Soccer fans sad over Spain loss skip English exam

A number of students in Wuhan, Hubei province were so crushed by Spain's 1-5 loss to the Netherlands during the FIFA World Cup on Friday they couldn't sit the national college English exam the following day, local media reported.

Spain fans complained they were so depressed after the match they were unable to focus on the test.

Incidentally, students who supported the Netherlands, the team statistically favored to win the group, said that they had preformed much better on the exam than expected.

Despite their country's absence from competition, Chinese soccer fans' enthusiasm for the Cup remains as strong as ever.

Some 40 percent of Wuhan students surveyed said they had watched the game, which was broadcast live around 3am Saturday (Beijing Time), Wuhan Evening News reported.

Although a passing grade on the test is required to graduate from university, more students opted not to take the exam compared to last year, a teacher from a Wuhan-based university said.