Every four years it happens. The football finally arrives, the whole planet seems to pause, and something rather lovely occurs. Strangers become mates, rival fans end up arm in arm, and songs you had not thought about in years suddenly become the soundtrack to a shared moment of pure joy. The 2026 World Cup, being hosted across the United States, Canada and Mexico, has already proved itself a wonderful example of this. So grab a drink, settle in, and let us take a look at five ways this tournament brings out the very best in all of us.

1. A Truly Global Get Together

This year's tournament is the biggest one yet, with 48 teams taking part for the first time ever, spread across 16 host cities and three countries. That is a lot of fans travelling a very long way from home, and honestly, watching them all mingle together has been one of the loveliest parts of the whole thing. Supporters from every corner of the planet are turning up in matching shirts, painted faces and flags draped over their shoulders, all united by the same daft, wonderful hope that their team might just go all the way.

Take Scotland's famous Tartan Army, who have been doing what they do best and turning up in full voice wherever the action takes them, most recently bringing their unmistakable energy to the streets of Miami. There is something brilliantly British about a group of fans who can turn a group stage fixture into a full blown party, complete with kilts, bagpipes and an endless supply of good humour, regardless of the score.

2. Norway fans and the Viking Row

One of the standout stories of this tournament has been Norway's supporters and their now famous Viking Row. Picture the scene. A traditional Norse horn sounds, thousands of fans sit down together in formation resembling a longboat, and then a drum begins to beat, slowly at first before quickening with every strike. As the tempo rises, the fans row their arms back in perfect unison, chanting Row with increasing intensity until the whole stand erupts. What makes this story even more charming is where it came from. It was not some ancient tradition passed down through generations, but the invention of one enthusiastic supporter, an elementary school teacher named Ole Frøystad, who dreamed it up in a bar in Oslo less than six months before the tournament began. He wanted something that would put Norway on the football map for their first World Cup appearance since 1998, and my goodness did he succeed.

The Viking Row has since travelled well beyond the stadiums, popping up on escalators in Boston, in the middle of Times Square, and even interrupting the polite applause at a PGA Tour event, where golfer Viktor Hovland later credited the electric atmosphere with helping him to a playoff win. It is a gorgeous reminder that the best traditions often start with just one determined fan and a good idea, and that a bit of togetherness can spread further and faster than anyone ever expects.

3. When old songs become new anthems

Perhaps the most heartwarming trend of this World Cup has been the way certain songs, some of them decades old, have been resurrected as unofficial anthems, uniting fans who might otherwise have nothing at all in common. Take John Denver's Take Me Home, Country Roads. Written back in 1971 as an ode to West Virginia, it has become the postmatch celebration song for the United States men's national team, played through the stadium speakers as players applaud the crowd. What started in Seattle after a win over Australia has since spread to every USMNT match, with fans and players singing along together in scenes that have been described as genuinely moving.

The lovely twist is that this is not just American fans joining in. Supporters from around the globe, many of whom had never given the song a second thought, have found themselves belting out lyrics about a place most of them have never visited. It seems this trend was actually inspired by England fans, who were spotted serenading their own team with Oasis's Wonderwall earlier in the tournament, a moment that reportedly caught the eye of FIFA organisers and set the whole idea in motion. Typical England, starting a trend and then watching the rest of the world run with it. These moments matter because they show football's unique ability to turn a stadium full of rivals into one enormous choir, if only for a few minutes.

4. The kindness that spreads beyond the stadium

It is not only inside the grounds that we see the best of ourselves during a World Cup. Host cities become hives of hospitality, with locals going out of their way to welcome visiting fans, offer directions, share recommendations for the best local chip shop equivalent, or simply strike up a conversation on public transport. Volunteers work tirelessly behind the scenes to make sure everything runs smoothly, and there is a lovely sense of civic pride as towns and cities put their best foot forward for the watching world. Social media, so often a place of division, transforms during a World Cup into something rather more joyful. Timelines fill with fans from different nations wishing each other luck, sharing videos of chants and celebrations, and generally revelling in the shared spectacle rather than picking sides in the usual sense.

5. We have far more in common than what separates us

At its heart, the World Cup reminds us of something simple but easily forgotten in our day to day lives; whether it is Norwegian fans rowing an imaginary longboat, thousands of strangers singing about a state most of them have never visited, or simply a shared smile with someone wearing an unfamiliar shirt, these moments of connection are what make the tournament so special. 

As we head towards the final, keep an eye out for these little sparks of togetherness. They are happening in stadiums, in fan zones, on street corners and on social media feeds all over the world. They are proof that when football gets it right, it brings out the very best in every single one of us.