My Newfound Love of Football

A football/soccer ball (Wix image).

I was in Great Britain this past spring, and while there several major events took place.  One that I wrote about several months ago was Eurovision, the music contest.  The second event, which just finished, was the World Cup.

There appears to be very mixed feelings about Eurovision, and whether it’s even worth watching or having anymore.  But football is a very different thing than Eurovision.  Football, my friends, is here to stay.

My Early Knowledge of the Game

Both of my daughters played what we here in the US call soccer when they were in elementary school and Sofie, continued to play in high school.  Brian was Sofie’s first coach, and we both would attend games to cheer on our girls.  But that was all it meant to me back then, a chance to support my children in their chosen sport.

I’d heard of several famous players because their jerseys were on display at the local soccer equipment store.  Messi, Beckham, Pelé, Ronaldo, seemed to be the players of the past and present.  I say ‘seemed' because I never really paid much attention to them other than, seeing the jerseys as I handed over my credit card to buy a new set of cleats.

The UK Experience

Then I moved to the UK for three months during the spring of 2026.  I had no idea when the World Cup would start, but did know that the US, Canada and Mexico were hosting the event sometime during that year.

Making friends and listening to pub chats around me, driving through England and Scotland, I saw the red and white and blue and white flags of the two countries flying or tacked on to every possible surface. This made me realize that soccer, widely known as football, is a huge pastime not to be overlooked.

Having family ties to Scotland, I swore my first allegiance to the Scots and watched almost every match they played until they lost.  I also kept a close eye on England because so many of my friends are English and it felt like the right thing to do.  Once Scotland was out, England became my second allegiance, and my next big hope to win.

Something about watching football on TV turned me into a fan.  Unlike American football, where big guys run a little but spend a lot of time pummeling each other through tackles, European football is filled with speed, grace, quick footwork, and a lot of skill.  I loved watching whichever teams were on the television and couldn’t help becoming invested in the outcomes.

In fact, I stopped watching British game shows and mysteries at night so that we could watch football matches instead.  While some matches were slower than others, I learned that having a scoreless game can be just as thrilling as one filled with goals.

World Cup Finals

Today, I made a roast chicken and veg, just like we got in the pubs, and settled in to watch Spain take on Argentina for the World Cup Final.  As I drank my Guinness 0%, which is just as tasty as a full test Guinness, my heart pounded quickly beginning with the first kick on the pitch.

Argentina and Spain were clearly the two best teams in the world.  While Argentina seemed to lack the hunger that Spain had for the win, their goalkeeper, Martinez, was a machine.  Eleven times he prevented goals, bouncing up and looking ready for more after each save.

In the end, Spain won the match 1-0 in additional time.  And honestly Spain deserved to win this year.  I am sorry that the rules allow only the winning team to receive special recognition, because Martinez actually saved balls while Spain’s goalkeeper Simón rarely had to do much during the entire 100+ minutes of play.

The Spanish flag (Wix image).

My newfound love of football is here to stay.  I’ll have to wait several years for the next World Cup, but we do have a local soccer team, and I think we might have to return to the UK to see a football match in person.  It’d be an awesome adventure to feel the excitement of a stadium with fans cheering on their local team.