'Ted Lasso' star Cristo Fernández gets candid about first World Cup experience

Actor and footballer Cristo Fernández has fulfilled another football dream after World Cup debut.

The 35-year-old, who famously plays Dani Rojas in the hit TV series Ted Lasso, recently watched Mexico's opening World Cup match against South Africa in Mexico City, which he attended the game with his sister and friends.

"It was my first World Cup match in person," he told People in a recent interview. "Watching my country win was something I will never forget."

Not only was Fernández a guest of StubHub at the World Cup opener, but he's also partnering with them on their World Cup Cuts campaign, which gives fans the chance to get football-inspired haircuts and take part in football activities.

"I went to the barber with StubHub, but I just got a trim. The dead ends," he says. He couldn't take too much off and risk messing with his go-to game-day hairstyle: half-up, half-down. "I just like some of the hair to be down flying," he explains. "But I cannot have it all [down], because otherwise I won't see."

Fernández said one of the best parts of the campaign has been meeting young fans and sharing his love of the game with them.

He also spoke about the unique feeling of watching football live in a stadium. "When you are surrounded by people cheering and chanting, you get goosebumps," he told the magazine.

Earlier this year, Fernández achieved another major goal when he joined El Paso Locomotive FC as a professional player after training with the team for two months.

Looking ahead to what's next for Fernández, he's focused on training hard with his new team and  discussing soccer on his new podcast Fútbol es Vida. And while it's not confirmed if he will be reprising the eccentric Dani Rojas character in the fourth season of Ted Lasso, Fernández said in a January 2025 ScreenRant interview that he "would love to see [more] Dani."