'Even the Coke is big' - visiting World Cup fans take in US culture

ShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleKwasi Gyamfi AsieduWashingtonAyoub Baghdad has only just arrived in the US to follow his home team in the World Cup. But already he's been stunned by one big thing - and it's not at all related to football - the sheer size of basically everything in the States.

"Everything is big, even the coke is big," Baghdad says, referring to the carbonated beverage. He has found the roads, trucks, and buildings to be much larger than anything he's used to seeing back home in Morocco.

About 75% of the 2026 Fifa World Cup matches are being played in the US with Mexico and Canada sharing the remainder. With that comes more international fans in the US keen to explore American culture, landscape and all the country's oddities.

It's made for viral videos on social media, with foreign football fans trying everything from Waffle House and finding a new obsession in ranch dressing to being blown away by giant supermarkets and large restaurant portions.

The preoccupation with sizes, in particular, was something many international fans remarked about when interviewed by the BBC about their reflections on visiting America.

"A place like this could ONLY exist in America and I LOVE it," said Shaun, a vlogger from Scotland after visiting a Buc-ee's, a convenience store, restaurant, gas station, and supermarket all wrapped in one. The popular chain, mostly found in the South, has a cult-like following in the US, with fans often posing with its Beaver mascot outside many locations.

For some football fans, food is one way they are exploring the country.

"I find that the food generally is significantly better than in England," says Ire Balogun, who is travelling from Oxford.

"I'm surprised even with their fast food, there's just so much more flavour. I am sure it's not good for you in many other ways … but the flavour comes through across the board, whether it's Chinese or [Hispanic] food."

João Valentim and his friends, a group made up of Portuguese graduate students traveling from Madrid, have also been trying "mostly fast food, chain restaurants that we don't have in our own country."

So far, they have been to chains including the Tex-Mex staple Chipotle and the famous hamburger shop Shake Shack, as well as small, independently-run restaurants.

"It what we are used to seeing in movies or TV shows," Lourenço Silva, from the group says. "It's a part of the experience of coming to the US."

But the restaurant experience has also stunned travellers. Some have posted online about the free chips and salsa that comes at Hispanic restaurants or the free re-fills offered at nearly every eatery.

For Christian Boateng, who is from Ghana but lives in England, it was the portion size.

"The portion we bought, we couldn't finish everything," he said. "It's not like that in England."

He added that he was also intrigued at the American practice of not including sales tax in the listed price of an item, something that is commonly done in England.

Balogun noted that he's noticed the mood in the US has been more muted compared with previous World Cups he's attended, even with the country hosting the largest share of matches. He was in Russia in 2018 and in Qatar for the 2022 tournament.

But that is an Americanism of its own, in a country where football isn't the national pastime and competes for popular attention with several other major sports, including baseball which is currently in season, and American football, which is the most popular sport in the nation.

That was perfect for England fans Jason Barnes and Harry Beckley, who accidentally found themselves in a crowd of basketball fans in New York's Times Square as the Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs to win their first NBA title in 53 years.

"It's the craziest celebration I have ever seen or even been a part of," said Barnes, who was travelling from Portsmouth. "We know basketball is huge in America, obviously not so much in the UK. It was unreal… I might even start following basketball now because of it."

International fans are not sticking to sites close to the host cities alone and major metropolitan areas. They are eager to branch off to the US heartland for unique 'only-in-America' experiences.

For Tomás Soares, José de Araújo Vitória and the rest of their Portuguese group, those roads lead to the US south - to Georgia, Florida, and the Carolinas.

"We are gonna eat some more normal and more traditional American things like barbecue and maybe a seafood boil," Soares says. "That's the thing that like most of us are looking forward to."

Ayoub Baghdad, the fan from Morocco, says although US prices are definitely higher compared to his last World Cup experience in Qatar, it is still worth the journey.

"You can make your own budget to come watch maybe one game or two games and have the experience with you for your whole life because it is not gonna happen again."

With additional reporting from Madeline Gerber and Meiying Wu