festive atmosphere as the Dutch fans celebrated the opportunity for their team play a Fifa Women’s World Cup match.
Netherlands supporter Jeroen Hoexum said he had been living in Dunedin for a year and a-half and thought it was great so many people were showing up.
"It is very cool to see so many orange people around.
"I read in a Dutch paper that only 600 people would come but it looks like there are much more than that so I look forward to the game."
Dutch Dunedin resident Joost Schouten was looking forward to sharing some of his Dutch heritage with his son Orlando Schouten, 5, who was born in Amsterdam but moved to Dunedin when he was 1 year old.
He said he really appreciated Dunedin’s covered stadium because of the rain.
One super fan, Peter Houwer, arrived in the city on Saturday after a 37-hour flight from the Netherlands to support the Dutch team.
He said the weather was not a problem because it was the same back home.
The Netherlands won the match 1-0.
