IN BRIEF
- The World Cup final between Spain and Argentina kicks off at 5am Monday morning (AEST).
- While Spain has only won the cup once before, Argentina is vying for its fourth victory.
Whatever the result in the FIFA World Cup final, it will be a win-win for Sydney couple Sandra Hurtado and Fernando Travasso.
On Monday morning (AEST), Spaniard Hurtado will be wearing a La Roja jersey while her partner, Travasso, will be backing his native Argentina as the two sides meet at New York New Jersey Stadium.
Their three children — twins Sofia and Carla, 10, and Marco, 11 — have grown up with both cultures. While that makes for some divided loyalties in the household, their parents stress that there's no bad blood.
"For me, especially, it feels like the cup is already home because whoever wins doesn't matter for us," Hurtado told SBS News.
"Whoever wins is a win for us ... I'm gonna celebrate anyway."
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Her daughter Sofia also doesn't mind which way the results go.
"I just want both to win, and even if one of them loses, I think they can improve next time and get better," she said.
"As both of my siblings said, it's very hard to choose."
A 'great excuse to be even more connected'
Hurtado and Travasso arrived in Australia in 2008 and have spent almost two decades building a life together while keeping their Spanish and Argentine traditions alive.
Travasso said the World Cup had become another way to stay connected to family on the other side of the world.
"I think it's a great excuse to be even more connected," he said.
"We've been heavily involved in the community [and] integrated into Australian society, but we still manage to keep our identity and [pass on] the values and history of each of our cultures.
"Every day we have conversations with our relatives. When the World Cup comes ... and we have both countries together ... we're going to be using WhatsApp ... at the same time."
The final also promises some friendly rivalry at home.
"Once we sit down there with our different T-shirts and all the things, I still think that would be a nice competition, it would be a little bit spicy, and we are going to have good fun," Travasso said.
Growing up in Spain, Hurtado said football was deeply embedded in the culture.
"In Spain, for us, football is the same as AFL [is for Australia]," she said.
"Spain has amazing football players, and we have amazing teams that are very good [in the European tournaments]."
She said that, before winning the World Cup in 2010, Spain had "never made it too far".
"Hopefully now, we're gonna win."
'It's part of the identity'
While Spain is chasing its second title, Argentina has a chance for its fourth.
It would also be a second consecutive championship for Messi's side after their 2022 win — a feat that would make it the first nation to go back-to-back since Brazil in 1962.
Like Spain, football is more than just a sport in Argentina.
"It's part of the identity," Travasso said.
"Through different cities in Argentina, you can find big murals or big paintings on the wall with [Lionel] Messi.
"A few memories that I have when I was little ... were a TV, white and black, with [Diego] Maradona playing."
Hurtado said she hopes her children take away something more important than the result.
"I think Argentinians are the same [as Spanish]," she said.
"Both Argentina and Spain have demonstrated that they are fighters.
"In life it's not about one person, it's about a team. When someone wins, it's not just the person who scores the goal; it's everybody working together towards the same goal.
"That's what we're trying to [teach our children]."
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