I got the call last Friday. My Dad wanted to know if I had watched the USA game against Algeria. “It was a very exciting game!” he says. And then, the question that all referees dread: “Can you explain that offside rule to me?”

Ugh.

See, my Dad is a good guy. He is a sports fan and was a former college athlete. When I was a kid, he did what all good dads do, he got my brothers and me into sports. We had all sorts of sporting equipment in a big box in the garage: baseball gloves, bats, hockey sticks, footballs, basketballs, tennis rackets, and even an old set of golf clubs at our disposal. Notice anything missing? Right, no soccer ball. Soccer was an unknown to him, and remained that way for most of his life.

So now we are in the midst of a World Cup, and everyone is paying attention, even my Dad. And suddenly, we are all patiently fielding questions from our non-soccer-breathing friends and family about offside, injury time, and of course today's hot topic following the England v Germany match: the need for instant replay. A little here and a little there. The message spreads.

I remind myself to keep smiling. We are all ambassadors of the game.