Before the FIFA World Cup first descended on the United States, in the summer of 1994, soccer was chiefly available to Americans in the form of posters, magazines and video games. U.S.A. ’94 brought us football in the flesh. But that year’s tournament had another important effect: merging the love of soccer with the love of fashion — passions that, at least in America, had never been truly melded.
For a brief moment, the Americans’ “denim jersey” became as recognizable as Brazil’s canary yellow “Amarelinha” or Italy’s “Azzurri” kits. And though the sport has yet to move fully into the American mainstream, soccer style has never fallen out of favor with young fashionistas who either played on the pitch or at home through video games.
Thirty-two years later, the tournament has returned to American soil, bringing along with it breathtaking levels of enthusiasm in team identity. Over three weeks and across four cities, I went to six matches specifically chosen to ensure that I could see at least one team (and its fan base) from all six of FIFA’s continental confederations.
My tour started with the United States’ opening match against Paraguay in Los Angeles, where the two teams shared remarkably similar tricolors that a casual observer would be hard pressed to distinguish. The Americans particularly loved the cowboy aesthetic, and overalls as brash as Fourth of July fireworks. But fans from every country had unique style and flair to bring to the party.
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