Auburn was on the international map this past week during the pre-FIFA World Cup 2026 friendly action. Lionel Messi's much-anticipated appearance on Pat Dye Field, where he scored within two minutes of entering the game in the 70th minute on a penalty kick en route to a 3-0 Argentina win over Iceland, helped create a viral moment.
German soccer fan Freddy (@FreddyLA7 on X) live-tweeted his experience at Jordan-Hare Stadium, complete with the infamous Eagle flight from the north end zone upper deck, before going on a road trip down to the Gulf Coast. The trip included a night in Fairhope, Alabama, before he and his mates made it to New Orleans through Mississippi on Highway 90. Freddy's posts have accumulated millions of views over the past week, and the New Orleans Saints and Pelicans even hosted him at their facilities after his posts from the Auburn friendly started breaking containment. The Gulf Coast has perhaps never had advertising as effective as this.
Freddy lauded the South for its hospitality, which is a common occurrence for those descending on the Plains and many SEC stadiums on gameday. However, USA Today's Christine Brennan went on a CNN panel and made it seem like it was a surprise that fans and people in general weren't hostile to a foreign visitor.
"I saw some conversation, Wolf and Pamela, about how the rest of the world is looking at the United States and feeling that we are—it's a foreboding image and that we are inhospitable...But how wonderful again, that sports can bring people here and show people that the United States and you know, the South is welcoming a German tourist in a way we would never have anticipated," Brennan said on the panel.
Auburn reporter drops the hammer on anti-South take on CNN
On3's Justin Hokanson clapped back at Brennan's take on Freddy's trip and tagged her on X, saying, "(Christine Brennan) continues to sound completely detached from reality and is exhausting to listen to."
Brennan is a Northwestern graduate and Toledo, Ohio, native, so perhaps this is a Big Ten vs. SEC bit. That's the most innocent out for her here, and, unfortunately, probably not the case. This may be as simple as someone with different political views and a different value base negatively judging people who think differently from her.
That makes the prominent takeaway from Freddy's experience clear as day. What Brennan did herself was not what Jordan-Hare Stadium goers, Auburn, or anyone in the South did to Freddy. That's what made his trip such a feel-good story.
As the FIFA World Cup 2026 carries on, Auburn can't help but feel like hosting a friendly was the best decision possible. The hope is that the financial infusion from this past Tuesday will move athletics forward, particularly football.
The reality is that Freddy's depiction of Auburn on social media made the friendly a smashing success regardless. No matter what any sports columnist has to say about it on CNN airwaves.
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