The players haven't even hit top gear yet, and the 2026 World Cup is already delivering moments that have nothing to do with the football itself.
Fans have taken over. Fully, gloriously, and in some cases, leaving local beer distributors in genuine crisis.
Scotland vs. Boston's Beer Supply (Beer Lost)
The Tartan Army descended on Boston for Scotland's Group C opener against Haiti, and the city's bars simply weren't ready. Not even close. Tennent's lager — Scotland's unofficial national drink — was wiped out by local distributors. Bar owners reported running out of stock mid-session, with one summing it up plainly: "The fans are unbelievable. They're drinking, partying, and having a great time."
That wasn't the end of it either. More than 10,000 Scots in kilts, playing bagpipes, marched into Fenway Park to watch the Boston Red Sox take on the Texas Rangers on June 14. Most of them had never watched a baseball game. None of them cared. They sang John McGinn songs and belted out "Country Roads" loud enough to leave players from both teams visibly stunned. Texas Rangers won 6-4. The Scots won everything else.
The Tartan Army has always travelled well. But this is a different level.
Merlin, the Duck Who Stole the Tournament
Mexico beat South Africa 2-0 in the co-hosts' opening match, and the celebrations in Mexico City produced an unlikely star: a domesticated duck named Merlin, dressed in a miniature Mexico jersey and custom duck socks, waddling down Reforma Avenue like he owned it.
His owner, street merchant Karla Gomez, didn't plan any of this. "For us, it has been a surprise, truly," she told Reuters. "The fact that Merlin is the unofficial mascot of the World Cup... we feel very pleased about such a situation, and above all that people love my duck."
Mexico's official mascot has been thoroughly upstaged by a duck in socks. That's just where we are.
The Moments You Don't See Every Tournament
Japan's supporters have done what they always do — quietly made everyone else look bad. After matches, they pull out trash bags and clean the stands before leaving. The men's team left their locker room spotless without being asked. It's rooted in Shinto culture, where everyday objects carry spiritual weight. It's also just deeply decent, and it lands differently in a tournament where stadium clean-up is usually someone else's problem.
Then there's Norway. Following their 4-1 win over Iraq — Erling Haaland getting two, naturally — the traveling Norwegian supporters launched into a synchronized rowing routine in the stands, mimicking the stroke of a Viking longship. They rowed in the seats. They rowed up escalators. It's now spreading to other venues across the U.S., quietly becoming the signature fan ritual of the tournament.
And in Lisbon, a small group of Democratic Republic of Congo supporters watching on a big screen among Portuguese fans lost their minds when Yoane Wissa scored a stoppage-time equalizer — the first World Cup goal in Congo's history after a 52-year absence from the tournament. They were watching against Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal. They held on for a draw. The footage of those fans in that moment is genuinely moving.
One Japanese supporter named Hirochika Nakakuki, speaking to FOX 4 ahead of Japan's 2-2 draw with the Netherlands, delivered the most honest TV interview of the tournament: "I cannot speak English but... I AM EXCITED."
Same, Hirochika. Same.
