Beyond the pitch: The World Cup as world history
A U91原创 expert unpacks the history, identity, migration, fandom, and politics that collide on soccer鈥檚 biggest stage.
Most watch the World Cup for the goals, stars, and rivalries. watches for the history.
On the surface, it looks like just another contact sport riveting fans across the globe. However, 鈥渢he World Cup is never just 22 players kicking a ball,鈥� says the historian, who teaches HIST 145: World History Through Soccer every men鈥檚 World Cup cycle. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e seeing empire, migration, nationalism, labor, religion, commercialization, and identity all unfolding in real time.鈥�
With billions of viewers tuning in for 104 matches played across 48 teams, this year鈥檚 tournament marks the largest World Cup in history. And watching like a historian, argues Sierra Silva, means paying attention to more than the scoreline. It means noticing the crowd noise, the flags, the chants, the rosters, the rivalries鈥攁nd even the collectible sticker albums鈥攖o reveal something deeper happening beneath the surface.
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The game鈥檚 afoot! Soccer basics in under 1 minute
How long is a World Cup soccer game? A standard men鈥檚 match has two 45鈥憁inute halves plus stoppage time added by the referee for substitutions, injuries, or delays, per the (IFAB). The knockout鈥憆ound games can go to 30 minutes of extra time and, if needed, a penalty shootout.
Who invented modern soccer? Forms of football have been played for centuries. The modern game of association football鈥攚hat Americans and Canadians call 鈥渟occer鈥濃�攖races back to rules codified by the .
So is it 鈥渟occer鈥� or 鈥渇ootball鈥�? Outside North America, the sport is commonly called football because it is played primarily with the feet, in contrast to rugby鈥憇tyle games.
Is soccer in the Olympics? Yes. for more than a century, and women鈥檚 soccer was added in 1996. Olympic soccer and the FIFA World Cup are separate tournaments with different qualification paths.
Is soccer the most popular sport in the world? By most estimates of participation and global viewership, , with billions of fans following World Cups, domestic leagues, and local clubs.
Is soccer growing in the United States? Yes, according to the Harris Poll, one of the longest-running market research surveys. Professional leagues, youth participation, and TV and streaming audiences have in recent decades鈥攅ven in a sports landscape dominated by American football, baseball, and basketball.
Catch this match: France 馃嚝馃嚪 vs. Senegal 馃嚫馃嚦
When France meets Senegal on June 16 at MetLife Stadium (temporarily renamed New York New Jersey Stadium for the tournament) in New Jersey, Sierra Silva expects far more than a compelling soccer match.
France鈥檚 colonial presence in West Africa dates back to the 17th century, with Senegal achieving independence in 1960. That reality has shaped the country鈥檚 political and cultural development for generations, and those connections still echo today through migration patterns, language, and identity. The teams also carry sporting history: Senegal shocked France in the opening match of the 2002 World Cup, one of the tournament鈥檚 greatest upsets.
But Sierra Silva says viewers should also watch the crowd.
In addition to its Francophiles, the New York metropolitan region has a large Senegalese diaspora population, according to Sierra Silva. He expects drums, chants, and musical traditions common in African stadium culture to transform the atmosphere at the match.
鈥淚n African stadiums, drums are so much a part of the soundscape that they move you, literally,鈥� he says. 鈥淵ou think, 鈥榃hy am I swaying?鈥欌��
Sierra Silva鈥檚 other top picks for must-see matches include:
- Haiti vs. Scotland, a celebration of two passionate communities
- Spain vs. Saudi Arabia, featuring rising superstar Lamine Yamal and two future World Cup hosts (Spain co-hosts in 2030, Saudi Arabia hosts in 2034)
- Colombia vs. Congo, where fan culture and football history converge in Guadalajara
- Iran vs. Belgium, a contest likely to carry both sporting stakes and geopolitical resonance
A global talent redefining national identity
If there is one player Sierra Silva believes encapsulates the cultural complexity of the modern World Cup, it is Spain鈥檚 18-year-old superstar, Lamine Yamal.
Yamal, already a standout for both Spain and FC Barcelona, was raised in Rocafonda, a working-class neighborhood outside Barcelona shaped by immigration and North African diasporas. His family roots trace to Morocco and Equatorial Guinea.
For Sierra Silva, Yamal represents more than extraordinary talent.
鈥淗e is redefining what it means to be Spanish,鈥� he says.
That conversation has become increasingly visible. Earlier this spring, Yamal publicly condemned anti-Muslim and xenophobic chants during Spain鈥檚 friendly against Egypt, prompting investigations by both Spanish authorities and FIFA.聽“Football is for enjoying and cheering, not for disrespecting people for who they are or what they believe,鈥� he wrote on Instagram.
