Has football fever taken hold in the US?
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- BBC Sport reporters covering the tournament in the US said their early skepticism about World Cup enthusiasm has been overturned, with 'World Cup fever' arriving as the group stage progressed.
- Philadelphia's Lemon Hill fan festival drew nearly 55,000 people during the USA's second group match — the largest single-day crowd of any host city supporters party in the US.
- BBC reporter John Bennett, on his fourth World Cup, said stadium noise and excitement levels compared favorably to his experiences in Brazil, Russia, and Qatar.
- Grounds in New Jersey, Philadelphia, Toronto, Boston, and Miami all appeared full according to reporter Neil Johnston, dispelling fears of empty seats at US-hosted matches.
- Houston stood out as a city where World Cup buzz was harder to find away from the stadium, while Philadelphia, Boston, Kansas City, Seattle, LA, and Atlanta fully embraced the tournament.
- Diaspora fans drove much of the atmosphere — from Scotland's Tartan Army in Boston to Norway's 'Viking Row' — though BBC's Ian Dennis noted stadiums sometimes filled with non-national fans wearing country colors, diluting the traditional feel.
- The USA face Bosnia-Herzegovina in the last 32 as co-hosts, with the US men's team's strong run helping Americans get behind the team and even adopt chants of their own.
Why it matters: FIFA's decision to co-host the World Cup in the US hinged partly on whether the country would embrace the tournament, and BBC reporters found that initial doubts — from ticket prices to the NBA Finals overshadowing early coverage — gave way to genuine atmosphere in most host cities. With USA advancing to the knockout rounds, American fan engagement has a real test ahead against Bosnia-Herzegovina.
