Like everyone else around the world, I’ve been enjoying the World Cup. It’s brought so many people to the U.S. and created such a beautiful sense of community that I feel is incredibly necessary right now. I’ve been especially moved by all the people trying American food for the first time. (We weren’t lying when we said we have good food over here!) I’ve also gotten the full soccer fan experience by way of sports bar watch parties. I’ve been feeding off all the electric energy from the fans watching alongside me.
Funnily enough, I’m not actually a fan of soccer. It’s never been a sport that I’ve found myself particularly interested in, mostly because I find it too stressful. All that build-up for a potential goal is not easy on the heart, OK! However, with the World Cup on home soil, I knew I needed to get out there and experience it. After all, it probably won’t be back here until I’m my parents’ age, so I wanted to soak up as much of the experience as possible. The FIFA Fan Festival in Philly is the only one that is open the entire duration of the tournament, and it’s in my hometown, which makes it even more special. So, I decided to throw on my France jersey and visit the fest to watch Les Bleus take on Spain in the World Cup semifinal match.
2 P.M.: arrive At FIFA FAN FESTIVAL
My best friend has been really into the World Cup, and she’s also a fan of Les Bleus, so we decided to meet up at the festival and watch together. Despite being from Philly, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d actually been to the park where the FIFA Fan Festival is located. Leave it to the World Cup to help me rediscover some areas of my hometown. My best friend and I were came ready in our France-themed fits!
2:30 P.M.: find a seat
Unluckily for us, Philly is experiencing yet another heat wave. The air wasn’t moving, and the sun was unbelievably oppressive. So, as fun as it would’ve been to stand with everyone, we knew we needed to settle underneath some shade. We found a spot underneath a tree, popped a squat, and got ready for the game to start.
3 P.M.: kickoff
I’m not gonna lie, I was nervous. Like, stomach-in-knots nervous. I was supporting a lot of teams throughout the tournament — Brazil, Japan, and Panama, to name a few — but France was the team I was truly riding for. I was beyond ready to watch them make it all the way to the final and, more importantly, win it (even better if they beat Argentina to do so). However, I knew Spain would be their trickiest opponent. I was just praying for some MbappĂ© magic or a great showing from DembĂ©lĂ© to get them through to the other side.
4 P.M.: HALFTIME
It’s time for our Hydration Break! I would’ve grabbed a snack, too, but most of the food stalls were closed. At this point, France was still in it, and I was ready to see the real MbappĂ© special come the second half. In the meantime, we walked around the FIFA Fan Festival to check out some of the activations. There were a lot of areas to watch the match, including Beckham’s Backyard. The one thing I really wanted to do sold out of reservations, so no free FIFA Fan Festival bracelet for me.
5 P.M.: FINAL SCORE
I can’t even lie to you, I was so devastated. It’s been a couple of days since the semifinal ended and I’m still devastated. I was in a very French time of my life during this World Cup, and I truly believed they were going all the way. Unfortunately, our dreams were cut short. I’m still so proud of everything they achieved, though, and I know they’ll be back to their best come 2030. In the meantime, I’ll tune into the third place match on Saturday, Aug. 18.
Best of luck to the teams that made it to the real one, but France vs. England is my World Cup Final!