Rons Bantwal
Mumbai, Jul 20: Football enthusiast and celebrity hairstylist Dr Shivaram K Bhandary, managing director of Shiva's Hair Designers Pvt Ltd and a native of Karkala on Karnataka's coast, fulfilled a lifelong dream by witnessing the FIFA World Cup 2026 final live at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, USA, cheering for his favourite team.
A passionate football fan since childhood, Bhandary travelled to the United States to experience the world's most prestigious football tournament firsthand.
The 23rd edition of the FIFA World Cup, jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, was held from June 11 to July 19. This edition featured a record 48 teams and 104 matches, compared to 64 matches in the previous tournament. Fascinated by the expanded format, Bhandary entered MetLife Stadium to watch the final, played late on July 19 (12.30 am IST on July 20), making it an unforgettable experience.
Although matches were broadcast live on giant screens at MetroWest Regional Fan Zones and through live streaming, Bhandary chose to experience the excitement inside the stadium. He also enjoyed the food trucks, beer gardens, handicraft stalls, various exhibits, and numerous live entertainment activities organised as part of the FIFA World Cup celebrations.
The tournament concluded with the final between Argentina and Spain, with Spain emerging as the world champions. Bhandary was among the Indians present at the grand finale and attended the match along with his friend, former MP Rahul Shewale.
According to those close to him, Bhandary, who had long enjoyed watching football matches through the night from India, made the trip to the United States with just a couple of days' preparation to witness the historic final live among lakhs of football fans.
His association with football goes back decades. In 1984, Bhandary spent four years in Qatar working on construction projects at the Al Sadd Stadium. Later, he had the opportunity to watch the 2022 FIFA World Cup live at Lusail Stadium in Qatar. Having first experienced Qatar as a worker and later returning as a successful entrepreneur to witness the World Cup has remained one of the proudest moments of his life.
Known as a football fanatic since childhood, Bhandary had also earned widespread appreciation nearly three decades ago by creating FIFA-themed hair designs for football lovers.
Now, after attending the FIFA World Cup final alongside fans from across the globe, Bhandary expressed happiness and pride at representing India on one of world football's biggest stages.