"Each to their own, of course, Al, but football, under its various names, is the most popular sport in most countries. Where did you live, may I ask?"<br/><br/>"I was happy for Messi too, Jaclyn, as he seems a much more likeable man than Ronaldo, and I thought myself that Mbappe's time will come, even though I don't like this trend of concentrating just on star players in what is a team sport. "<br/><br/>"I enjoyed this World Cup more than I was expecting to, although it was very unusual with all the games so physically close in a country with no real football tradition, and with a limited number of travelling supporters, with the odd exception like Argentina and Morocco. I was also struck by the number of surprise results, perhaps because it took place in the European winter when the strongest leagues are in progress, so the national teams have less time to prepare, with special praise going to Morocco as the first African or Arab country to reach the semis, and Croatia, as a country with a relatively small population, who surpass expectations every tournament. After all that though, Argentina, one of the traditional powerhouses still go on to win it!"