The global focus of football turned to Los Angeles on Friday, with organizers hoping that excitement over the first World Cup tournament on U.S. soil since 1994 would outweigh concerns about ticket prices and visa issues that have plagued much of the competition's preparations, Reuters reports.
Host nation Mexico opened the tournament on Thursday, while Toronto hosted fans for Canada's opening match against Bosnia and Herzegovina on Friday afternoon. The United States then took the stage with an opening ceremony at SoFi Stadium featuring pop star Katy Perry at 16:30 p.m. local time (01:30 a.m. CET), before the U.S. team kicked off its tournament campaign against Paraguay.
Soccer remains a relatively minority sport in the US, with about a third of Americans telling pollsters they plan to watch the World Cup, significantly fewer than in many other participating countries.
Sports attention over the past week has been focused on the New York Knicks' dramatic run in the NBA Finals.
At a World Cup event at the LA Live complex in downtown Los Angeles, visitors Reuters spoke to said they weren't even soccer fans. They said they had come to see a former NFL player who was taking part in the event.
Still, soccer fever is growing, especially as fans flock from around the world. Midtown Manhattan was awash in soccer colors Thursday and Friday, as Knicks fans in navy blue basketball jerseys mingled amicably with yellow-clad Brazilian soccer fans beating drums, and jade-green Mexican supporters celebrating their first World Cup victory.
New York Mayor Zoran Mamdani - who wore a vest with Knicks insignia under his jacket - urged New Yorkers to attend fan festivals and football exhibitions held across the city.
"When we celebrate the World Cup, we celebrate a working-class sport and the workers who play it," said Mamdani, a longtime fan of English Premier League champions Arsenal.
"It's a rare opportunity that brings the whole world together."
BAGGAPES AND STARS AND STRIPES
In Boston, Scottish fans entertained neighbors near their Airbnb rental with a morning bagpipe performance, NBC10 Boston reported, while in Los Angeles, American fans headed to the stadium dressed head to toe in red, white and blue, chanting "U.S.A., U.S.A."
Preparations for the tournament to begin on Friday have been overshadowed by a number of concerns, including visa issues under the administration of US President Donald Trump, which has taken a tough stance on immigration.
Some fans have expressed anger or indecision about traveling to the U.S. after months of media reports about bans and restrictions, and a Somali judge was banned from entering the country this week.
Many fans claim that costs have become prohibitive, as both ticket prices and travel expenses have skyrocketed.
The dilemma over how to host the Iranian national team after the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran in February was ultimately resolved with a plan that would see the team train in Mexico and travel to the US for matches.
It is still unclear what will happen in Seattle on June 26, when Iran is scheduled to play Egypt in a game billed by local organizers as an LGBT Pride match, a move that has been vehemently contested by the soccer federations of both countries.
There were also concerns about high summer temperatures in North America.
"We play all day in the summer, so I think Brazil will be fine, but teams like Norway and Sweden will have problems," said Brazil fan David Skarton in New York, as temperatures reached 34 degrees Celsius.
DON'T MISS IT
As he waited to enter the stadium in Los Angeles, 67-year-old American fan Gabriel Aguilar just waved away those concerns.
"I've been waiting for this day for over 35 years. I was at the first World Cup in Texas in 1994, and there wasn't this much excitement and patriotism back then," he said.
"One day we will be like the Mexican fans, who really embrace the whole atmosphere. We are not there yet, but we are close," he told Reuters.
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