2018 World Cup: The Untold Stories and True Golden Boot Winners
OK, when you first hear me speak, it’s pretty clear right away I’m from England. Yes. Born and bred (GO, MAN U)! Like my fellow mates across the pond, I was absolutely obsessed with the World Cup this year. While the England squad didn’t hoist the big trophy, the young lads did all of us proud.
As I’m still reeling from the event, I couldn’t help noticing that some of my favorite behind-the-scenes moments I witnessed at the Cup are still with me. Maybe it’s because they relate directly to some of our core values here at The Fahrenheit Group: Integrity, Flexibility, Accountability, Community and Entrepreneurial.
In my mind, there were some big winners – especially in the Integrity, Community and Entrepreneurial categories. Big enough to warrant their own Golden Boots! Here are some of the best moments of the World Cup – some you already know or may have missed.
Integrity Golden Boot Winner: Japan
Integrity and Accountability were demonstrated in multiple actions at the World Cup – but most especially through the Japanese team’s and fans’ amazing post-loss actions.
Many of you saw Japan make it through Group H to lose to Belgium in a thrilling 3-2 match. What a lot of us didn’t see was how the team and their fans acted not only after the game, but also during the entire tournament. Japanese fans were seen clearing up their stadium sections after each game. They weren’t required to do so, but they wanted to leave the stadiums in the same clean shape in which they’d found them.
What truly resonated with me was how, after losing to Belgium in the knockout rounds, the team from Japan cleaned up their locker room and left a thank-you note for the host nation. This is the embodiment of our Integrity value of doing what’s right!
Community Golden Boot Winner: Croatia
The World Cup also personifies the value of Community. It’s one of a few events that unite people across the world, and it’s something that ties communities together despite lots of differences we all have.
A key action that directly correlates to our values is players and teams donating their winnings to charities. Croatia – if you happened to not watch the World Cup – placed second, and the team donated all of its revenue from the World Cup to charity. France’s Kylian Mbappé, the team’s 19-year-old wonder child, donated his earnings to charity, as well! These efforts show that through power of people, teams and individuals were able to give back to amazing causes.
Entrepreneurial Spirit Award: Coach Didier Deschamps of France
At the beginning of the World Cup, lots of people favored the big teams: Brazil, Spain, Argentina – and the reigning champions, Germany, to win it all. None of these high-ranking teams came through, but entrepreneurial thinking led a youthful team to win it all.
“Entrepreneur,” in its briefest definition, is someone who takes a risk – and France’s coach, Didier Deschamps, is a risk-taker. Closely behind the Nigerians, the French team was the youngest in the tournament. This was risky, due to younger players sometimes being seen as having no experience and losing their way on the big stage of the World Cup. With high risk comes high reward, and the French team came away with the biggest reward of all.
I hope you enjoyed the games as much as I did. What was your favorite moment? Send me a note. I’d love to hear about it!
About the Author
Lewis Jordan is an experienced recruiter with a background that started in IT staffing. He is especially skilled in walking candidates through the full recruitment lifecycle, from sourcing and screening to salary negotiation. Lewis prides himself on building advantageous relationships for clients and candidates. Email Lewis Jordan.