MOSCOW — When John Strong measures the lengths he has come to call Sunday’s World Cup final for Fox Sports, he remembers two instances from high school in Oregon in 2002 that captured his early passion for soccer.
It was May 4, and he needed to take the SATs. But it also was the last day of the French season, and as a random Olympique Lyonnais fan, he set the home VCR to record a match that would clinch what became the first of seven consecutive Ligue 1 championships. Wearing a team jersey, he rushed through the test and raced home to watch the game.