Soccer fever is gripping the globe as the 2018 World Cup is underway in Russia. But in the United States we have a dilemma.

Our guys aren't there.

Team USA was eliminated from World Cup contention in October 2017, leaving American soccer fans with two less than desirable choices: tune out this year's World Cup or find another nation to root for.

Based on the ticket numbers, U.S. soccer fans are still VERY interested in the outcome of the tournament - buying up nearly 90,000 tickets to see the games live. That figure is second only to the host nation's fans.

And in South Dakota, our level of excitement for the World Cup is off the charts. According to numbers from Sportsbetting.ag, fans in the the Mount Rushmore State, along with those in Rhode Island, New Hampshire, California, and Nevada  have been taking to Twitter the most with cup related tweets:

World Cup Twitter
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So when we do talk World Cup on Twitter in South Dakota, which nation are we tweeting about most?

World Cup Map
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It's Argentina.

South Dakota, Nebraska, and Iowa make up this nice little pocket of blue in the middles of a country dominated by talk of Nigeria and Mexico, with a little Brazil thrown in there.

So why does the Mount Rushmore State have a soft spot for Argentina? Maybe it's the two cup championships (1978 and 1986) they've won or maybe it's because one of the best players in the world, Lionel Messi, is sporting the blue and white.

Unfortunately things haven't gotten off to the best of starts for Team Argentina in Russia. Heavy underdogs Iceland played them to a 1-1 draw in the first game of Group D play, Saturday (June 16). Argentina looks for their first win, Thursday (June 21), when they battle Croatia.


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