COLUMN: The World Cup is here and it’s awesome

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I’m hyped for the World Cup, and I want you to be, too.

For the nations that aren’t used to footballing success, an appearance in the World Cup is an opportunity to showcase their team and their country on the world stage.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVq0MrmezpI

Iceland is one of the best underdog stories of this year’s tournament after a miracle run through the 2016 European tournament earned them a spot in the World Cup. (That epic Icelandic slow clap celebration with their fans still gives me chills.) It’s been estimated that upwards of eight percent of Iceland’s population was in France for the first game of the knockout rounds while 99.8 percent of televisions in the country were tuned in to see the historic 2-1 victory against England.

AP Photo/Darko Bandic,File

FILE – In this Nov. 19, 2013, file photo, Iceland’s Aron Gunnarsson, left, is challenged by Croatia’s Luka Modric during their World Cup qualifying playoff second leg soccer match in Zagreb, Croatia.

In a world where a simple picture of a dress can ruin friendships (it’s black and blue if you care), that kind of unity and togetherness is awe-inspiring.

Picking a favorite sporting event is as impossible as choosing the best dog photo on the internet — they’re all good boys! — but the rarity of the World Cup makes it truly special. The month-long spectacle kicks off on Thursday and will culminate with more than one billion people watching the final game on July 15. One billion people! I’m not even sure a televised alien invasion could convince that many people to agree on the same channel. And, while the numbers might be down slightly this year, half the world’s population turned in at some point during the 2014 tournament.

The Beautiful Game is the only truly global game.

One of the wonderful aspects of the World Cup is how easy it is to jump into the tournament without any prior knowledge. Watch a couple of games and I guarantee you’ll see something amazing, like Tim Cahill’s wonder-goal, the full-speed diving header by Robin van Persie or the WAIT-DID-HE-REALLY-JUST-DO-THAT goal by James Rodriguez in the last World Cup.

And every game is a special experience on its own. The players all talk about their pride in wearing the national team jersey, but it’s the fans taking their national pride to extreme levels that makes every game feel special and important, while the global television audience creates a College Gameday atmosphere times 100.

Unfortunately, the United States won’t be playing in the World Cup this year after a tumultuous and unsuccessful qualifying campaign. I’m disappointed we won’t get the excitement of being in the World Cup and it’s not fair that a player as talented as Christian Pulisic will have to watch from the outside. (It also sucks that we’ll never get to see the memes of Chancellor Angela Merkel staring down President Donald Trump we would have gotten if the U.S. had made it in.)

But don’t let the absence of the United States diminish your enjoyment of the World Cup. The next month is going to be an awesome celebration of sports and humanity.

I’m hyped. Let’s get hyped together.

(If you need a team to root for, our sports manager Jaden Johnson put together a helpful guide.)

Thomas Sorenson is a graduate student in the MBA program. He loves pizza, puppies, his wife and Donovan Mitchell, but not necessarily in that order.