World Cup, Day 2: Google Doodle Celebrates Football Culture Across Countries

The 21st edition of the quadrennial football extravaganza, the FIFA World Cup, kicked off in Russia at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium on Thursday. Google marked the beginning of the most awaited football event with a doodle and on day two, the search giant has followed up with a carousel of images representing what football means to Egypt, Iran, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, and Uruguay. A total of 32 teams from around the globe will be competing in the tournament that concludes on July 15. Google promised that you can catch all the 32 Doodles throughout the season. Each illustration reflects the artist's interpretation of "What Football looks like in my country."

The artist from Egypt, Shennawy, says that "It is the soul of the people in Egypt!" The image shows young boys playing the sport in a busy marketplace as a lady admires them as she passes by.

The artist from Iran, Rashin Kheiriyeh, says that "Football is the biggest sport in Iran. Iranians love playing & watching football. The World Cup is a huge event that brings people together to support our national team."

When Tiago Galo, the artist from Portugal was asked the question, he said "Football is everywhere you go. In each corner, each coffee shop, everyone is either talking about the last match or the next one."

"Football in Spain is called the "king of sports" so that gives you an idea of its importance. It's a part of every Spaniard's life, even If you're not into sports," added Andres Lozano from Spain.

Google Doodle is an artistic expression of Google's logo on the search engine's homepage. Google often creates a doodle to commemorate a popular figure's birthday, a holiday, an anniversary, or some other significant event. 

The biggest sporting competition on the planet will be played across 12 venues in 11 cities around Russia. While 20 of the teams are making repeat appearances, including defending champions Germany, there are also some first-timers, including Iceland and Panama.

As far as Google Doodles are concerned, the first one was created by Larry Page and Sergey Brin on August 20, 1998, to commemorate the Burning Man Festival of that year that they both attended. The doodle was meant to remind Google users that they were absent.