FIFA!

Or Why Soccer Bandwagoners are Okay

Hope you're all having fun watching FIFA! If you can't tell from my twitter, I'm pretty invested this year. I don't get to watch all the matches, obviously, since they often come on when I'm at work (#retailprobs), but I do like watching when I get the chance. I'm totally rooting for USA, obviously. South Korea and Spain were in my top three, but neither made it to the sweet sixteen, so I'm resting my hopes on you, ole US (or in this arena, should I say "young?"). 

Anyhow, this post is more about why I totally think it's okay if you're hopping on the soccer (football) bandwagon now. This is because FIFA is much, much more than soccer. Listen, soccer/football players, I get it. You've been following the sport your whole life, played it until you couldn't anymore, and now all of a sudden all these basic bitches are stomping over your precious territory? I swam my whole life, and the only time people gave a damn was when were winning gold medals or winning rivalries against those French. Everyone was suddenly into swimming, even the 400 IM. I get your pain and your mild sense of snobbery because I felt it too when it came to my precious chlorinated sport. 

However, get over it. What's important is that 1) Your sport is getting attention and 2) This is an international event that's kind of bringing everyone together. Let's be honest. On the list of popular sports, soccer isn't that high in the US compared to other countries. Heck, we gave the precious "football" name to a totally different sport, and that football is probably the most famous. You don't see companies paying millions of dollars for commercial space at US soccer games, do ya? But FIFA comes around, and all of a sudden Buzzfeed is making hot soccer men lists, embarrassing but attractive engagement photos are popping up, and your favorite player just got a thousand more followers on twitter. Embrace the positive marketing this is bringing your under appreciated sport! Each FIFA that comes along, and the better we do in the tournament, the more recognition soccer will get. 

Another thing is this: FIFA is more than soccer just like the Olympics is more than all the sports that make it up. These events are so important because they bring the international community together in a more successful way than anything else that's been done before. And in a positive way. The games we're watching are being watched by someone in a totally different time zone--how is that not awesome? Different places and cultures have their own daily lives that may or may not resemble our own, but for an entire game we're doing the same. exact. thing. And that, folks, is a beautiful thing.