International visitors came to the United States for soccer. Some saw beyond the clichés, too

From across borders and oceans, they came to the United States to watch soccer. Along the way, they have encountered American classics: the first bites of Raising Cane's chicken, wide-eyed tours through the outsized commercial landscape that is a Buc-ee's travel plaza, and the realization that pretty much everything American is enormous.

But World Cup tourists from other lands have taken in more than just the food and the size.

Their views of the United States — in many cases forged through the sometimes distorted establishing shots presented by the news media, TikTok and fuzzy word of mouth — are now informed by what they've seen with their own eyes. And in many cases, the spectacles have contradicted — or at least augmented — what they knew when they arrived.

Many landed expecting the politically fractured country that global headlines often trumpet. Instead, they found Uber drivers brimming with recommendations and locals willing to open their homes to strangers. Even as game attendees grappled with the sticker shock of ticket prices, some Americans they met didn't even know the World Cup was going on — or didn't care.

Here's what some tourists told The Associated Press about their experience in the United States over the past few weeks — and what impressions they'll take home when they go.

From Asia and across Europe and Africa all the way to Latin America, in thousands of social media posts, most World Cup tourists have agreed on one thing: Americans are hospitable. Locals cheered alongside international fans for their teams at sports bars, parades through city streets and, of course, World Cup matches.

Sebastian Reader, a 28-year-old from London, has long been fascinated by American culture and decided to make a three-month trip out of the World Cup. He has followed the English team wherever it played and said he's experienced friendliness in bigger cities like Chicago and Boston as well as less-populated states like Arkansas.

In Dallas, a person he met in a Mexican restaurant showed him his truck and revved the engine for him. Another local he met at a bar invited him and his friend over to his front porch, where they talked about movies and sports until 2 a.m.

“That felt like a proper American experience in Dallas,” Reader said. “He had, I would call it like a proper American setup, like a TV outside, a beer fridge, massive fly zappers, and then massive fans as well.”

Harry Gunns, 30, also of London, visited Texas and California in the past year. But he said visiting for the World Cup was the first time he experienced “hospitality in its absolute abundance,” from Uber drivers to hotel staff. On his posts online, Americans have responded with tons of recommendations for places to visit and where to eat, and some have even invited him over for a homecooked meal.

“It almost feels like you’re home straight away, is the best way I can describe it,” Gunns said. “Because in the U.K. specifically, it takes a while for people to warm up to you, but over here you get that immediately.”

Many locals he spoke to didn’t know the U.S. was hosting the World Cup, but Gunns hopes the influx of tourists opened up Americans to the beloved sport.

Zineb Benlamlih, a 28-year-old from Morocco, visited New York for the World Cup and found herself salsa dancing with a group of 50-year-olds in Central Park. “It’s so nice being able to talk to anyone, like a stranger would be your family,” she said.

Victoria Phillips-Hunter from Carlisle, England, raved about the hospitality staff, having worked in hospitality herself.

“Honestly I completely understand why the staff in America work and survive off the tips because they absolutely deserve the tips,” said Phillips-Hunter, 34. “And they make you want to be there and you know they put 100% effort into looking after you.”

Tourists blamed news coverage for the sense that American politics is divisive but said the reality on the ground felt different.

Phillips-Hunter had been nervous before her trip because of videos she had seen on social media of people who had been dragged out of cars or shot by Immigration Customs and Enforcement officers.

“All of that was portrayed on videos on social media, it came across that it can happen absolutely anywhere. So you always have to have your wits about you and just be a bit wary,” she said. But she added that her experience in the U.S. was so positive that she hopes to do a longer trip.

Gunns believes some have boycotted visiting the U.S. because of President Donald Trump.

“I think in the media we get an impression that (Americans) are very proud Americans, and Texans are very proud Texans, which is brilliant but oftentimes that gets portrayed as they don’t like anyone else or maybe (are) not as accepting about everyone else," he said. "But that couldn’t be further from the truth.”

Benlamlih had friends from Chad and Somalia eager to attend the Cup, but they were unable to enter because of U.S. travel restrictions.

“You have this aspect of, ‘Oh my God, I want to go to the World Cup,’ which for Morocco is such an amazing experience,” she said. “And on the other side, you have such a bad global image of the U.S. at the moment, like obviously from a political point of view.”

Rafal Kolankowski, originally from Poland, said that despite the reputation of the U.S. in other countries, “there’s a reason why so many people want to move here.”

“Obviously, you have propaganda in other countries. ‘USA this, USA that.’ They come to the U.S., and they have a positive opinion on how the U.S. is," said Kolankowski, who now coaches varsity boys' soccer at Plum High School outside Pittsburgh.

