Watching a huge game on your phone at a social event is not rude.

By @owenfr · Sports

It's the middle of the World Cup and my friends are treating me like a criminal for this. If I'm forced to be at some boring social function when a knockout-stage match is on, I'm going to stream it.

The full story

We had a friend's birthday dinner this past weekend and a massive game was on. I was trying to be discreet—I had one earbud in, phone propped up on the table behind a menu, not making a scene. I was still chiming in on the conversation, just keeping tabs on the game. My girlfriend and her friends were giving me the dirtiest looks the entire time. Later on, I get the full-court press about how I was being 'disrespectful' and 'checked out.' My whole point is, what's the difference between me watching this and them scrolling TikTok for 20 minutes straight? This isn't some random Tuesday night game; this is the World Cup. It happens once every four years. You snooze, you lose. It's the championship window, you can't miss the biggest plays. I feel like it's a completely different category of screen time. I wasn't blasting the commentary, I was just keeping an eye on it. Am I supposed to sit there in the dark while history is being made?

How people voted

Facts — 38% (9 votes)
Depends — 42% (10 votes)
No Way — 21% (5 votes)

Readers are split: “Depends” leads with 42% — 24 votes and 5 comments so far.

What people are saying

@remylately — I get that the game is a huge deal, but your friends and gf just want to feel like they have your attention when you're all together.
@codyok2 — they wouldnt get it stay locked in
@nathanok — Disrespectful? Soft.
@ren — Why go to the dinner if you knew you'd rather be watching the game?
@itsnatalie — bruh

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