The crowd noise hit before anything else, random bursts of song breaking out from both sides, the air thick with anticipation. That’s what being part of World Cup 2026, Haiti vs. Scotland, felt like from the inside.
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Not Your Average Game Day
Shoutout to the wife for willingly driving us; it saved me from the absurd parking price, which started at $285 for a spot that was the furthest from the stadium.
I’m not someone who hops in a car for an official game. I’ve been to a few Yankees games, but those tickets were gifts from a shareholder, not something I purchased. After Jordan’s era, memorizing stats and player names just stopped being my thing.
When we got there, the whole atmosphere felt like being in another country. Everyone looked happy and welcoming. The Scots were high-fiving TGFG Jr., chatting with him about soccer. One fellow even took my hat and put it on while chanting.
My first instinct was, who does that ish? I started to feel tense until I remembered we were in a different environment, two different countries celebrating on a foreign land. So there was no need for all that New Yorker attitude if you know what I mean.
We laughed and danced, and once it was the Haitian side’s turn to chant, he put it right back on my head, arm over my shoulder and we continued to sing.
I was having a hard time opening a beer; the fellow to my left was the solution to my struggle. My man had me hold his drink, found an edge, and popped mine open. It was so unexpected I said, “We need to snap a picture.”
The World Cup is different. This isn’t team fanaticism; it’s your home country on the world stage after 52 years. That changes everything about how the noise, the colors, and the strangers around you start to feel.
Where FIFA Needs to Improve
The only thing that almost broke this lifetime moment was getting into the stadium. First, I never received the confirmation email to download the tickets; that was very frustrating, and it took FIFA’s support booth about an hour to sort out. Then came the entrance, a crush of bodies that took me straight back to walking with the carnival flow as a kid in Haiti.
This time I had my little man with me; trying to carve out space for him in a squeeze that never let up was not an easy task. But we made it through safely.
Unbearable, maybe.
What We Paid for the Basics
Before heading to our seats, we stopped by the food cart area and got the following:
Chicken tenders basket: $13
Two small Coke bottles: $12
Extra fries: $8
Honestly, I was expecting it to be more, knowing the way the economy is and that the venue had a guaranteed pool of buyers. The cost of food and drinks was reasonable.
More Than a Game
As we all know, Haiti lost to Scotland 1-0. It was a great game; unfortunately, we’re left with many questions regarding the referee’s actions, but since I’m not a professional at the game, I’ll leave it to FIFA for hopefully a clarifying answer.
Congratulations to the players and team for their hard work and their service to their country.
All things considered, I would not trade this moment with my son for anything in the world, especially since I never expected to be part of this historic moment surrounded by so much love, unity, and pride.
The World Cup is more than just a game on a global platform; it’s the unity we all still carry to the place we call home.
Gio founded TheGrowthFocusedGuy in January 2020 because he was fed up with debt.
His mission is to document his journey to Financial Independence in order to motivate and inspire others to get out of debt and begin building generational wealth.
