Michael Jordan’s face was visible in the stands for Jordan vs Argentina at the 2026 World Cup, but not because the NBA legend was in attendance.
Jordan has a close business relationship with Paris Saint-Germain with his eponymous Nike-affiliate brand, but his appearance at the World Cup was because of a hilarious fan.
Fans of the national team Jordan used a clever sign to send a message to His Airness Michael about his name and their country.
A Jordan fan sends a message to Michael Jordan
FOX’s broadcast of the Group J game between Jordan and Argentina caught a fan holding a sign where a highly-memed photo of Michael Jordan crying with a message about who deserves the name Jordan.
“Sorry Michael, we were Jordan first.”
This is a lighthearted joke pointing out a very obvious correlation between the name of arguably the greatest basketball player ever and a nation of almost 12 million people.
Michael Jordan won’t really care about a soccer fan poking fun at him like this, but the joke does fit the situation perfectly. The country obviously predates the athlete, but the name rings loud in the USA because of the basketball player and not the country.
Jordan’s first-ever World Cup run ended without a win
The 48-team World Cup presented a golden opportunity for multiple nations to reach their first-ever World Cup, with Jordan being among the nine AFC teams to earn a spot at the greatest soccer tournament in the world.
Jordan had a tough group against Argentina, Austria, and Algeria, with all three teams comfortably beating their national team.
It was still an impressive showing, as Jordan made sure they scored in each of their three losses, playing a brand of vibrant attacking football which impressed fans.
They didn’t have the talent to compete against the nations in their group while playing that style, but their first-ever World Cup appearance will continue inspiring a generation to pick the sport up.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
