Looking at the World Cup from Boston
By Talia Whyte

Boston soccer fans gathered at the House of Blues on June 12 to watch the exciting Argentina vs. Nigeria World Cup game. Not surprisingly, not many of the attendees were American citizens. While the global community will be captivated by the games for the next few weeks, America has not caught on to the excitement of World Cup or soccer in general. Many people say that the reason for this is that soccer – or football to the rest of the world - is a hard sport to follow. I remember going to see a soccer match outside Cape Town, South Africa five years ago and also having the same feeling of puzzlement. To me, at least it is easy to understand when someone scores points during a basketball or baseball game.
But then again, American football makes no sense to me either.
Also during that Cape Town game, I noticed the humming noise of South African vuvuzela trumpets. The annoying loudness of the horn is a central part of African soccer culture. A Namibian friend who was attending the game with me said that blowing the trumpets shows attendee pride in the sport and adds to the drama of the game.
However, in the last few days, the world has also come out against the trumpets, saying that the horns actually distract from the game. While some would say when in Rome (South Africa), do as the Romans do, people are now campaigning to ban the vuvezela during the game.
“Please, South Africa, make them stop,” said Associated Press sports commentator John Leicester. “Give us a song, instead.”