The Texas family that hosted a future World Cup star
A North Texas family from Rowlett is cheering on Swedish defender Hjalmar Ekdal at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, over a decade after hosting the soccer star in their home during the local Dallas Cup youth tournament.
ROWLETT, Texas – Back in 2014, one Rowlett family opened their home to a teenage player during the Dallas Cup.Â
Now, more than a decade later, the family is watching him on soccer's biggest stage, along with the rest of the world.
What we know:
For one family, that short visit turned into a World Cup memory. Long before, defender Hjalmar Ekdal was number 14 for Sweden.
He was a teenage Dallas Cup player staying with the Blue family, here in North Texas.
For Ryan Blue, who also played soccer at the time, some of the fondest memories involved showing their Swedish visitors a very Texas version of America.
“They were so much fun and just so lively all the time,” said Blue. “It was fun to see their reactions. I remember they loved seeing the big Dooley trucks, they had never seen them before. They loved to see those.” Stegall: “Barbecue?” Blue: “Yeah, barbecue, they loved the barbecue.”
“We definitely brought out the pitching machine. They wanted to try it out. I had an old bat and an old helmet, and they threw it on,” said Ryan.
“Yeah, it’s, I mean, really cool to see him on TV, for sure. I mean, he looks exactly the same as he did when he was 16,” said Blue.
Dig deeper:
Although they have lost touch over the years, the Blue family will be cheering on the blue and yellow from their Rowlett home, as their former house guest chases his World Cup dream.
The Blue family tells FOX 4 that their visitors couldn’t believe how large the Dallas-Fort Worth region really was. Something we’re hearing from a lot of international visitors.
When does Sweden play next?
Sweden opened group play by beating Tunisia last weekend in Monterrey.
The Source: Information in this article was provided by FOX 4’s Casey Stegall.
