(First Written Jul 15 2026, X)

At the start of the World Cup, I was suffering kind of an identity crisis, I have lived in the United States of America for fifteen years but I was born and raised in England- the thing is I have been away from home for so long I began to not really feel English anymore, it has been so long. At the time I wanted to support the team and the nation that has given me a home for years, I am not yet a citizen but that is in the works, I want to be an American- I respect everything about the country. At the time I was dabbling with Political commentary, and I was quickly let know that I should go back to England and foreign opinions did not matter, I followed the US team all the way through regardless of what was said to me. That kind of reignited my passion for the game in a big way although I have followed the beautiful game for decades, never miss a Villa game. Politics is full of darkness, it is an unpleasant world where nobodies' opinion really matters, everybody is pushing their agenda, and they will step on whoever they have to just to get ahead and that is not just what I am about. I have suffered with severe depression for years and 2026 has been awful so far. Football or Soccer is none of that, it is about positivity and bringing people together for the love of the World's game, the more I watched, the more I began to enjoy these games. At first, I was critical of the ceremonies, critical of hydration breaks (Still not a fan), and I wasn't enjoying the broadcasts but as the tournament went on it grew on me, even Mr. Alexi Lalas, I can give respect when I have to- I have tried berating him all tournament, just banter. That is the thing, a lot of people have tried to say that Americans have tried to Americanize the World Cup experience but isn't that kind of the point- they were one of the host nations, they are hosting the Final- should they not be allowed to give us the authentic American experience? After all, if it was in England I would want the World to experience an authentic English experience, they may hate the food, the beer, the accent or the weather but I would want to showcase us, that is the beauty of the World cup. Every nation on Earth can be their authentic self, fans, players- it doesn't matter, a mix of culture, each unique in our own way- showing us what it means to be human- a shared experience for everybody. Regardless of race, religion or nationality, together for a shared love of competition and sportsmanship, why shouldn't Americans have a right to make it their own?

I must admit I was critical and negative about this tournament, even living here for fifteen years I wasn't getting it but everything turned out to be spectacular. I did not like these influencers that kept changing allegiances, changing shirts and making fools of themselves but even that grew on me after I realized how many eyes, they were putting on the sport, it became entertaining as FIFA leaned into it bringing a new type of fan into the sport- a modern fan and that is not a bad thing. We have everything at this tournament, we have seen controversy, we have seen legends fall, many of us became honorary Vikings or tried to out drink the Scottish, we laughed, we cried and we yelled but most importantly we came together and we talked. Many corners of the globe united, for a few weeks it's all we cared about- I would call that a win, and it's not quite done yet. I want to take this time to thank America for hosting this tournament, it was held on the 250thBirthday of this nation, and they invited the World to the most incredible Birthday party- the biggest tournament for the most possible invites- a worthy party and I am incredibly grateful. We even had a President, many of whom we disagree with and many of us disagree with his actions during this World Cup but the one positive is he tried to learn and he tried to be involved much like most Americans who openly admit they do not care about the sport, and maybe they don't but what they do care about is community, partying and competition- the last one is the most American thing I know. The comments online have shown us that a lot of US fans are clueless about the sport, is that really such a bad thing? We can come together and teach them, we can help grow the sport in the country, keep talking about it online and keep that passion. We can remember this as a tournament from a country that had no real idea, but they tried and that made it awesome. Americans may seem ungrateful to their team, they may see it as a failure and feel they could have gone further and maybe they are right- we will never know but even if their team did not win the tournament on their birthday America won. The biggest win of all was the success of this tournament, it ended up being one of the best tournaments I have witnessed and I have watched every single tournament since 1990, the only one I missed was the 1994 USA tournament, England did not make it and as a child the times were just too late but even with that, I have a lot to compare this to. On the day that England went out of the competition, old enemies, new friends- I felt it an appropriate time to write this letter to the President and the people of the great country of the United States of America, I want to thank you for this experience, for allowing me to live legally in the country for many years- the next stop for me will be working for my citizenship, this tournament has helped show me exactly what it means to be American and I love it- I am still very English but being truly American is about shared passions, shared goals and shared experience- you just have to earn it and play by the rules and you can quite literally have the World at your feet. America in hosting this tournament has showcased itself to the world, we saw the authentic America, and we got treated to the best party of the year. For me this tournament has meant so much more, new goals, promoting Soccer in the United States through writing and coaching youth again as a volunteer as I did when I first came here, I was not allowed to work- so I volunteered to pass my knowledge of the sport to kids. I want to live in a country where the sport matters so I have to nurture that, we as a collective need to nurture our communities in a positive way and this can be a vessel for good, such as Football, Hockey or other great American pastimes. This is just the beginning of what is possible and I am sure the USA will have their time- they have a habit of winning. For now, a simple thank you to the United States, The President and the people. I have met many great people online and even though we never physically met I feel we have shared some great times. I want to also take a second to thank Mexico and Canada for supporting the US in hosting this wonderful event, without your shared cooperation this would not have been this spectacular. On a personal note, I hope I visit the Azteca one day, wow. For now, my work is not done, I will keep writing, that is my American dream- to become a citizen and live free and write. Once again thank you for the Freedom to do this and courage to continue. “Land of the Free and the Home of The Brave”

A passionate English hopefully soon to be American (If you accept me) Soccer fan that has the passion and drive to help grow this sport.

Thank you.