Free Tickets for Reading Comic Books with Kids? Now That’s What I Call A Winning Goal!

Hearing about big sports games, playing fantasy sports computer games as a kid, and even occasionally (get this) watching them on television, I never thought I would someday get tickets to a game itself, let alone one for a “Big Game” like the World Cup. After all, my family cares so little for sports that my mom married my dad because he didn’t know when the SuperBowl was (really), and I can count the names of soccer players I know on my fingers. And yet, last July, I won an extraordinary time with that.

Earlier that year, I had done some charity work in the city, doing a library activity as preparation for my eventual library job. (I’m a real sucker for volunteer work, if only because it can help open up doors for a real job.) Basically, I would help a child read in the library and then do a Mother’s Day craft with them while we enjoyed a snack together. The child I worked with, being a kid and all, wanted to read Pixar comic books and Super Mario stories. (Not sure how I could put this on a resume, but that’s another story- no pun intended.) And so, a few months later, I got an email saying that I was in the running for World Cup tickets! (As anyone in 2026 knows, that isn’t exactly small potatoes.)

Not gonna lie, I was a bit skeptical at first. With the internet, no one knows you’re a dog, and it can be difficult to know, especially if you’re gullible like me, what can be real and what can’t be. But eventually, I talked with the man in charge of the lottery through Zoom, and he was quite impressed with me, all things considered! I had won the tickets, and was all set to attend the game.

After meeting a friend of mine and getting a nice limo ride to and from the game (they were really spoiling us here), we waited several hours just to get in! Granted, there were a ton of people there, and only a few could be admitted at a time. But we were able to kill time by calling my aunt, talking with my friend about how World Cup biographies can help make reading fun for kids, (they have biographies about everyone now!) and even getting interviewed on television! (You wouldn’t believe how excited my friend was about that- or how I was, for that matter.)

The game itself was fun, but awfully overstimulating- talk about a panic attack! (Spoiler: I never had one.) Not to mention, while I initially wanted to watch the whole game all the way through, there were breaks in between with no set time. I wanted to take

advantage of them to get food, but it was so daunting to get back to my seat that I often missed some parts! Oh, well I guess I can see the parts I missed online.

Then, of course, was the whole situation of trying to get back home in the end. Our limo had been parked outside the American Dream parking lot mall, which is to be expected had a lot of cars- naturally, it took a while to find the limo. To be fair, I had inherited my mother’s poor sense of direction- you should’ve seen her in the parking lot after I saw the Justin Bieber (Never Say Never) film 15 years ago! (Still love you, Mom.)

While I don’t really follow the players’ lives outside of soccer (or inside soccer, for that matter), one player I really admire is Marc Cucurella. He’s not quite as famous as Messi (then again, aside from David Beckham, which soccer player is?) but he’s been a fantastic support system for his autistic son. He’s been very open about how his disability has impacted his life and being there for him as a bona-fide family man. For starters, the reason he keeps his iconic messy, dreadlock-like hair is so that his son can still recognize him on the field. Aww, how sweet!

In short, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I would cherish for my whole life. It may not have been easy, but it was definitely worth it. Talk about a winning goal!

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Jennifer Rose is an autistic author and novelist whose work explores identity, imagination, and what it means to think differently in a world built for everyone else. Her novel Manimal Crackers draws on her own experience as an autistic writer to tell a story about impulsivity, mentorship, and finding your footing. She is also the author of It's Not a Perfect World, But I'll Take It (Skyhorse Publishing), a memoir in fifty life lessons about growing up autistic. Jennifer is currently developing a literary magazine, Autonomy, for autistic writers and readers.