Algerian national team introduces Kansas to football – and they love it.



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In news nobody saw coming, it would appear that the Algeria men’s football team are receiving a warm welcome at their World Cup base camp in Kansas.

Americans don’t really get sport. They are famously terrible at most sports of note, after all. Presumably that’s why the make up their own rubbish games – American ‘football’ anyone? – and pretend that these sports have their own credible world championships.

But times are a-changing in down in rootin-tootin Kansas… or something. A state is known for virtually nothing – except that old film about Dorothy and her dog and some wizard.

Yet the (admittedly, very sunny and friendly) people of the state have fallen head-over-heels in love with the Algerian national team, who are staying in the city of Lawrence.

Like this bloke who welled up on camera after hanging out with the fans:

Turns out that guy was a local artist who had created a massive Algeria flag:

Or this impossibly cute older fella who was overcome with emotion after catching football fever from the visitors and their fans:

The University of Kansas band even learned the national anthem for the team’s open training:

Algeria just gained some fans

Or these sweet young people with their nasal Yank accents who are rooting for Algeria against global titans Argentina:

And these adorably goofy young Americans – who we assume are called Skeeter and Biff, or Chad and Hank, or whatever – who actually learned to do some football words:

And some Yanks even attempted to do a form of dancing to support the teams:

And Algeria’s community kick-about dragged in loads of Kansan kids who finally got play an actual sport that isn’t garbage:

Obviously the England team are there in Kansas too. And the Americans appeared to attempt to put some sort of weird curse them with this god-awful procession of cheerleaders and animal mascots:

Hideous.

But here’s the truth of it… Yanks may be mortifyingly unserious buffoons about basically everything. But, this meeting of worlds has produced some incredibly touching scenes as Americans finally encounter an actual grown-up sport for the first time.

Are they treacly and annoying? Yes. Is their country a fascist wreck? It is. Do they walk around English cities talking too loudly and asking if buildings which are clearly not Big Ben are, in fact, Big Ben? They certainly do.

But even the most cynical Brit football fan’s heart can be warmed by how the Algerian national has been welcomed by locals at a time – and in a nation – where Arabs and Muslims are demonised as a matter of policy.

Featured image via Getty/Alejandro Pagni

By Joe Glenton





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