Reminder: AI content is in royal blue. The rest is original slop.

I’ve written about futbol (soccer) twice in the past couple of decades, first in 2006, “Top Ten reasons Futbol (Soccer) rocks (and a few why it sucks),” followed by “The World’s Field is Flat” in 2010. Now retired, and the 2026 World Cup being contested in North America, I’m immersed in it. Mind you, I’m enjoying the games on television, and not in-person, even though several matches have been at “Boston Stadium.” (Note: Fédération Internationale de Football Association, or FIFA, one of the most corrupt organizations on the planet, forbids corporate branding like “Gillette Stadium” from being shown or mentioned during games. That’s not what makes them corrupt, though. Google Gemini was succinct with, “The FIFA corruption scandal, notably exposed by a massive 2015 U.S. Department of Justice investigation, unveiled a decades-long scheme of racketeering, wire fraud, and money laundering. Officials accepted over $150 million in bribes and kickbacks in exchange for lucrative media, marketing, and tournament hosting rights.”) Oh, and then there’s the “FIFA Peace Prize” awarded to the current squatter in the White House. I asked Gemini, “Why did FIFA really award a peace prize to trump?” It responded with, “…an opportunistic spectacle. Trump had heavily and openly campaigned for the Nobel Peace Prize but failed to win it, leading to the creation of this new FIFA honor as an apparent attempt to win his political favor ahead of the massive 2026 World Cup.” Now there’s talk of him presenting the cup to the winning nation. It would be fitting if it were Iran.

I didn’t mean for this to be a political post, but here we are. Anyway, one thing I love about these games is the patriotism and national pride shown by the visiting players and fans. From Brazil to Scotland and every other country, when their national anthem is played, every one of them fervently sing along. It’s beautiful. Speaking of Brazil and Scotland, the different talent levels between teams was on display last night in Miami. I give the Tartan Army props for their team support, but Scotland was completely outclassed by the Seleção Brasileira de Futebol. Just seven minutes in, Scottish defender Scott McKenna coughed up the ball right in front of the Scotland goal, and Brazil’s Vinícius Júnior deposited the errant ball in it. With over 83 minutes to go, the game was essentially over. It was clear the Scots lacked the talent of their opponents, and a funny meme quickly circulated indicating this was nothing new.

The US team has started strong and even won their second match without their best player, but prediction markets have them at 33-1 to win it all, behind 9 other nations, led by France, Spain, and defending champs, Argentina. Brazil is only the 6th favored team, but I think they could be a surprise winner. Brazil is the all-time leader with five World Cup titles, but none since 2002.

I do have a couple of questions about the tournament. First, How do international fans afford to attend world cup matches in support of their teams? I mentioned that my participation is limited to TV as ticket prices are ridiculous (see FIFA, above). Here’s a sampling for France v. Norway Friday at “Boston Stadium.” As for the foreign nationals, Gemini tells me, “International football fans afford to attend World Cup matches through meticulous, multi-year financial strategies, leveraging cost-splitting networks, and taking advantage of tournament-specific budgeting frameworks. For a major event like the ongoing tournament in North America, a single traveling fan typically budgets between $4,000 and $10,000 USD depending on their country of origin and duration of stay.” Man, that’s dedication.

Second question: How the hell do I stay awake for the US game tonight at 10:00???