_WHAT’S HAPPENING_
The 2026 World Cup is doing something no diplomatic initiative or PR campaign could accomplish: showing the world that America is actually pretty great.
As tens of thousands of international soccer fans flood into host cities across the country, social media has exploded with videos of visitors marveling at everything from Waffle House to the sheer size of Walmart to the incredible kindness Americans have shown them.
_THE FACTS_
A German social media influencer went viral on X documenting his six-week tour through the Deep South, calling his 1 AM Waffle House visit a "10/10" experience.
Japanese fans have been going viral for trying and loving Texas barbecue and fast-food cheeseburgers.
Scottish fans — known as the “Tartan Army” — have flooded Boston, drinking the bars dry and parading through the city in kilts and playing bagpipes.
The Scots have charmed locals so thoroughly that Bostonians are joking about a "baby boom" of Scottish-American kids next spring.
A Scottish fan whose wife got food poisoning even praised the Massachusetts hospital that treated her as a "10 out of 10 experience."
Amid the Boston-Scotland love affair, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu (D) officially made Glasgow Boston’s sister city.
A Swedish fan went viral for discovering ranch dressing: "Why did no one tell me ranch sauce is like crack?"
Fans from around the world have made pit stops at Buc-ee's, shocked to find that America really does have gas stations the size of shopping centers.
_OUR TAKE_
Before the tournament, many international fans had preconceived ideas — mostly negative — about what the USA would be like. Many of these attitudes come from the news. But after arriving, many have found the reality far different.
Visitors have been struck by Americans' friendliness, the country's abundance, and the enthusiasm locals have shown toward foreign fans. From barbecue in Kansas City to Southern hospitality in Atlanta, they're experiencing parts of America rarely seen by international tourists.
The result has been a flood of positive social media posts, proving what most Americans have long known: America is a truly great country.