Reader said that though he came in expecting to see political polarization, he found Americans to be friendly throughout the republic.

“There’s an impression of what’s going on here that is, I guess, quite divided,” he said. Americans were curious to know what he thinks of Trump, or America's robust car culture as opposed to London’s public transit.

He solved one problem with a simple decision that he has stuck to: Avoid conversations about politics. That's something many Americans can understand, too.

Associated Press writer Will Graves contributed from Pittsburgh.

Spain fan reacts after the team scored their first goal during the World Cup semifinal soccer match between Spain and France at a watch party at the Rockefeller Center fan village, Tuesday, July 14, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)

England fans react after England's Anthony Gordon scored the opening goal during the World Cup semifinal soccer match between England and Argentina in Atlanta, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

England soccer fans celebrate during the World Cup semifinal soccer match between England and Argentina at The Clock pub in Hebburn, England, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Scott Heppell)

A French fan shields themselves from the sun during the World Cup semifinal soccer match between Spain and France at a watch party at the Rockefeller Center fan village, Tuesday, July 14, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)

Fans of Argentina celebrate after they defeated England in their World Cup semifinal soccer match in Atlanta, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

LONDON (AP) — Veteran Labour Party politician and popular former Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham is set to become Britain’s next prime minister on Monday, formally taking over from Keir Starmer, who announced his resignation last month.

Burnham was the only candidate to secure enough support from his fellow Labour lawmakers to replace Starmer as leader of the governing party. Because Labour holds a majority in government, its leader also becomes the U.K. prime minister.

Burnham received support from 349 out of 401 Labour Party lawmakers, and was announced Labour leader at a special party conference on Friday. He didn't officially become prime minister right away, though — that happens on Monday, when he meets King Charles III at Buckingham Palace for a formal go-ahead. Until then, Starmer remains caretaker prime minister.

A look at how and why Britain is getting a new prime minister just two years after Starmer led his party to a landslide election victory:

Britain’s parliamentary democracy allows governing parties to change leaders midterm, with the winner becoming prime minister without the need for a general election. Prime ministers can be replaced if one has resigned as leader of their party, or been forced out by a leadership challenge.

The next national election does not have to be held until 2029, five years from the last election in 2024.

Starmer announced he was quitting as Labour leader on June 22 after barely two years in power, ending a tenure marred by a series of political missteps -- most notably his decision to appoint a man with close ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as Britain’s ambassador to the United States.

Heavy losses suffered by Labour in a midterm set of local elections in May prompted many lawmakers to demand Starmer's resignation. And when Burnham — favored by many within Labour to lead the party and the country — won a special election for a seat in Parliament, Starmer gave in to the mounting pressure to quit.

His resignation automatically triggered a Labour leadership contest. Under Labour rules, a lawmaker can challenge the leader if they have the backing of a fifth of the party's House of Commons lawmakers. There was no other contestant other than Burnham, who comfortably surpassed that threshold.

It’s not unusual for prime ministers to come to power without a broad election under Britain’s parliamentary system.

In fact, four of the six British prime ministers in the past decade took the top job by winning internal party leadership contests to replace their predecessors, not by public vote.

In the 2010s, both Theresa May and Boris Johnson became prime minister after winning Conservative leadership races when their predecessors resigned midterm.

When Johnson announced he was quitting in 2022, the Conservatives held a leadership contest and the party's members chose Liz Truss to replace him. And when Truss stepped down, just 49 days later, she was in turn replaced by Rishi Sunak via a similar process.

Burnham will thus become the seventh prime minister in a turbulent decade of U.K. politics, marked by a rapid succession of leaders who all, to some extent, failed to successfully manage the messy aftermath of Britain's decision to divorce from the European Union.

After years of leadership churn, the sequence of traditional events involved in the transfer of power has become familiar for many in Britain.

On Monday, Starmer will say his farewell speech to the public before going to Buckingham Palace to hold a short meeting with the king and formally resign.

After Starmer leaves, it's Burnham's turn to arrive at the palace, where Charles will formally ask him to form a government. The private ceremony is known as the “Kissing of Hands,’’ in accordance with historic tradition, though no hands are actually kissed and the men are more likely to shake hands.

When Burnham leaves the palace he will have become the 59th person to hold the office of British prime minister. He then rides in a car to his official home at No. 10 Downing Street, where he is expected to make his first statement in office.

The whole sequence is typically broadcast live on television — and will be over within hours.

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer, right, and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy greet each other in Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday July 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer smiles during a press conference with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv, Ukraine, Thursday July 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)