From to , the list of World Cup had many feeling pretty about this . But once the games began, the moments of camaraderie and celebration have made the challenges easy to forget.
Here are some of our favorite stories:
The Tartan Army invasion: We were . They arrived with their kilts and bagpipes. They . They 鈥�&苍产蝉辫;补苍诲 . They humorously put traffic cones on . They the gameday transportation costs. They and . They They donated to . They even . Visiting to see their country鈥檚 first World Cup in nearly three decades, Scotland鈥檚 鈥淭artan Army鈥� left such a positive local impression that Boston is now . Then, they boogied down to Miami and did . And the best news: we鈥檙e all
A minnow makes its mark: Cape Verde was just . Then, the island nation 鈥� with a population less than any U.S. state 鈥� started getting results. It began with improbably holding powerhouse Spain to a tie. And then they did the same to Uruguay and Saudi Arabia, becoming the to . In Massachusetts, home to the largest population of Cape Verdeans outside of the African archipelago, the ties were . Dance party in the middle of a Monday? 鈥淲e don鈥檛 have to explain where we are from. Ten small islands from the west coast of Africa 鈥� now the world knows Cape Verde,鈥� Jo茫o DePina, a Cape Verde native who lives in Boston, told SA国际传谋.
Wedding crashers: A newlywed couple in Philadelphia were planning to celebrate their big day with family and friends 鈥� not thousands of fans of the Croatian national soccer team. But that they did when they went to take some wedding photos outside of City Hall on Friday. They soon found themselves in the middle of the Croatian fan march. (They didn鈥檛 seem to mind one bit!) The crowd went from cheering football songs to chanting wedding ones. WHYY has .
鈥淩ock Chalk Algeria鈥�: The Algerian team鈥檚 decision to set up basecamp at a DoubleTree hotel in Lawrence, Kansas was early on. It quickly proved to be a good decision. From a local resident鈥檚 to the University of Kansas marching band , Lawrence residents . They cheered them on, attended practices, into a field () and in their final group stage match.
鈥淐oreano, hermano鈥�: Mexico and South Korea fans rekindled their friendship from the 2018 World Cup. As NPR reports, countless videos showed South Korean tourists partying and enjoying World Cup festivities with locals, before the two countries played in Guadalajara. It even spurred a new slogan:
Japan鈥檚 honky tonk experience: Nashville isn鈥檛 hosting any World Cup games. Japan wasn鈥檛 scheduled to play any games in (relatively) nearby Atlanta. And yet, the Japanese team chose The Music City to be their base camp. Why? WPLN it may all be because of one city employee and a relationship dating back to President Jimmy Carter. The team brought many Japanese journalists and fans to Nashville in tow 鈥� and yes, they .
Congo鈥檚 famous superfan: Michel Nkuka Mboladinga in the stands of Congo鈥檚 games as a human statue of the country鈥檚 He then made it to Mexico to . And while he , it didn鈥檛 stop Mboladinga from celebrating Congo鈥檚 advancement to the knockout rounds 鈥� with .
The ducks: From to , decked-out ducks keep stealing the show. Meanwhile, not even Boston鈥檚 mother duck could .
Iran鈥檚 thank you: It was a challenging tournament for Iran, due to imposed by the Trump administration off the field and on the field. But the team showed grace, leaving notes in the locker room thanking their hosts for the hospitality 鈥� in , in and in . 鈥淢ay peace, respect and friendship prevail among all nations,鈥� read the note left in Los Angeles.
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