Hiya! How’re we doing?! How’re we feeling today? I can’t hear your response, as this is not interactive, BUT I hope that your answer was nothing short of great! Now, who’s ready to read a blog? Again, rhetorical, this is not a participatory medium. Anyway, today we’re going to talk about the World Cup! Yay, sports! Don’t worry, don’t worry, we’re not here to talk about the actual matches being played, the brackets, the rosters, the predicted outcomes of the tournament, no, no, no. We are here to talk about what has happened around two thirds of the host nations this last two weeks…Canada, you know that you did…
If you haven’t been on the same sides of Instagram, TikTok, Threads, Twitter, Facebook, whatever else that I have been on than you may have missed what’s going on around the North American continent, sans Canada, with all of our global visitors congregated here for the World Cup. No worries, we’ll get you all filled in & up to speed before we talk about why I’ve brought us all here today.
This World Cup has been nothing short of heartwarming. At least most of it has been when you focus solely on the people & not the wannabe tyrannical government involved & the host organization capitulating to it. If you haven’t been privy to the videos & the stories I highly recommend that you look up videos of South Koreans in Guadalajara, the Scots in Boston, the Japanese in Dallas, Curaçao vs Germany, the celebrations of Haiti & Brazil, Algeria in Lawrence, Freddy the German & his trip around The US, & basically any other team/fandom interactions happening around The US & Mexico. In all honesty, the amount of videos that I have seen that have made me tear up or outright cry has been surprising to even me.
But why is that? Why am I getting so emotional over these cultures & peoples from around the world slamming into one another on my phone screen? Because this is what I love about humanity. This is what I love about travel & the fusion of culture, it brings out the best in us. It brings out joy & appreciation & allows people to surrender to something they’ve never seen or experienced with an open mind & an open heart. It’s nothing short of beautiful to witness.
Now there has been a lot of discourse on the internet around this. Around the ‘hopecore’ posts that are flooding our timelines & how much it is reinvigorating the American spirit.
It’s been a rough year & a half here in America. We’ve all felt this pervasive dark cloud over the top of us that seems to get heavier & heavier with every passing day & every passing terribly harmful policy or regression that’s come down the pipeline, we as Americans desperately needed this.
I’m sure most of us would agree that we had no idea just how bad we actually needed the World Cup & the energy of those who came here to follow their country’s respective teams. They have no idea how much their infectious energy, their messages of appreciation, their love for us as a people means to so many of us in what has been an incredibly dark, modern chapter in American history. The kindness, the joy, the acceptance that my fellow countryfolk have shown the people of the world is doing something I never thought I’d see or feel, much less from the FIFA World Cup. It’s making me feel pride in this America.
Not the America of Donald Trump & the ideals of MAGA, but pride in the America that is embracing & celebrating diversity, that is going out of its way to be inclusive & welcoming to those who are different to us. That is the America I can get behind. That is an America that I can love & stand proudly with because that is where our true strengths are found & I think a lot of people are waking up to that. At least I hope they are.
The FOMO has been real & non-stop & I know there has been a large influx of people booking plane tickets to host cities just to be a part of this cultural exchange. People who have little to no interest in soccer itself, but want to be in the cities where these nations have claimed space just so they can feel that joy of what it is that binds us in our humanity being expressed so publicly & joyfully. I honestly looked at ticket prices & hotels myself because I know how rare & absolutely authentic to that which makes us great as a species all of this is. I crave a world that looks like this, where differences are embraced & celebrated, not vilified or made the target of scapegoating. I crave a world where the joy of what makes us different & proud is allowed to flow from us freely so that we can see one another plainly & learn from one another instead of hiding self consciously behind the them.
I hope deep down in my soul that this is not a temporary thing. I hope that more & more Americans see these beautiful moments & begin to see that this is where our strength lies, not with the raising of walls & arms against those who differ from us. I hope the world also takes back the same lesson, that they see this country & these people not so much as the villains any longer, but as honest, welcoming folk.
I hope you’re enjoying The World Cup, if you haven’t had the chance to watch games or anything happening around The US & Mexico around the games themselves I would highly recommend that you take the time to go out & do so. If you are in a city hosting another country, please go to where they’re congregating & engage with them in an openminded, respectful, & heartfelt manner. This is how we heal the world. This is how we make things better for all of us. Not by being afraid of the things that separate us, but by reaching out, engaging, & trying to understand those whose lives look different from your own.
As always, much love to you all,
-C