I’m The Biggest Messi Fan, But The Ronaldo Hate Is Played Out
Today’s Mad Love Corner column questions the less savory side of modern “fandom”
Welcome back to OffBallFC, a dedicated soccer platform where we capture the conversation around the game differently, going deep on its crossovers with fashion, music, culture and everything in between. From interviews with your favorite soccer players to analysis of Erling Haaland’s Snapchats, we’ve got you covered. OffBallFC is written every Wednesday and Friday by two people who really know their stuff: sports and fashion journalist Daniel-Yaw Miller (lifelong lover/victim of Arsenal) and pro soccer player Madison Hammond (Utah Royals player, Man City Girl fandom, but don’t let that frighten you).
It’s Wednesday Tuesday here in Mad Love Corner, where we’re going live a little early to meet yet another Ronaldo moment (make it two!). This week I’ve also thought a lot about the moments of fandom that stay with us forever and the ones with which we engage for a specific moment in time, only to never think about them again.
This Summer of Soccer has given everyone the biblical experience to watch Messi become the all-time leading World Cup goalscorer on Monday. (And yes, he’s done it while proving he is, in fact, mortal. ) The Messi-ah is continuing to solidify his indisputable claim as the best to ever do it. But there has been a lot of discourse about a little player named Cristiano Ronaldo, with plenty of folks demanding he be relegated to the bench. Thierry Henry, for one, didn’t mince words. As a Messi fan, I’m supposed to agree, but I can’t. Ronaldo shaped a generation of soccer fans, including your favorite streamer Speed, who literally cried when Messi scored. But where Messi has always been the “little man” blessed by something divine, Cristiano is the blueprint of how hard work and opportunity can lead to man-made success.
So what are so many people forgetting about the five-time Ballon d’Or winner? The Athletic explores some of the live-time dynamics surrounding Ronaldo’s last international tournament. As a soccer enthusiast, it’s been frustrating to watch this drama unfold. This man terrorized my screen for years during many El Clásicos and Real Madrid hate-watches. And it’s no secret, the superstar is 41, and not in his prime, but he defined your fandom and probably your kids’ fandom – whether it was his glistening earring or his signature bicycle kicks. His hairstyles alone influenced the culture of a generation of young footballers, and he became a chiseled image of strength in the sport for over two decades. The obnoxious “SIIIIIIIUUUU” that your friend says after the simplest task is timeless. It’s like yelling “Kobe!” at the trash can. Without Cristiano, there’s no modern superfly Mercurial and by extension, no Pink Cleat Summer.
Obviously, the expectation is for that tangible greatness to continue in perpetuity. Messi is doing it, so why shouldn’t the Ronaldo cult enjoy it too? Maybe there’s an element of our fandom that we should check at the door and allow for more grace when we pass the baton to a new gen. To be honest, I don’t even want to be too complimentary, because the next thing you know he’ll score 10 goals, and Portugal will be in the final.
Apparently, I’m not the only one questioning fandom and the blind loyalty that comes with it. If you identify as a casual, where will you fall in line once this World Cup ends? For one bar owner in Green Bay, being a “casual” started as a dig that has led to the creation of a beautiful community. But it’s a choice, not an identity, to be a football fan for a lot of U.S. fans – influenced by social media instead of the scarves that are worn every weekend and flags that are posted up in every neighborhood establishment. Other sports rep the territorial pride of where you’re from, but for soccer, it’s different.
The barrier to entry is not as scary as it seems. I went to a local pub in Salt Lake City this weekend with a friend to watch a WC match. I met some locals, some who lived for the sport, and another who asked me basic questions about the tournament structure. I never would have known that there are diehard Utah Royals fans who also meet up for our away matches every weekend. Fandom lives in our communities, and there’s something for everyone. Whether it’s Leah Williamson hosting a watch party (that I’m sure will be glamorous and intimate) or going to a local pub, soccer is really there to take.
This Summer of Soccer is turning Erling Haaland from Prem villain into global darling. Haaland is nothing but passionate and always his true self. The world is seeing that on display, now that he’s not getting hated on in City blue week in and week out. But that’s off the field. On the field, this sums it up.
He’s so humble even he thinks France will definitely beat his own country, then win the whole thing.
Our US Mutant Ninja Turtles (USMNT) have won the group and are through to the knockout rounds. Part of me thinks it’s because they posed with Iman Haamam for Vogue US and did it beautifully. In the article, Roger Bennett of Men in Blazers gives a poetic prediction about how teams “reveal” themselves throughout tournaments. The USMNT’s performance in front of an amazing crowd in Seattle revealed something truly special.
But we need better chants, now that we’re becoming a soccer country. By now, I’m sure you’ve heard the unofficial anthem for Brazil, and if you haven’t…here you go. And no it’s not ‘Parado no Bailao’. But this creativity is needed on U.S. soil if we’re going to make a run for the final. England has ‘Sweet Caroline’, Norway has a stadium-sized rowboat… Guess we need a swag surf.