Prior to this year’s FIFA World Cup, being held here in North America, I think I’d spent about five minutes trying to watch what we Americans call soccer. Each time that I gave it a try, I came away thinking, “Gawd, how boring! How could anyone watch this crap?”
Now that I’ve been properly exposed, I actually find the matches rather compelling, especially when the USA team plays, as it did last night. What’s even more exciting than the game, however, are the crowds that gather. Literally, the fans both inside and outside the arena — and even in distant outdoor viewing locations — look to have achieved some sort of world unity.
You even hear fans chanting, “USA, USA, USA,” who probably hate Donald Trump’s guts (as if they’ve ever bothered to actually examine his policies).
This is not to say that, once FIFA madness is over and done with, I’ll look forward to further matches. Probably not. I’ll just stick to MLB, NFL, and WNBA.
But for a moment in time, the FIFA World Cup is the most dramatic, exhilarating spoting event I’ve ever watched.
