You wouldn't be wrong if you called me a fair weather fan, whether it be for our Tennessee Titans or our Nashville SC pro soccer team. But when the World Cup comes along every four years, I sit up and pay attention, perhaps more this year than ever before.
Many of my friends might have assumed I would be for France in today's epic final match, given my long history with that country. And I of course have a soft spot for "Les Bleus". But they had a well deserved victory four years ago over Croatia, so I was willing for someone else to wear the crown for the next four years. Argentina turned out to be that team.
Argentina has swung from one political or economic crisis to the next for what seems like forever. If you think inflation in the US is a problem, get this: inflation in Argentina is currently over 70% and has been among the highest in the world for the past five years. So you can imagine how the country has pinned their hopes on their beloved Lionel Messi, the 35-year-old considered one of the world's greatest players, and his blue and white-striped team.
Today's match was truly one of the most epic matches I've ever seen, ending in a penalty kick shootout that had everyone on the edge of their seat. And Messi did not disappoint, scoring his seventh goal in his first, and reportedly last, World Cup final.
Felicidades to Argentina, whose people are dancing in the streets on a summer night as we speak, and Félicitations to France for a fabulous game that kept us all guessing until the very end.