FIFA

Las Condes, Santiago de Chile. 15.35.

Confession – in case it wasn’t obvious. Definitely *not* a regular follower of football here. But I thought I’d keep writing as the match goes on, since it’s such an important game – and today, the eyes of the world are on Spain. That’s as good an excuse as any to write.

15.35

What a shedload of advertising. I’m not sure what the good folks back home are seeing, but I’m here in Chile, watching the final on DSports, which seems to have a shamelessly Argentinian inclination: every time the ball is in their possession, the commentator bursts out into a stream of mantra-esque “VAMOS ARGENTINA VAMOS SELECCIÓN”. We also get all the ad breaks the American have shoved into the game, though I’m not sure how effective they really are. When was the last time you saw a vehicle lubricant advertised on the sideboard of a football game and thought to yourself “damn, I really should oil my car”.

16.15

What in blazes is this – the Muppets on drums? BTS? Madonna and Justin Bieber? Some sort of bizarre We are the World knockoff by Coldplay? Bad Bunny was noticeably missing, but then, with Mr Trump in the audience – who is not exactly his biggest fan – I can’t imagine he was top of the invite list.

At least Shakira made it a half-time show worth watching… almost. Given that it’s a final between two Hispanic teams, it seems only right that there should be a Spanish-language song front and centre. Would they have done something similar in French if France had made it through?

16.45

I’ve definitely seen more entertaining games. What is interesting is how aggressive this one seems to be – that is, the Argentinians. I can’t really tell what’s going on, but Spain seem to be very much in control… when the Argentinian players aren’t getting off lightly for pushing and shoving. There was a bizarre scene where they seemed to take Michael Buffer’s opening ceremony instructions rather literally and started a rumble right in front of the referee. And yet – only a yellow card. I get that they’re allowing more handsy behaviour than usual in the interests of momentum, but if they didn’t have so many ad breaks, that wouldn’t really be a problem in the first place…

Come on Spain – don’t let them get to you! You can do this!!

17.15

So much pressure! The Argentinian goalie is properly earning his salary, but the aggression from the Argentinian side is reaching fever pitch. And with all the extra time they keep adding, this game is beginning to feel like death by a thousand cuts. I hope the Spaniards can keep up the pressure as the clock drags on.

17.38

This has got to be, without a doubt, the most frustrating game I’ve seen in ages. Only the Clásico I watched back in 2021 that ended in 0-0 comes close. It just seems to be going round and round in circles. Spain keeps breaking on Argentina’s defence like waves upon a beach – and the referee’s judgements are not helping.

The only person in this game who doesn’t seem to be tiring in the slightest is our Argentine commentator, who is filled with the loudest possible conviction that Argentina are going to win this. Would that anyone on the pitch shared his zeal – we might have seen a goal by now!

17.50

Finally! One goal from Torres and suddenly the entire momentum of this final has gone into overdrive. No more tiki-taka – the time for that has passed. Now it’s hell for leather from both sides as Argentina fights to get back in control and Spain take more and more chances to drive home their advantage.

If I had even the first idea of how football works, I reckon it would be really fun to be a sports reporter. As it is, I’m sure my comments are about as valid as Harry Kane narrating an episode of Springwatch. Still – it’s fun to go out of your comfort zone every once in a while.

I did want a Hispanic final while I was in Chile, and that is exactly what I have got. Now Spain just have to dig in.

Five minutes have been added. The shadows are lengthening. The commentator seems to only have two words left in his vocabulary and one of them is Argentina. There are only minutes left on the clock. Come on Spain!

18.05

¡Toma ya! Spain have done it!

Mixed feelings, to be honest. I really do feel for Messi. Some of his teammates have been utter thugs, but against any other team I might have been rooting for him. The Golden Boot is now beyond his reach, I think, and it would have been such a high to go out on had Argentina won this match.

But I have to hand it to Spain – what an endurance match for the ages. Twenty attempts at a goal before Torres punted it in. We have absolutely earned that win through tactics and pure skill. Argentina fought bloody hard to stop us at every turn but the boys in red finally managed to break through.

Well – that’s enough sports commentary from this novice for now. First day at work tomorrow, and I still have no idea what to expect. Will it be three weeks of meetings, lesson observations, or will I be a glorified work experience boy, sent to fetch the coffee? Time will tell! BB x

The Flat, 19.20.

Well. That totally did not pan out the way I expected.

I’m not really one for football. When my students ask me what team I support – as boys can be relied upon to do year after year – my answer is a slightly evasive Real Betis, but to be honest, that’s only because of my fondness for the city of Sevilla and the Andalusian colours of its uniform. I couldn’t name you any of their players, nor have I ever watched any of their games.

The World Cup, however, is another matter entirely. Living and working in a boys’ boarding house pretty much demands an investment in the ups and downs of the world’s largest football competition, and with so many underdog teams defying the odds and Mr Trump meddling directly in the politics of the game, this one really has been one to watch.

When England blew past the Democratic Republic of Congo last week to secure a place in the last 32, I’ll admit, I didn’t fancy our chances. Playing vainglorious Mexico on their home turf, and in the high-altitude Estadio Azteca, no less? I really thought it might be a hard-fought but richly-deserved win for El Tri. Watching Judge Bellingham score not one but two goals within the space of a minute was electric here at home, so I can’t even begin to imagine what it must have been like for the small battalion of England fans in the stadium, surrounded by an army of Mexicans in green and white, looking for all the world like Cortes and his Spaniards outnumbered by the Aztecs. I have to admit, by the end of the game, even this dyed-in-the-wool Hispanist was rooting for his home country. It was genuinely one of the best games I’ve seen in a while. I’ve always held up El Clasico as the gold standard, but after the last two Madrid/Barca games I watched ended in 0:0, this year’s World Cup has been a serious breath of fresh air.

I’m actually quite excited about the fact that I’m going to be in the Americas for the grand finale. Granted, Latin America’s involvement in the World Cup has come to an end with their defeat against Kane’s team: the rest of the games are in the unforgivingly tight grip of North America. However, Argentina and Colombia are still in the game, and in a matter of hours, we will know whether Spain or Portugal has made it through to the quarterfinals, so there is hope for the Spanish-speaking world yet. In a World Cup that has been shared with Mexico, that is not an insignificant detail. Given that I will be in Latin America for the next month and a half, it would be pretty electric to see one of the Latin teams make it all the way to the final.

Chile has rodeo, which is a sport I’ve always wanted to see. However, since I’m going in winter, I don’t think that’s something I’m going to achieve in my trip this time. I wouldn’t say no to some kind of sporting spectacle, though. It still surprises me to hear myself say that, but then, I guess my job must be rubbing off on me – and in a good way. It can’t hurt to be a little more open-minded. BB x