Dudu Shirazi, a longtime Israeli Messi supporter known locally in Dallas as “Dudu-Dallas,” was among tens of thousands of Argentina fans celebrating after a 2-0 win over Austria. Minutes after the final whistle, he described Messi’s latest decisive performance as “pure madness,” saying the team finally looked perfectly synchronized and that the finishing touch came when “someone opens their legs, the ball goes to the right place, and it’s a goal.” He joked that his voice was almost gone from cheering and hoped to recover it by the next match.
Shirazi’s attachment to Argentina and to Messi goes back more than four decades. He said it began in 1982, when he saw Diego Maradona on television and felt he was watching something unlike anything he had ever seen. “As a child who fell in love with football, the connection was immediate,” he said. Over the years, Maradona died, Messi arrived, and World Cups came and went, but the bond remained. “It has become part of me,” he said, adding that people often ask why he feels so strongly even though he does not speak Spanish.
He has lived in Dallas since 2001, after moving there on an Amdocs relocation, and works as a software engineer. Outside work, he coaches football, currently running two under-14 teams, after first starting with his daughter. He said the World Cup is changing Texas, noting that Dallas is beginning to understand how big football is. The stadium, usually associated with the Dallas Cowboys, is now showing the world what a major venue it is, and even small neighborhood bars are carrying football on television.
Shirazi refused to predict how far Argentina will go, saying, “I never make forecasts.” Still, he said his heart is where it should be and that he will follow the team wherever it takes him. After another night in which Messi delivered, Shirazi was just one of many who seemed ready to go all the way with Argentina.
