I never played soccer.
Up until recently, I’ve also not had much interest in following professional club soccer year round save for keeping up with Ted Lasso and AFC Richmond, which kind of counts, but not really since it’s a fictional club playing in the very non-fictional English Premiere League. You might also say the same thing about Welcome to Wrexham, another TV series I’ve thoroughly enjoyed, although that’s about a real club in Wales.
Hmmm, I’ve also started to dive into Amazon Prime’s All or Nothing series too.
Hold on! Wait a sec there Soccer… er Fútbol!
If you’re wondering why we’re dedicating more than a few words to something I don’t follow year-round, I have for much of my life followed International Soccer. In particular, I love World Cup, like for real:
I LOVE THE WORLD CUP!!!
It takes me back to my rainy childhood in Hilo and the many times of being unable to go and run around outside.
Or we got tired of playing basketball in the rain.
You think a dead spot on the court is bad, try dribbling on gravel with giant puddles. It’s no wonder I ended up preferring to pass the rock and chase down rebounds.
During one such prolonged deluge, where it felt like it rained for 40+ plus days straight, which it did at least one heavy rain a day, the coolest thing to watch was the Brazilian National Team led by the legendary Romario. To watch the Brazilians and their unique poetic style of play was my first introduction to the excitement of the beautiful game.
And just like that, I was hooked.
Ever since then, I’ve cheered on the Seleção and in the days past Romario, it’s been Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, and for some time, Neymar Jr. (and special shout out to Vinícius Júnior), who have captivated my imagination along with hundreds of millions, quite possibly billions of other fans. Though it’s been a minute since my adopted country’s national team has won the World Cup, the International game has never ceased to intrigue me and create some pretty iconic memories along the way.
Soul, what is it about a game, which I didn’t play, that I find so fascinating?
First, let’s take it back to 1998…
The Magic
IMO, the above ad by Nike is a GOAT candidate.
The build-up as the team makes its way through the airport to the final shot and the emotion of the crowd as NO SPOILERS YOU SHOULD WATCH IT! Such mastery at play, along with the pure joy on display was as epic then, as it is to rewatch now.
Throughout the most recent World Cup, I woke up at 4:30am, 5:00am, 6:00am, etc. to catch matches. During work, I left the TV on in the other room and ran in between meetings to catch a few minutes of live updates. I was in it all the way through that glorious final match that culminated in the story of Leo Messi and his Argentinian squad taking home a dub that eluded him throughout his storied career as arguably one of, if not the, best to ever lace up the boots.
To add further twists to this, Messi battled against the sports’ next monster in waiting and possibly a future best ever contender, Kylian Mbappé, who just so happened to be Messi’s teammate at the time (with Paris Saint-Germain), and who also took home the tournament’s Golden Boot for most goals, including a hat-trick in the Finals. It was amazing to witness such an iconic match, Messi’s magic coming through when it meant the most and the sheer determination of Mbappé, almost single-handedly willing victory for his country’s squad.
It was nothing short of magical and what’s not to love about magic? Especially when there’s…
Meaning
As my consciousness has continued to consume more of the sport, my aforementioned love of Brazil on the Men’s side, and the US Women’s National Team, my other international favs, it’s just been amazing to observe how the action on the field, the stories of the people in action, and how that helps facilitate the sociopolitical conversation off the field simultaneously.
The USWNT is arguably the greatest international team of the past two, maybe even three generations. While the USMNT have had flashes of brilliance in the same timeframe, more often than not we were left looking for signs of life and hope. And despite their on-field success, the Women’s Team lagged far behind in pay.
Throughout history, the pay equality of men’s and women’s has been lacking. In recent years, we’ve seen women’s sports take off and set records in both attendance and viewership. While the UWNT fell short of continuing their reign as World Cup Champions in a disappointing run this past cycle, their storied team, full of vocal personalities who advocated for women, people of color, and future generations have etched their place in history.
Soul with that…
Mahalo
To the beautiful game. For bringing people together. For reminding us to be joyful and present, to celebrate the highs, embrace the lows, and most of all enjoy.