As part of our Language of Soccer World Cup series, The Athletic is speaking to supporters of all 48 nations competing at the 2026 edition to capture their unique football culture, distilled into a single phrase. You can read the articles in one place here.Pasion – PassionOne of the lasting memories of the 2022 World Cup came on November 26, when Argentina met Mexico. Having lost their opener to Saudi Arabia in the same stadium four days earlier, Lionel Messi and the Albiceleste were facing a shock group-stage elimination. Doha’s Lusail Stadium, the site of the final, set the stage for a do-or-die match for Argentina.After a scoreless first half, the tension inside the ground was palpable. The 88,966 fans in attendance witnessed a nervous Messi carefully navigate Argentina’s anxiety-ridden performance. The chants from Mexico’s supporters grew louder. A draw would be a positive result for the Mexicans.But in the 64th minute, everything changed. When Messi’s shot from outside the Mexico penalty area skipped past an outstretched Guillermo Ochoa, the roar from the Argentine supporters reverberated throughout the stadium. The nation of Argentina collectively exhaled. The Argentines inside Lusail Stadium turned their worry into song — one that lasted 10 minutes after Messi’s strike. That goal changed the course of Argentina’s World Cup as Messi would lift the trophy five matches later. Messi’s goal against Mexico — and the cathartic response from Argentines at Lusail — epitomized the passion that consumes Argentines when their national team plays.Among those who cried tears of joy that night were five members of La Banda Argentina, a Buenos Aires-based supporters’ group. Founder Christian Crivelli, 35, described Argentina fandom to The Athletic as “an uncontrollable passion that’s inside one’s heart.” He followed that up by saying Argentina fans follow their national team with “blind faith,” which can only lead to two outcomes: heartbreak or ecstasy.Argentina fans show their passion for their team at the 2022 World Cup final (Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)“What Argentines do is illogical,” Crivelli said. “We do the opposite of what’s considered rational in order to be there alongside the national team, in the most remote corners of the world. I’ve been to the most remote places on Earth because Argentina played a match there — and I’d never imagine going back.”They are quite possibly the most passionate fans in world football. “There’s a word that might sound a little worn out, but it’s what sums all of this up — passion,” said La Banda member Nicolas Orellano. “The word that describes all of this is passion,” echoed Javier Mahmud, 39. “We see the national team as something that we belong to, something that makes all of us stronger.”While the men in the group of fans we spoke to focused on culture and history, for 32-year-old Vanina Paolillo, passion is personal. “Nothing else in my life affects me the way Argentina does,” she said.“Never in my life would I have spent a month in Doha if not for the Argentine national team,” said Fernando Gomez, 43. The collective character of die-hard Argentina supporters is part of football folklore. For Orellano, it’s something that runs deeper than sport. “The football culture that exists in South America, and more precisely in Argentina,” Orellano said, “transforms the sport into a ritual and part of our very identity. I’ve been on the verge of tears after celebrating a goal with a complete stranger.”