World Cup- Student Perspective

World+Cup-+Student+Perspective

Juliette Viera

“You’re only watching football now because it’s the world cup” yes, that’s precisely why many are watching. Only every 4 years do we see 32 countries compete against each other in highly anticipated games for a few weeks in hopes that their countries make it to the finals and win the title of champions. Usually, these games are held in the summer but due to the aftermath of the pandemic, they were pushed to the fall/winter season. Being held in Qatar, the timings of these games were earlier for eastern time viewers which leads us to see students watching their teams compete during school hours. 

Kearny is known as “soccer town” and holds a population of all types of countries who are popular in football. This year we had the pleasure of seeing a number of flags being brought into school hallways and jerseys being repped. 

One of the most talked about games of this world cup was Brazil Vs. Croatia match that was held in the middle of school hours and ended with cries heard on every floor. Both Brazilian natives and fans were at the edge of their seats with a match that even went to penalty kicks. Croatia being a 2nd place winner in the last world cup ended the match with victory sending the Brazilian team home. Lots of tears were shed, screams were heard down the halls. The Brazilian team’s dance moves were definitely missed as well as the mob of students at the front of the school waving their flags in the air. 

Another popular game among students was the jaw-dropping Morocco vs. Spain match that made World cup history. Morocco being a small country and one of the only African countries to make it so far stunned the crowd by beating Spain. This match along with the Portugal game that was held on Saturday was one for the books. 

This world cup was definitely an action-packed emotional roller coaster with many endings for fan-favorite players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Suarez, Guillermo Ochoa, Gareth Bales, Luka Modric, and the man of the hour, Lionel Messi. Many KHS students were in favor of the Argentinian team winning the Cup, especially for the victory of the arguable goat Messi. 

The final match was France vs. Argentina who were head to head in winning the cup. It was the game of the 2018 world cup Champions against the last chance for 5-time participant Lionel Messi to win his first cup, satisfying all the fans who grew up with the era of Messi. Out of 80 students, 59% were for Argentina while the other 41% were for France. 

Here’s a list of some students’ favorite moments from this World Cup. 

  • Brazil’s victory dances (Pigeon dance specifically) 
  • The Brazilian song/dance  
  • Cho Gue-Sung and Batman Son 
  • Neymar Jr. being kicked around 
  • Saudi Arabia’s win against Argentina 
  • Senegal and Japanese fans 
  • Japans’ win against Germany 
  • The Netherlands vs Argentina yellow card showdown 
  • Richarlison’s Bicycle kick 
  • Ochoa’s ultimate save 
  • Ghana’s Osman Bukari doing the Ronaldo “Siu” 

Congratulations to the Argentina national team! Next world cup is taking place here in the States as well as in Canada and Mexico! Who’s Going?!