The Magicians
Italy 1990 was the first World Cup I watched. I have not missed a single game played in any World Cup since — nine tournaments, more than five hundred matches, most of them in the middle of someone's night. A week before the 2026 tournament kicks off in Mexico City, a note on the magicians who kept me awake.
Next Thursday, Mexico will play South Africa at Estadio Azteca in the opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The kickoff is at 3pm local time. The stadium has hosted two World Cup finals — 1970 and 1986 — and is about to host the opener of the first 48-team, 104-match, 39-day, three-country tournament in the sport’s history. I will be in at my home in India — the TV may be a little different, but watching games well into the early hours of the morning will feel very familiar.
The first World Cup I watched was Italy 1990. I was a kid in India. The matches kicked off after midnight, India time, and ran past 3am. I stayed up. I missed school. The day after the final on July 8, 1990 — Andreas Brehme, weaker foot, 85th minute — I did not show up for the first day at my new middle school. I have written about this before, so I will not belabor the personal part. The relevant fact for this essay is the next one.