The World Cup only comes around every 4 years. For football fanatics, they have been waiting years for this highly anticipated event, but for many others, including many at North Atlanta, this is their first dive into the depths of the sport. 

While the World Cup is the largest sporting event in the world, it is often not met with the same excitement stateside as it is across the globe. However, this year has been an exception. After missing out on the 2018 World Cup with a heartbreaking defeat to extreme underdogs Trinidad and Tobago in qualifiers, the United States (U.S.) has come back with a vengeance.

The U.S. had high expectations while in Qatar. They came in with the youngest squad in the tournament (DASH) with an average age of just 24.5 years old. Within the young squad, there are extremely exciting players, including forwards Brendon Arronson and Gio Reyna, midfielders Tyler Adams and Weston McKennie, and the man deemed Captain America, Christian Pulisic. The explosion of talented youth has brought America into its golden generation, creating lots of buzz around the country after its return from its eight-year hiatus from the world cup. Like the 2023 World Cup says, “Now is all!” “I was personally so excited. I had not seen the U.S. play in a world cup since I was seven,” said sophomore Sergio De La Cruz.

It did not take a keen eye to notice students being captivated by the games, watching on their phones underneath the desk, or having the luxury of having it played at the front of the classroom. What was going on in Qatar became the talk of the school. No one wanted to miss a second of the action. With the World Cup taking the school by storm, more and more people were being introduced to the sport and immediately falling in love. “I did not really know much about soccer before the World Cup, “ said junior Gabriel Eckhart. “But now I cannot get enough.”

Despite their disappointing exit at the hands of a talented Dutch team, North Atlanta, and the rest of the country have a lot of hope and reason to be excited for what is next to come. As the country looks forward to World Cup 2026, within our own borders, many can’t wait to once again watch the world’s greatest spectacle.