June 27, 2026

IT’S BEEN A NICE PREAMBLE FOR AMERICA’S 250th ANNIVERSARY: World Cup Tourists See What Too Many Americans Have Forgotten.

Americans are routinely told that our nation is hopelessly divided, irredeemably flawed and perhaps even in terminal decline. Public polling reflects this pervasive frustration, pessimism and anomie. If someone halfway around the world only followed the polls, he might be forgiven for believing our republic is all but over.

But something remarkable is happening during the 2026 World Cup, which is jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico. Fans from all across the world have arrived in America — and they are absolutely loving it. We too often take our way of life for granted, but many soccer tourists now here cannot stop marveling at what they see.

The unlikely symbol of this phenomenon is “Freddy,” a young German soccer fan who has become an internet sensation while documenting his first road trip across the United States. Freddy’s viral social media posts have attracted tens of millions of impressions because they reflect something both rare and refreshing: genuine, boy-like wonder. As he has crisscrossed the American South, Freddy has gushed at everything from Waffle House and Taco Bell to Buc-ee’s, Bass Pro Shops, sprawling football stadiums and the impressive size of regular, middle-class American homes. Americans, accustomed to taking all these things for granted, have watched with glee as a slack-jawed foreign visitor experiences it all for the first time.

But Freddy the German is hardly alone.

It’s been a fun month, hasn’t it?

Posted at 8:44 am by Ed Driscoll