The World Cup reveals how ideas about identity and belonging are changing globally.

Many viewers are seeing national teams that challenge old assumptions about culture.

Cultural humility begins when we question our surprise instead of defending it.

Curiosity about differences can strengthen empathy, connection, and respect.

As a longtime soccer fan, one of my favorite parts of the World Cup has little to do with goals, standings, or championship predictions.

I enjoy watching the world show up on one field and encounter itself.

Recently, I was talking with family members who had watched some of the World Cup matches. They commented on the number of Black and Brown players representing countries they had always imagined as racially homogeneous.

One remarked, “I didn’t realize there were so many Black players on that team.”

Another wondered aloud whether some of the players were actually from the countries they represented.

The comments were not hostile. They reflected genuine surprise.

What struck me was that I was surprised by their surprise.

As a long-time soccer fan who has followed international soccer for years, I have become accustomed to seeing multicultural teams. Many international leagues have long reflected the realities of migration, globalization, and multicultural societies. For many American viewers who only tune in during the World Cup, however, these changes can appear sudden.

Yet what we are witnessing on the world’s biggest sporting stage is not simply a shift in soccer. It is a shift in how we understand identity, nationality, and belonging.

More importantly, it is an opportunity to practice cultural humility.

The concept of cultural humility was introduced by physicians Melanie Tervalon and Jann Murray-García (1998) as an alternative to the idea of cultural competence. Rather than assuming we can become “competent” in another person’s culture, cultural humility emphasizes lifelong learning, self-reflection, openness, and a willingness to recognize the limits of our own perspectives.

In other words, cultural humility asks us to approach........

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