Devoted football fans in the US eagerly awaiting the World Cup kick-off on Thursday are hoping the country will embrace the sporting spectacle.
High ticket prices, political tension and the challenges of attending games spread across the US, Canada and Mexico have contributed to a relatively muted build-up to the showpiece event.
Jordanian Omar Rayyan, who graduated from New York University Abu Dhabi last year before moving to Los Angeles, is one supporter relishing the opportunity of having the tournament on his doorstep.
He will attend Jordan's first two games in Santa Clara, California, only a one-hour flight away, with friends and is keen for World Cup fever to catch on across North America.
“It's been our nation's dream to qualify for the World Cup,” he told The National. “We finally made it and there's a lot of hype about like our team's first appearance, to get to see them play in the top stages against big teams.
“I'll be meeting some friends, and then we'll go together to the game. They're not Jordanians, but they're supporting Jordan from different Arab countries.”
He said there has been no shortage of promotion for the tournament in the US, but it has so far not captured the imagination of the wider public.
“I don't think there's a lot of football fans here compared to other countries,” he said.
He is keen to secure a seat for the USA's opening match on June 12 and hopes ticket prices will be lowered to help fill stadiums for the expanded 48-team event.
“There have been talks about the prices being intentionally hiked to make it seem like there's a lot of demand, but the prices have been going down a lot in the past few days,” he said.
“Hopefully by the time like the opening game starts, the prices are slightly better.”
To support Jordan, he would have paid any price, but played the waiting game.
“I would have gone no matter what the prices were, but I knew that they were going to keep going down. I purchased it a few weeks ago, once it reached around $200,” he said.
US passion on show
New Yorker Antony Lin was first introduced to football when he watched the previous US-hosted World Cup in 1994 on TV, beginning a decades-long love affair with the beautiful game.
He has travelled far and wide to follow the fortunes of the US team and will be based on the West Coast to soak up the atmosphere and take in the action of this year's event.
“I just want to support the game, and help the game grow in the US any way I can,” he told The National. “I was always jealous of those that went in '94 so now that it's in our backyard here we are so excited.”
Mr Lin, in addition to supporting the US team, developed a loyalty for Qatar when he visited for the 2022 World Cup. He will be supporting them in their match against Bosnia.
“I just became obsessed with wanting to go back to Qatar. I keep saying one of these days I'm going to go back.”
For Mr Lin, it was a “huge challenge” to get tickets, and when he was able to get them with the help of friends and family, the prices were steep.
“A bunch of us saved up, we did what we can – the pricing was obviously a turn-off for a lot of folks,” Mr Lin said.
Low-key World Cup
This year's tournament has already fallen short compared with Qatar, he said, which delivered a festive atmosphere for fans able to gather together without facing cross-country treks for matches.
“I'm really going to miss the logistics from the last World Cup. It was just so convenient,” he said.
“I haven't seen as much hype as I wanted it to be. I remember arriving in Qatar, there were flags of every country hanging everywhere welcoming fans. Walking around Penn Station, Times Square, I haven't seen any of that.”
Cultural connection
He said the World Cup can serve as an unifying event to bring people of all cultures and backgrounds together through a shared passion for sport.
“It's like stepping into a Disney movie. Everyone's getting along,” he said. “I see people trading scarves and flags, I just want to see everyone come together and have a great time.”
For Jordan fan Mr Rayyan, the event provides a platform to show his country's culture on the international stage.
“It's nice to see that more people are exposed to our country and are going to be seeing our flags,” he said.
