Our friends at Cadera Clothing Company have cleverly addressed a situation that many of us encounter - the inner turmoil of having two sides to cheer for in the World Cup. To some, however, there really is no conflict and a choice has been made. We did some informal polling (a Facebook post and some conversation during Spurs playoff timeouts) and found some interesting results.
There were some wobblers - "Well, USA first, but Mexico, too."
Some patriots - "I'm American! I go for America's team."
A generational divide - "Sh--, my dad was a marine. In Vietnam. And he still goes for Mexico."
An optimist - "I only root for USA! If they get knocked out, then I cheer for for the team with the best looking guys."
And a lot of others who favor the USMNT and the squad featuring their favorite player - Argentina, Brazil, Spain, etc.
Needless to say, we didn't get a whole lot of straight answers. Maybe they were afraid to say something, but why?
If you grew up Mexican-American in South Texas, odds are you visited family in Mexico on weekends and major holidays. As the World Cup came around every four years, the topic of futbol accented many a dinner conversation where you would undoubtedly taco bout how good of a chance El Tri had at taking it all. There was a whole lot of excitement in 1986 because Mexico was hosting and Hugo Sanchez was at the top of his game. Mexico got pretty far in that tournament despite the lackluster performance from the Real Madrid star, yet was ultimately disappointed by the losing a shootout with West Germany.
And where was the American team in all this? Absent. The team didn't qualify in 1986. Although there was a team in 1990, we wouldn't get very excited until 1994. That's when our Mexican cousins started making fun of us because we were going to host a World Cup that our own people didn't care about. Further, they would point out, there weren't even any stars on the U.S. team. So then we had to go and find out who was on our roster besides Tab Ramos, because we all knew Tab Ramos from his Snickers commercials. He was a Mexican like us and he was on the team. (Actually, his father was from Uruguay, but that's close enough. I mean, I knew at least three non-related Ramoses in high school.) This being 1994, we had to search through actual newspapers and magazines for the information and pay attention to a lot of ESPN. (These were the days before Sportscenter ran on a loop or told you what they were going to talk about fifteen minutes from now.) Then we watched and we discovered Cobi Jones and Alexi Lalas and what? Claudio Reyna? Another Mexican! (Turns out his dad was from Argentina, but that's close, too. I actually have family with that last name.) We watched and they did way better than most people expected.
Things got more complicated over the years as soccer got more popular on this side of the charco. But then came 2002, when things got really complicated - Mexico faced off with USA in a World Cup elimination game. We had to wake up in the middle of the night to watch it and when it was over and we could finally get some sleep, we couldn't. Now our Mexican cousins were fuming. "How could this happen?" they asked. They were holding onto the notion that we didn't care and this was the one thing they could beat us at.
I watched the game out in northern California with some die-hard U.S.A. fans. They eyed me with some suspicion, because I was torn about how much I should be rooting for either side. But when it was over, I couldn't help but share in Mexico's frustration. On the other hand though, I was really excited and a little relieved. You see, when a Mexican-American travels in Mexico, even to see family, he doesn't always feel accepted. I lived in Veracruz for most of a year and traveled through the southern region of the country. It was the first time in my life I had ever been called "gringo." I had to go to Mexico, where I was searching for roots, to fully understand that I was American.
Team USA made a bold statement that day (well, morning for us) in 2002. It also helped cement our allegiance. And the continental rivalry has gotten pretty fierce, just read this account from a 2009 US versus Mexico game at Estadio Azteca.
But can Mexico not be thankful to the USMNT? Remember, if it wasn't for the USA defeat of Panama, Mexico wouldn't be in this World Cup.
Team USA has taken us on a roller-coaster ride, with plenty of ups, downs, and exhilarating moments. Who can forget the 2010 World Cup and that final group match when Landon Donovan single-footedly vaulted the team into the knock-out stage. I've watched plenty of live games at sports bars and have seen celebrations for Dallas touchdowns and Spurs jams, but there was nothing like the roar I heard and felt when Landon kicked that goal.
Yes, I might like the Mexico squad and know some of their players and who doesn't enjoy watching Miguel Herrera jump up and down on the sideline? But I'm much more vocal, much more frustrated, and much more excited about watching Team USA.
I. I believe. I believe that. I believe that we. I Believe That We Will Win!
Let's go USA! Let's do this! Si se puede!
