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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
Sport
Leander Schaerlaeckens

In the stands with my son, the Club World Cup was as human as it could possibly be

General view inside the stadium as fans observe during the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 semi-final match between Fluminense FC and Chelsea FC at MetLife Stadium on July 08, 2025 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Chelsea and Fluminense played in front of over 70,000 people in hot temperatures. Photograph: Patrick Smith/FIFA/Getty Images

My son had never been to a professional soccer game.

Soccer is, shall we say, not really his thing. It’s also never been particularly important to me that he likes soccer, that he likes what I like. Our sons will be their own men, come what may.

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