World Cup lands in US as fans embrace the spectacle and organisers face scrutiny

LOS ANGELES, June 13 — The global soccer spotlight turned to Los Angeles on Friday, with organisers hoping enthusiasm for the first World Cup tournament on US soil since 1994 would outweigh concerns about ticket prices and entry visas that overshadowed much of the run–up.

Co–hosts Mexico got the party started on Thursday, while Toronto welcomed fans to Canada’s first match on Friday afternoon.

The US comes next, with an opening ceremony at SoFi Stadium featuring pop star Katy Perry at 4:30 p.m. local time (2330 GMT), followed by the US soccer team opening their campaign against Paraguay.

Soccer remains a relative minority sport in the US, with around a third of Americans telling pollsters they planned to watch the World Cup, well below many other competing nations.

The sporting focus in the past week has been on the dramatic run of the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals.

At a World Cup–themed event at the LA Live complex in downtown Los Angeles, visitors Reuters spoke to said they were not even soccer fans.

They were there to catch a glimpse of a former NFL player who was participating, they said.

But soccer fever is growing, especially as fans pour in from around the world.

Midtown Manhattan was a blaze of colour on Thursday and Friday as Knicks fans in navy basketball jerseys mixed amiably with yellow–clad Brazil soccer fans beating drums and Mexican supporters in jade green celebrating the first World Cup win of the tournament.

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani – wearing a Knicks vest under his suit jacket – encouraged New Yorkers to attend the fan festivals and soccer exhibitions taking place across the city.

“When we celebrate the World Cup, we are celebrating a working–class sport and the working people who play it,” said Mamdani, a longtime fan of English Premier League champions Arsenal.

“It is the rare occasion that brings the world together.”

Bagpipes and Stars and Stripes

In Boston, Scottish fans entertained neighbours near their Airbnb with an early–morning bagpipe recital, NBC10 Boston reported, while in Los Angeles US supporters headed to the stadium dressed head–to–toe in red, white and blue, chanting “USA, USA.”

The build–up to Friday’s kickoff has been clouded by a number of concerns, including over the issuing of visas under the administration of US President Donald Trump, which has taken a hard line on immigration issues.

Some fans have expressed anger or hesitation about travelling to the US following months of news reports of bans and restrictions, and a Somali referee was barred from entering this week.

Many supporters say the cost of attending has become prohibitive, with both ticket prices and travel costs soaring.

A dilemma over how to accommodate the Iranian soccer team after the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran in February eventually resulted in a plan for them to train in Mexico and cross into the US for their matches.

It remains unclear what will happen in Seattle on June 26, when Iran are due to play Egypt in a match that local organisers have designated an LGBT Pride game, a move both countries’ football associations have strongly opposed.

There have also been worries about the North American summer heat.

“We play in the summer all day, so Brazil, I think we’ll be fine, but teams like Norway and Sweden will have a bad time,” said Brazilian fan David Scarton in New York as the temperature reached 34°C (93°F).

Waiting to enter the stadium in LA, 67–year–old US supporter Gabriel Aguilar shrugged off the concerns.

“I’ve been waiting for this day for over 35 years, I went to the first World Cup back in Texas in 1994, and this excitement and all this patriotism wasn’t there,” he said.

“One day we are going to be like the Mexico fans who really embrace the whole atmosphere.

“We are not there yet but we are getting close.” — Reuters