The Fifth Taste of Football

The author recounts watching an England vs. Mexico match, struggling with the choice between supporting his English friend or his Mexican friend. The host nation's loss at the Estadio Azteca sparked conflicting emotions, from joy for his English friend to frustration for his Mexican one. The text concludes by citing Galeano to illustrate this football paradox: the urge to embrace a rival or wish failure upon a rival hero. catcross.org