Openness, civility and humility: The World Cup that America got right
The tournament succeeded not in spite of its principal host, but because of American values its current ruling cabal has forgotten.
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England fans at a watch party in Brooklyn, New York, reacting as their team scored a goal in the World Cup quarter-final match between England and Norway on July 11.
PHOTO: AFP
Somewhere between six and eight hours of playing time remain in this FIFA World Cup, before a champion is crowned on July 20, Singapore time – more, if it comes down to penalties. It is not too soon, then, to pass judgment on the 39-day spectacle in Mexico, Canada and principal host the United States.
It is an ungenerous, mealy-mouthed suggestion – advanced by some commentators – that the tournament has succeeded in spite of America, which staged the lion’s share of the 104 games, including every match from the quarter-finals onwards.
