With the World Cup underway in Mexico, Canada and the United States, who is the most notable figure to wear the green jersey of the Mexican national team this year?
Julián Quiñones, who scored the opening goal of the Cup, can make a claim. So can the team’s goalkeeper, Raúl Rangel, for shutting out South Africa.
Then there is Merlin the Duck.
Merlin, who is 2 years old, has become an early internet sensation of the tournament as he waddles around Mexico City dressed in his country’s jersey, and socks.
“We don’t like to leave him alone at home, we like him to be with us,” his owner, Carla Gómez, told The Associated Press. Merlin trails Ms. Gómez as she moves through tourist areas selling beverages from a cart. Ms. Gómez told ESPN that Merlin likes to eat carnitas tacos.
Alongside Pelé, Maradona and Messi, several animals have catapulted to fame as a result of the World Cup. There was Paul the Octopus, who in 2010 gained renown for correctly “predicting” games by choosing a mussel from a box.
But the greatest nonhuman animal hero of the games was none other than Pickles the Dog. Taking a walk in South London in 1966, the four-legged football fan found the World Cup trophy wrapped in newspaper under a hedge. It had been stolen a week before in a bid for ransom.
Pickles’s discovery meant that when England won their only World Cup that summer, they could be presented with the trophy.
The post Merlin, the Duck in a Mexico World Cup Team Jersey, Finds Unexpected Fame appeared first on New York Times.
