How a love affair between Algeria and Lawrence became the story of ‘26 World Cup
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- The team arrived in Kansas City and were welcomed by thousands of Lawrence natives.
- Algerian players engaged with Lawrence culture at KU facilities and local events.
- More than 2,000 fans donned Algerian scarves at the sold-out Rock Chalk Park session.
In a matter of days, the Algerian national soccer team has captivated the city of Lawrence, Kansas, with World Cup fever — a whirlwind romance that’s blossomed before they’ve even played their first match in Kansas City.
From the moment they arrived on Sunday, members of the African nation’s team were welcomed by thousands, including a large contingent of Algerian immigrants now calling the KC metro home. Gatherings of Algerians and newfound fans have sprung up around the metro, including at Olathe’s Kanza Mediterranean Market.
Lawrence natives have appeared on Algerian television, telling reporters how excited they are to have the team in the city for its World Cup prep. Team Algeria — its coaches, players and support staff — is making its base camp in Lawrence for the duration of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
William Jewell men’s soccer player Ocean Comfort has become a face of the area’s warm nature. He told Algerian outlet El Heddaf TV that he hopes the “Desert Foxes” win their group — a formidable pod that features defending champion Argentina, along with Jordan and Austria.
Algeria’s first match is against Argentina on Tuesday night at Kansas City (Arrowhead) Stadium.
“A good nation, a good team. I feel like they’re good people. So I’d love to support ‘em,” Comfort said as the team arrived at Rock Chalk Park in Lawrence on Thursday for an open practice. “If they wanna come to Lawrence, obviously we love them, we support them. We want them to win and go far.”
Local businesses like Johnny’s Tavern have come out in support, too. The bar posted a video on social media welcoming the team to Lawrence in English — and the players’ native languages of Arabic and French.
“We look forward to hosting you!” a group of staff members and ownership said in the video.
Johnny’s co-owner Rick Renfro has been involved in the city’s preparations to welcome the team. He solicited native speakers from the University of Kansas to appear in the video, which has garnered millions of views and positive international attention.
Soccer is typically being shown on at least a couple of screens inside the 14 Johnny’s locations around Kansas and Missouri.
“We’re just trying to make people ... know, ‘Hey, this is a place for you to come watch and enjoy it, have good food, good drink, along with it.,’” said managing partner Jason Hoffman.
Members of the Algerian team are reciprocating Lawrence’s appreciation by engulfing themselves in KU’s Jayhawk culture. “Rock Chalk Algeria” is becoming a common phrase around town.
Algerian players this week received a tour of KU’s facilities, kicking field goals and throwing American footballs at the under-construction David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium. They tried their hand at basketball at historic Allen Fieldhouse and even hit the batting cages at Hoglund Ballpark.
Soccer fans in America and Algeria, the largest nation on the African continent, have been astounded that such global stars as Ibrahim Maza and Riyad Mahrez are settling into Kansas life. Mahrez is regarded as one of the greatest Algerian players ever.
But the logistics line up for both sides to take advantage of the cultural exchange. Over the summer, Lawrence, like other college cities, switches from the liveliness of young students to the day-to-day of residents who have made a life there. This inevitably leads to a quieter scene during the summer months.
The World Cup provides ample opportunity for soccer fans, any sports fans, to go full-throttle into the quadrennial tournament. And it helps that Algeria chose to make its base camp just outside of Kansas City, the self-dubbed Soccer Capital of America, a community that consistently rallies around local sports teams.
Even Algeria’s national motto — “By the people and for the people” — plays into the symbiotic relationship between Lawrence and the temporary soccer entourage. Les Fennecs (another name for the team that translates to "The Desert Foxes” in French) exemplified this by hosting the most intimate community-training session thus far of KC’s four base-camp teams (along with Algeria, the Dutch, Argentine and English teams are stationed in/around KC).
Fans filled Rock Chalk Park on Thursday to watch the Algerian players play “footvolley” over short bridges for approximately 45 minutes while music from Algerian artists played. It was a recovery session for the team a day after beating Bolivia 4-0 in a friendly at CPKC Stadium — the final match before their World Cup opener.
Tickets to Thursday’s practice were free but sold out. More than 2,000 donned Algerian scarves that were passed out to attendees. Fans wore kits of all kinds. Most prominent were national team jerseys and jerseys for Algerian club JS Kabylie.
Some Algerian immigrants, such as Massi Saber, have been surprised by the connection. Saber is from Tizi Ouzou and went to KU before finding a job in Kansas City.
“Lawrence is one of the best cities in Kansas City that I’ve visited before,” he said, noting that he plans to attend Algeria’s KC matches (against Argentina on Tuesday and Austria on June 27).
“I think the people over here are very nice and very welcoming, and we really appreciate that.”
After their quick training session, the Algerian players signed autographs and took pictures with fans before spending time with more than 50 young players from the Sporting Kaw Valley youth soccer organization.
Algeria national team players who have starred for some of the biggest clubs in the world and their country — like Mahrez, Paris FC’s Samir Chergui and Manchester City’s Rayan Aït-Nouri — took time to kick a ball around with the young players and sign their jerseys.
Soccer fans bring a different kind of passion than fans of “traditional” American sports. Landing an autograph or picture with their hero brought some to tears of joy Thursday. Mahrez thanked the community for the hospitality.
On the pitch, Algeria is the 28th-ranked soccer team in the world, per FIFA — and one of the best in African football. Algeria has won two African Cup of Nations titles (most recently in 2019) but is appearing in just its fifth World Cup.
It’s their first World Cup since 2018, when they reached the knockout stage and lost to Germany in extra time.
After meeting Argentina Tuesday, the Desert Foxes will play Jordan in Santa Clara, California, on June 22. A match back in KC follows.
If they can make a run to the World Cup’s knockout round, they’ll have a home base of fans in America. That fandom began in Lawrence and spread through the KC metro; and with a knockout run, it could consume the entire U.S. next.
“We have really young players, but they all play in really big teams, especially in Europe,” Saber said. “So we hope that they will be better.
“They will do the best they can to win to go as far as they can in the World Cup. They are very motivated, they’re ready to challenge and we hope they will make us happy — and all the Algerian people happy, as well.”
This story was originally published June 13, 2026 at 5:30 AM with the headline "How a love affair between Algeria and Lawrence became the story of ‘26 World Cup."
