EDITORS' CORNER
Waddya mean it’s not like how we’ve worked so hard to portray??
The media and academic set are trying so hard to rationalize the positive reactions to everyday, average America expressed by World Cup visitors coming to experience the planet’s biggest sporting event.
Americans — welcoming? Friendly? Polite? Courteous? In the Age of Trump?? How can this be?
Patrick Ryan’s June 26 piece in USA Today is a perfect example. We should listen to him, after all, because he’s interviewed Hollywood stars such as Barbra Streisand, Julie Andrews, Martin Scorsese, Meryl Streep, and Frances McDormand!
“[I]nternational tourists have been posting videos of themselves marveling at everyday minutiae, whether it’s Texas barbecue or no-fuss hospitality,” Ryan writes. “The endearingly wholesome (and frequently funny) phenomenon is a welcome balm in divisive times.”
(Here are but a few examples via X.)
University of Florida Department of Tourism Professor Rachel Fu adds that World Cup tourists “are meeting ordinary Americans: restaurant servers, hotel employees, retail workers and complete strangers who hold doors open, offer directions, or initiate conversations.
“Those daily interactions often leave a stronger impression than political narratives.”
A German soccer fan is brought to tears over how nice he’s been treated in America
— Wall Street Apes (@WallStreetApes) July 2, 2026
He says he was afraid to come to America for the FIFA World Cup because European media portrays America as dangerous. He’s spent weeks in America and can’t believe how it’s the exact opposite
“I… pic.twitter.com/5QCURs2vyD
Montclair State University’s Joel Penney says the foreigners’ accolades about American culture are “making people feel a bit better” about the (primary) World Cup host country.
The funny thing is that USA Today’s Ryan admits these visitors are experiencing “a side of America that typically doesn’t make the headlines” … yet he engages in just that: Tourism in the country allegedly “has plummeted in recent years” as “some” potential visitors “have expressed fear” over gun violence, “LGBTQ+ discrimination,” and the actions of ICE personnel.
In addition, he says Trump’s approval ratings “hit an all-time low as issues like inflation and the Iran War have repelled many on both sides of the aisle.”
And who better to elaborate on this than a University of Minnesota sociology professor who specializes in racism, ethnicity, and “sports studies”? Similar to Wake Forest’s Adam Kadlac a few weeks ago, UMN’s Douglas Hartmann claims there’s a “kind of ambivalence or sadness about not being able to celebrate the country” due to Trump.
Indeed, according to the Independent, “millions” of Americans say they don’t plan to celebrate the nation’s 250 birthday, including 25 percent of Democrats.
CNN recently highlighted how just 27 percent of Democrats are “extremely” or “very proud” to be American, while 36 percent feel “little” or “no” pride. Meanwhile, 93 percent of Republicans are “extremely” or “very proud” of their heritage:
Trump is scheduled to present the trophy to the World Cup champion later this month, but Hartmann says he should reconsider: “It could tarnish the feel-good vibes on social media” if he attempts to “push a particular narrative.”
“It’s a weird dynamic,” Hartmann says. “Americans have been very divided, and we almost need other people – especially Europeans – to tell us that we’re not so bad. It reminds me of Sally Field’s Oscar speech when she said, ‘You like me!’ That’s how Americans are acting: ‘Oh, you really like us?’”
What I’ve learned from World Cup travelers this week.
— Yinzer G (@yinzer_g) June 26, 2026
– Apparently the US is the only country with A/C
– Other countries don’t use seasoning on their food
– You can only buy a gallon of milk in the USA
– You have to pay for a 2nd or 3rd pop at a restaurant outside of America.…
All this is just shows — again — how insular our media (U.S. and worldwide) and academics are. Many, if not most of the positive World Cup tourist remarks relate to experiences outside of our big cities (indeed, one noted to stay away from New York City), and a lot of these areas voted for Trump.
As such, journalists and professors view these areas’ citizens as knuckle-dragging troglodytes.
The reality is this voting demographic is magnitudes more courteous, generous, and polite than its counterpart. Perhaps that’s the latter constantly needs to post placards and expressions of “Love is love” and “Hate has no home here,” etc.
This is why the media and the academy hate it … and will only cover it favorably when forced to.
A wise man once said, if you want to hate America, watch the news. If you want to love America, drive across it.
— Mikale Olson (@realmikolson) June 12, 2026
These European World Cup tourists are experiencing the REAL America for the first time: not New York City or LA, but middle America and all its hospitality. 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/B3rVBM63Eh
