From Egypt to... Spokane? How the World Cup is building bonds that go beyond the soccer pitch

How much soccer have you been watching these days? For millions of American soccer fans (and probably billions elsewhere), the World Cup has already been memorable: Cabo Verde advancing against the odds, Messi setting records, the U.S. team displaying some world-class offensive magic. In fact ALL of the host countries’ teams – USA, Canada and Mexico – have made it to the knockout rounds. Seattle has played host to four matches so far, and things seem to have gone smoothly here. That’s despite all the anxiety in the lead up, over things like crowds and security.  Now, are we at the point where we might be able to say it’s kind of fun to be a host city?  Other parts of Washington have been playing host as well, including Spokane: the official tournament base camp for the Egyptian national team, with the team training at Gonzaga University’s Luger Field. GUEST: Mitchell Roland RELATED LINK: World Cup 2026 - Special coverage at The Spokesman-Review Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.