A Warm World Cup Welcome Endears US to Fans

When international soccer fans depart the US after the World Cup, they'll be heading back with souvenirs, good memories and, for many, changed opinions of the country. In Massachusetts, Scottish fans have been adorning locals with bagpipes and Tartan Army chants. Boston has been fabulous, absolutely brilliant, beautiful city, beautiful people, so friendly and welcoming. I don't think we could have asked for a better place to come to enjoy the World Cup experience. Many international fans once questioned the US as co-hosts over worries of visa access, high costs, gun violence and a lack of local interest in the sport. High ticket and travel prices have also prevented some from making the trip. Those worries have not been entirely dispelled, but as the World Cup continues, so do more feel-good stories of abroad fans enjoying the US. In Philadelphia, international fans got their hands on a world-famous delicacy, the Philly cheesesteak. And in Atlanta, this fan from South Africa got her first taste of a Southern American breakfast. Just trying everything that we see on TV, that we see on Instagram, that's exactly what we're doing. Whether such positive press can restore a reputation battered by an often confrontational America-first government remains to be seen, but some sports analytics experts told Reuters that research has consistently indicated that hosting a major sports event can genuinely shift long-held stereotypes.