For all of you who live under a rock, tomorrow is the World Cup final. Our family has thoroughly enjoyed watching all of the matches in this year’s tournament, and we are sad to see the whole thing come to an end tomorrow!

So here are a few reasons why we love the World Cup…

1. We get to learn about countries all over the big, wide world that don’t normally come up in everyday conversation.

 The kids filled albums with players from all the different countries participating, and they learned a little bit about each country in the process. Now they know where each country is located and what they call themselves in their native language.

2. Soccer is not only a great sport, but also a really, really big deal here so it’s a great chance to cheer along side all of our friends and join in the drama.

Tori and her friends screaming as they watch the opening game of the World Cup in their classroom at school.

One of last week’s headlines showing the pure terror that Brasil fans experienced at their devastating loss.

3. It gives us a great opportunity to serve our homeless friends and neighbors.

Soccer connects us all and this month we have been opening up the Lighthouse Project to show the World Cup matches on T.V. We loved decorating the center for the tournament, and we have loved cheering on all of our favorite teams alongside our friends.

4. We are proud to be Americans.

The American team had a great run this year, and we loved cheering for our home team, driving all over the city to find U.S. soccer jerseys, and representing the U.S. of A. here in a foreign land.

5.  We are proud to live in Latin America.

The great soccer traditions and players are so important to the culture here, so if the U.S. can’t win, we are hoping to see a Latin American team lift the cup tomorrow. Vamos Argentina!