For Silvina Di Pietro cheering for her national team is one of the best ways to support her country.
Di Pietro was born in Argentina but moved to South Florida 14 years ago. She still supports her birth country's team, especially during the World Cup.
“Argentina is one of the most beloved, devoted people that love soccer,” she says. “For us it's like a religion."
She says soccer is the world’s No. 1 sport, and the best thing about it is it brings people together.
“I like that for one month the world is together,” she says. “All the corners of the world are going to be watching this single event.”
Hear her cheer for the Argentine team here:
Mitchell Rivera agrees that soccer brings people together.
“Sports can show that instead of conflict around the world, we can just play soccer,” he says. “I can go anywhere in the world and they can understand soccer.”
Rivera moved to the U.S. from Colombia when he was 3 months old. He supports the U.S soccer team because he considers himself American, and he is proud of it.
“Everybody in the soccer team has a family of immigrants,” he says. “And that is something I can relate to since the U.S. national team is a melting pot.”
He says the World Cup is a unique sporting experience because, unlike the NBA or the NFL, people don’t cheer for a certain team or city -- they cheer for their country.
“I hope that’s exactly what soccer and the World Cup does to you,” says Di Pietro. “It reminds yourself of what you should be proud of, if you’re really proud of your country.”
Listen to their story:
Other soccer fans use different cheers for their national team.
Listen to Mexican fans supporting their team:
American fans believe in the USA team:
And listen to American fans react to Portugal's last minute goal.
