Few of the world\u2019s elected leaders have done as much as Pe\u00f1a to associate themselves with their country\u2019s World Cup successes. He has traveled to the United States to watch his team in action, and declared a national holiday after it eliminated former World Cup champions Germany on penalty kicks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen Paraguay wins on the world stage like it did against Germany, it becomes clear cause for celebration,\u201d said Greg Ross, a Paraguay specialist at the Washington-based consultancy McLarty Associates. \u201cIt also offers an opportunity to project a sense of national unity that is usually difficult to achieve in the day-to-day of Paraguayan politics.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pe\u00f1a, a conservative former central banker first elected in 2023, has savored the opportunity. He traveled to the United States for Paraguay\u2019s first match, against the United States, where he met with Secretary of State Marco Rubio. But after the team lost to the United States, some of his citizens suggested Pe\u00f1a’s presence might have jinxed the team\u2019s performance. That may have discouraged Pe\u00f1a from attending the team\u2019s second match, against Turkey near San Francisco, despite the fact that some were already working to arrange meetings with Silicon Valley tech leaders to help advance Pe\u00f1a\u2019s agenda to make the energy-rich country<\/a> a hub for U.S.-backed data centers.<\/p>\n

He also skipped the first knockout match, against Germany, this time with a clear excuse. He said he had to remain in Asunci\u00f3n for a previously scheduled congressional address and summit for the Mercosur regional trade bloc, whose rotating presidency Pe\u00f1a now holds.<\/p>\n

Pe\u00f1a released a picture on social media<\/a> watching the Germany match from his living room, wearing the country\u2019s red-and-white striped jersey \u2014 from which he scrawled his signature on the order declaring a national holiday. It was a reprise of an earlier Pe\u00f1a move to associate himself with the team\u2019s successes, when he signed a similar order marking a national holiday<\/a> after Paraguay clinched its World Cup spot in the tournament last September.<\/p>\n

He said he intends to be back in the same spot when the team plays France in Philadelphia today.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to watch it at home, just like I did last time,\u201d Pe\u00f1a said, according to Paraguayan media<\/a>. “I always receive invitations for every match as president, and I also have to say that, deep down, I\u2019m a bit of a superstitious person, you know? So, I prefer to just watch from here.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"