World-Cup Wasatch-Back Watch-Parties happening in Heber

RSL Real Salt Lake Stadium, the professional home of athlete currently playing in the World Cup for Uruguay. Photo: TownLift // Michele Roepke

HEBER CITY, Utah — Watch parties are popping up across the Wasatch Back for FIFA’s 2026 World Cup, and Heber City is no exception — especially for one South American couple who has lived there for 25 years.

Carol Cabrera was born in Uruguay and has called Heber City home for a quarter century. On Monday, she wore a No. 9 Suárez jersey to celebrate Uruguay’s opening match — a nod to one of the country’s most iconic players, even though Luis Suárez is not competing in this year’s tournament. Uruguay’s current connection to Utah runs through Real Salt Lake midfielder Juan Manuel Sanabria, who was called up to represent his native country at the World Cup.

Her husband, Max Carrizo, was born in Argentina. Married 15 years, he took one for the team Monday — the marriage team — and wore a Uruguay jersey to support his wife’s country. Tuesday, presumably, told a different jersey story.

The couple stopped at a Walgreens on Main Street to look for World Cup merchandise before heading to a watch party at a Heber City apartment complex, where they gathered with friends and family for Uruguay’s Group H opener.

Their respectful soccer rivalry resurfaces every four years when the World Cup puts their two countries in the same orbit. Outside those moments, they happily cheer for each other’s team. “It’s not too much of a battle between us because we both like soccer so much and both countries’ teams are really good,” Cabrera told TownLift.

Uruguay drew with Saudi Arabia 1-1 on Monday in Miami. Abdulelah Al-Amri scored in the 41st minute for Saudi Arabia, and Maximiliano Araujo equalized in the 80th, leaving Uruguay atop Group H on goal differential.

On Tuesday, the couple likely swapped jerseys entirely. Argentina defeated Algeria 3-1 in Kansas City — Group J — with Lionel Messi delivering a hat trick in front of a crowd that included Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. The performance underscored what most soccer fans already know: Messi remains in a category of his own.

Beyond the apartment complex, Heber City residents can catch World Cup action at Heber Valley Brewing Company and Tony’s Tacos, both on Main Street.