Rarely has Spain seen Muslim athletes occupy this level of global celebrity in soccer, according to Sierra Silva. 鈥淵amal represents this complex cosmopolitan nation. He鈥檚 incredibly talented, very hardworking, very fun to watch鈥攁nd he鈥檚 only 18.鈥�
In many ways, Sierra Silva sees Yamal as emblematic of a broader European transformation: second-generation immigrant communities reshaping national identity in real time.
鈥淭his is one of the stories of modern Europe,鈥� he says. 鈥淎nd soccer makes it visible.鈥�
Field of memes: How soccer fandom spreads online
The 2026 tournament will also unfold in a dramatically different media ecosystem than any World Cup before it.
Traditional broadcasters like Fox and Telemundo may hold the official rights, but Sierra Silva expects much of the conversation to happen through livestreams, reaction videos, influencers, podcasts, and fan-generated content.
鈥淭he World Cup is no longer just something you watch on broadcast TV,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 something you interpret, remix, meme, stream, and participate in.鈥�
鈥淧eople feel connected to histories and identities through these teams.鈥�
He points to personalities such as and platforms like , which increasingly shape how younger audiences experience soccer culture online.
The transformation began decades ago, Sierra Silva argues, with moments like Pel茅鈥檚 famous during the 1970 World Cup, when the Brazilian superstar deliberately paused to tie his cleats in front of television cameras.
鈥淭hat moment was the beginning of modern sports marketing,鈥� Sierra Silva says. 鈥淚ncreasingly, the material culture of football鈥攋erseys, scarves, those Panini sticker albums鈥攐ffers a universal language of identification, not to mention consumption.鈥�
Today鈥檚 World Cup exists simultaneously as sporting event, entertainment franchise, algorithm-driven social phenomenon, and global advertising platform. This tournament鈥檚 official anthem pairs Shakira, a Colombian star, with Nigerian artist Burna Boy on the song 鈥淒ai Dai,鈥� the chorus for which strings together multilingual expressions of encouragement: Dai, dai, ikou, dale, allez, let鈥檚 go鈥� Finally, promotional campaigns featuring Yamal, Lionel Messi, David Beckham, Timoth茅e Chalamet, and Bad Bunny blur the line between sports broadcast and cinematic universe.
Pel茅: The original influencer
Before livestreamers, sponsorship integrations, and branded content, there was Pel茅. Watch the moment many consider the birth of modern sports marketing鈥攁 master class in capturing the world鈥檚 attention without saying a word.
Gotta collect 鈥檈m all: Panini sticker albums
For all the billion-dollar sponsorships and global streaming deals, Sierra Silva also wants viewers to pay attention to something far smaller and more tactile: .
Since 1970, the Italian company Panini has produced collectible World Cup albums featuring players and national teams from around the globe. For generations of children, the albums have doubled as geography lessons and informal introductions to global migration.
鈥淭his is how many kids around the world learn geography,鈥� Sierra Silva says.
The albums also reveal the complicated nature of modern national identity. Players may represent one country while being born in another, often reflecting colonial histories, migration patterns, or dual citizenship.
鈥淎 child filling those pages starts to understand that national teams are built through movement,鈥� he says.
Sierra Silva, who has collected every World Cup album since 1994, considers them among the tournament鈥檚 most meaningful artifacts. 鈥淚f there were a fire in my office,鈥� he jokes, 鈥淚鈥檇 probably save the sticker albums first.鈥�
This year鈥檚 album may require nearly 1,000 stickers because of the expanded 48-team format鈥攁 reflection of both the tournament鈥檚 growth and its commercialization.
Still, Sierra Silva hopes the collecting culture gains more traction in the United States. 鈥淚t would be great to see kids trading stickers at lunchtime,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hat aspect of the sport鈥檚 material culture is beautiful.鈥�
For the love of the game: Why soccer is so popular
For Sierra Silva, the World Cup鈥檚 enduring power comes from its ability to compress the modern world into a single tournament. Fans can watch a match and encounter questions about colonialism, race, religion, migration, capitalism, nationalism, celebrity culture, and technology鈥攁ll before halftime.
That complexity explains why this event demands serious attention. To Sierra Silva, the World Cup鈥檚 greatest lesson is that history isn鈥檛 confined to textbooks. Sometimes it鈥檚 found in a stadium chant, a migration story, a sticker traded on a playground, or a match between two countries carrying the weight of a shared past.
鈥淧eople feel connected to histories and identities through these teams,鈥� says Sierra Silva. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why it matters.鈥�
