By Adolfo Guzman-Lopez for LAist
Originally published on July 7, 2026
Even though the U.S. and Mexico national soccer teams have been knocked out of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, their fans aren’t giving up on the tournament. Instead, they’re throwing their support behind other teams still in the competition.
But how to choose which one to cheer on? It can depend on myriad of factors, from prowess on the soccer pitch and fandom for a particular player, to hunches that involve ancestral DNA.
Cheering for the underdogs
“I’m supporting Morocco,” said Alfredo Botello, a U.S. citizen born in Guadalajara, Mexico, who was cheering on Mexico until the team lost Sunday to England.
Morocco placed fourth in the 2022 FIFA World Cup after beating a powerhouse Spanish squad in penalty kicks. Botello said he admires the team’s performance and likes its underdog status. He’s not the soccer fanatic he used to be, he said, and that’s led him to enjoy the game more.
Other fans are backing the team that’s expected to win the trophy.
At this point I would say France because of Mbappé and his stance on anti-racism and anti-gambling — and just a great player too.
— Maria Romero Morales, a Mexico team fan, who lives in El Monte
“At this point I would say [I will support] France because of Mbappé and his stance on anti-racism and anti-gambling — and just a great player too,” said Maria Romero Morales, a Mexico team fan. She lives in El Monte and was in Mexico during the group stage of the World Cup.
DNA and soccer
For some, family lineage takes precedence. “My father’s mother is 100% Norwegian,” said Jake Downey, a fan of the U.S team who organized a watch party for 14 people at his house in Northridge on Monday to watch the U.S. play Belgium.
“I’m all in on [Erling] Haaland,” he said of Norway’s striker, who scored two goals in Sunday’s 2-1 defeat of Brazil.
Some Mexico fans are supporting Norway, too, in a “the enemy of my enemy is my friend” sort of way.
“I would love for England to lose, a little vengeance there,” said Amanda Durán of England’s World Cup match against Norway on Saturday. She’s still upset at England’s defeat of Mexico on Sunday.
She lives in Torrance and her in-laws are Argentine so she’s backing Argentina too.
Other fans take into account the social and political baggage each team’s national identity represents.
“I’ve watched the World Cup since 1994 and I’m definitely a person who goes for the colonized countries over the colonists,” said Xochitl-Julissa Bermejo, who lives in the San Gabriel Valley and wanted Mexico to win on Sunday.
I’ve watched the World Cup since 1994 and I’m definitely a person who goes for the colonized countries over the colonists.
— Xochitl-Julissa Bermejo, a Mexico team fan
But her support is complicated. She’s now cheering for Belgium, despite its severe colonialist past, after experiencing its warmth on a recent trip.
“I’ve gone to Belgium and it’s a really fun place and everyone is really friendly and lovely,” she said.
Fun and friendliness is what she experienced with family watching Mexico play their last game, and she wants more of those soccer experiences before the World Cup ends.
