It was quite the weekend for Friendly the Polar Bear, the mascot for Detroit City Football Club.
First, Friendly appeared at a watch party at Campus Martius in downtown Detroit on Friday, June 12, for Team USA’s first world cup game — a victory over Paraguay.
Later that night, Friendly’s costume was stolen from a DCFC staffer’s car. The costume went missing in Detroit’s New Center, near East Grand Boulevard and St. Antoine Street, according to a post by the team on Saturday, June 13. The staff member is safe, though “dealing with the stress and disappointment of the break-in,” according to the post.
Friendly was found by a good Samaritan on Saturday, near where he was last seen, and a staff member picked him up from the person’s house on Monday, June 15, co-owner Alex Assaf told the Free Press Tuesday afternoon, June 16.
“It was a good ending to a whirlwind of a story,” Assaf said. “I’m not sure how many lives polar bears have, but he may have used up most of them at this point.”
Friendly is “not much worse for wear” following his night out, though he was a little bit dusty, Assaf said.
Friendly, the team’s mascot for over a decade, will appear in public again at World Cup watch parties for Team USA and Team Mexico around the city later this week. He also plans to be at a doubleheader at Keyworth Stadium in Hamtramck on Saturday, June 20.
“As usual, when you need help, the community rises to the occasion anyway. I think Friendly is the best of us (and) brings out the best of us,” Assaf said. “I think it’s just great that so many people care so much about a little polar bear that loves soccer.”
Contact Natalie Davies at ndavies@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: DCFC mascot Friendly to appear in public soon after costume was stolen
Reporting by Natalie Davies, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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By Natalie Davies, Detroit Free Press | USA TODAY Network
