World Cup: Cultural Sharing

First of all, people from all over the world are playing the same game, using the same equipment and the same rules. The players and fans speak different languages, but the game is the same. Everyone is participating in a shared experience. Yes, it is a sport; but is much more important than that. The country that wins this year will be able to brag about it for the next four years. (It won't be a repeat champion, however, since France, the 1998 champion, didn't even make it to the second round. Click here for up-to-date results.)

The World Cup is like the Olympics in a way. Players play games in between, yes, but the World Cup is the pinnacle of their sporting world. They all want to win it, and it happens only once every four years.

Another example of cultural sharing can be found on the streets of many cities in Japan and South Korea, the host countries. Now, these are large cities and large countries, and they get foreign visitors all the time. But the crowds for these games are definitely large, and the thousands of people speaking many different languages are populating the cities and towns of these two proud countries, bringing their own home cultures with them and transforming the entire area into one big melting pot.

In the end, the players will play the games and a winner will be crowned. After it's all over, people will return to their home countries and people in the host countries will go on with their lives. But a little part of everyone will be changed. Players and fans from Mexico will have learned a little (maybe even a lot) about many other countries. People who live in Japan and South Korea will have learned a little (maybe even a lot) about people who live in other countries. The great cultural exchange very likely will have contributed to a greater understanding of the world around us, all because of a few games.

Graphics courtesy of ArtToday