FIFA World Cup and my Daughter

I was surprised when my 11 yo daughter showed interest in the ongoing FIFA World Cup. On the plus side, it meant one could watch the 8:30 p.m. match, without getting into a fight over the TV with her, so I wasn’t complaining.

 

It turned out she wasn’t really interested in the game. She just wanted to make sure she didn’t look lost in class when her classmates talked about the matches, the teams and the players. Like so many people, it turned out that she only knew of 2 players – yes, Messi and Ronaldo.

 

On Instagram, I showed her many of the endless stream of Messi’s brilliant goals and dribbling skills to get through the entire defense. The word “G.o.a.t.” (Greatest of all time) was a recurring theme in the comments section.

 

In the Morocco v Portugal match we watched together, I told her I supported Morocco and she imperiously declared that she supported whoever would win at the end. In other words, Morocco.

 

Next day, she mentioned that her class teacher was very sad. Because Portugal had lost. Ah, I said, I guess she is a Ronaldo fan. She nodded. When m’am wasn’t there, one kid had declared, “M’am has a crush on Ronaldo”. To which a girl in the class responded, “Dude, half the world has a crush on Ronaldo”.

 

When I told her the final was between Argentina and France, I was amused by her point that everyone at school wanted Argentina to win, but thought that France would win. The heart wants Messi, the head says France. A sentiment of lots of people world over.

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