On the evening of July 10, Belgium played Spain in the quarterfinals of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Two friends and I squeezed into a small neighborhood bar on Avenue Georges Henri in Brussels. The air carried the fresh smell of hops. Dark wooden walls glowed under warm yellow lights. The space was tight, with only a row and a half of seats apart from the bar. We ordered three draft beers and waited for the match between two of Europe"s strongest teams.

　　Spain scored first in the 30th minute. The bar suddenly fell silent. The collective tension felt almost physical. Then, in the 41st minute, Belgium launched a quick counterattack and Charles de Ketelaere headed in the equalizer. The room exploded. Cheers and screams seemed loud enough to lift the low ceiling.

　　The experience felt both familiar and exciting. It also made me wonder: In an age when algorithms narrow what we see and digital life makes social relations increasingly fragmented, what makes so many individuals leave their homes, and cram into a small bar, and hold their breath or cheer together for the same moment on the same screen?

　　Football: An emotional medium beyond language

　　

　　Belgium is a country deeply attached to football. Football arrived in the Low Countries through British merchants, workers and students in the second half of the 19th century. Since then, it has taken root for more than a century and become part of the shared experience of generations of Belgians.

　　Belgium is also divided by language. Dutch is mainly spoken in the north and French in the south, and political and cultural tensions between the two communities have lasted for nearly two centuries. Football, however, often crosses that boundary. During the World Cup, an everyday passion for the sport can quickly turn into a nationwide emotional experience.