The Alamo City hosted a friendly match between Mexico and Argentina at the Alamo Dome on September 10th. The venue was packed, and Mexican fans were in full force. The energy and excitement was invigorating and infectious. I cannot believe that I failed to take pictures of the Mexican fans who wore luchador masks, draped in the Mexican flag, and chanting in the streets as my wife and I made our way to the stadium.

When Argentina scored the first goal, I jumped up and cheered. As I began to sit down, I realized not only that I was outnumbered by the Mexican supporters but also I was getting weird looks and confused faces looking at me. I understand. I am wearing my San Lorenzo jersey, cheering on Argentina, and I look Mexican.

Why don’t I support the Mexican national team (el Tri)? The answer is not short and simple involves my nationality, my ethnicity, where I have lived, and of course football/soccer.

Los Angeles!

I am an American, born and raised in the Los Angeles–the best city in the world. So I should really support the USNMT–right? I don’t, but the reason I will admit is petty. I don’t like the USNMT’s chant–it takes too much work and requires someone to lead in order to get it right. I cheered on the USNMT in the world cup while living in Dallas. That chant, I just can’t. So, I started to follow the Black Stars–Ghana’s national team. They were my team until 2018.

El Tri

I am of Mexican heritage. So I should support el Tri, right? I tried. I cheered them on in the 1994 world cup–the Mexico vs Ireland was a fun match. Mexico had a great squad under Ricardo La Volpe. The squad played fast and deployed a great offense. I was proud supporter. I owned the jerseys, and went to every match they had in LA.

I was so disappointed when el Tri let La Volpe go. Rumor has it that he was let go because he was Argentine, and how dare Mexico not have a Mexican coach. I wasn’t impressed with the results. I tried to hold and and get excited but I couldn’t. I jumped ship to the Black Stars.

The Black Stars did not disappoint. They played well and made it to the cup. They would have advanced in the cup if it wasn’t for Suarez’ handball in 2010. I stuck with Ghana.

Argentina

in 2018 I moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina and lucky for me it was a world cup year. I loved experiencing the world cup in a country the loves football/soccer–it was amazing. Before moving to Argentina, I was warned about the snobby Argentinians that would treat me bad because of Mexican heritage. I did not know what to expect when I moved there.

When I walked off the plane in Ezeiza, the sudden realization that I was no longer in the U.S. hit me. The feeling was overwhelming. I can read, write, and speak Spanish, but everything is in Spanish in Argentina and for a second I questioned whether or not I can live in an all Spanish world. Well, take a deep breath and suck it up Marine.

In Argentina, the people welcomed me. They were friendly and kind. Some could tell I was a Yankee, but most thought I was a Mexican national. I tried to attend a River Plate or Boca Jr match, but I had no luck. I was invited to San Lorenzo matches and I loved it. I was later told that most Americans my team knew supported San Lorenzo. They assumed it was the team colors–red, white, blue. Argentina’s national team is my team. Why? Because I’ve lived there, I been to a Superliga match, I’ve watched the world cup in Argentina, and the people accepted me.

I could go on about culture, and how it is a human construct–I won’t. Oh, the final score was ARG 4 – 0 MEX.