The Beautiful Game, a Beautiful Cause: Why I Root for Argentina

No sporting event on earth is more tangled up in politics than the World Cup—so we ought to support a team that epitomizes “the beautiful game” in addition to standing with a beautiful cause. Viva Argentina! Before the start of the World Cup, I broadcast my rooting interest with the obnoxious insistence of a nuclear-powered vuvuzela: Argentina all the way. I wanted Argentina to win because their style of soccer speaks to the full potential of the beautiful game. I wanted Argentina to win because few people in the US could pick Lionel Messi out of a lineup, and he might be the most electrifying athlete on earth. I wanted Argentina to win because their coach, the walking, talking telenovela, Diego Maradona, is just too entertaining to see pushed off the stage