06/18/2026
“We Feel Like We’ve Been Lied To About America” ~ FIFA fans
🇺🇸 FIFA international fans experiencing America for the first time has been one of the most heartwarming things to watch.
I moved to the U.S. in 2022, and for the longest time I genuinely thought I was alone in how I viewed this country. Then thousands of football fans from around the world arrived, and suddenly I started seeing people express the exact same things I’ve been saying for years.
They’re talking about strangers saying hello on the street. People holding doors open for each other. The friendliness of everyday interactions. The sheer convenience of life here.
They’re amazed by how vast and diverse America is. In one country you can spend a weekend at the beach, go hiking in the mountains, visit a national park, go camping, fishing, skiing, take a cruise, attend a Broadway show, watch a major sporting event, visit world-class museums, and experience cities that feel completely different from one another.
A lot of fans are also talking about how clean many areas are, how well-maintained the roads are, how much space there is, how organized the infrastructure feels, and how easy it is to travel long distances. Many are surprised by the scale of everything—from the stadiums to the highways to the national parks.
What stands out most is how many visitors are saying that the reality feels completely different from what they expected. I’ve seen countless comments from people saying they feel like they’ve been lied to about America. They arrived expecting hostility, chaos, and division, and instead found friendly people, vibrant cities, incredible landscapes, and communities that welcomed them.
And there lies the power of the media.
If you only listen to the news, you’ll probably end up hating America. If you actually meet Americans and experience America for yourself, you’ll probably love it.
That’s not because America is perfect. It isn’t. No country is. America has real problems, just like every other nation. But the version of America that many people around the world consume through headlines, social media outrage, and viral clips is often a distorted picture of everyday life.
Most Americans aren’t spending their days arguing online. They’re working, raising families, helping their neighbors, holding doors open for strangers, making conversation with visitors, and trying to build a good life.
Watching international football fans discover that for themselves has been genuinely refreshing. It’s a reminder that reality is often much kinder than the image we’re sold.
Sometimes it takes seeing your home through someone else’s eyes to appreciate what you have. And seeing these fans experience America with fresh eyes has honestly made me proud to be living here.
