LIFESTYLE
SPORTS There is much to be said about sports in Houston, starting with the two World Series dominated by Houston-pride Astros in 2017 and 2022, to the purchase of the Rockets by Tilman Fertitta in 2017, and many things in between over the course of the last ten years. One of the most significant has to do with the sport that is taking over America and Houston: Soccer. This sport, by far the most popular in the world, is also becoming the most popular in the country and our city, equally played by people of all ages, all races, and genders. This boom in the US and particularly Houston over the last decade has led to next year’s Copa America 2024, the most important tournament that in-
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cludes most countries from North, Central, and South America, to be held in the US from June 14 through July 13, 2024, with some of the matches to be played at NRG. Argentina will be defending the current title. In addition to this event, and certainly much more important, the 2026 FIFA World Cup -the 23rd quadrennial international tournament of the men’s soccer championship contested by the national teams from 48 countries (16 more than the 32 nations that played in Qatar 2022)- will be -for the first time- jointly hosted by 16 cities in three North American countries: Canada, Mexico, and the United States, thus named “The United 2026”. Argentina is also the actual world champion after defeating France in 2022.
