It's very hard to get mad at Elmo from "Sesame Street." Really, it's kind of hard to get mad at any Muppet (except Pepe the King Prawn; he's always trying to steal your girl if given even half a chance), but this week Knicks fans were still irate at Elmo for not picking a side in the NBA Finals.
Well, Elmo wasn't going to stand idly by and watch his head on a pike get paraded through the streets of New York, and for the USMNT's game against Australia, the little red third-person-talking Muppet picked a side.
And he's all in on USA, baby.
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"Just to be clear, Elmo wants Team USA to win, okay?" he said. "Elmo loves everybody. Just to be clear. Don't make this a thing. Thank you."
It's not every day you see the citizens of "Sesame Street" go into PR crisis mode. Not since people started to ask questions about Bert and Ernie's living arrangement.
Elmo of "Sesame Street" fame had a rough week thanks to New York Knicks fans, and he wasn't going to let that happen again. (Photo by: Zach Pagano/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank)
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But hey, the last time Elmo got people whipped up into a frenzy like this was way back in the days of Tickle Me Elmo, and at least then they were excited to see him.
They weren't doing this to the poor guy.
Actually, come to think of it, I may have seen some footage like that taken inside a Kmart in like 1997... but still, it would be really rough to see that happen to Elmo multiple times in one week.
This is a nice change of pace. Perhaps we'll now see the opposite thing happen this time around. While Knicks fans waged war with Elmo, maybe US fans will grow to embrace Elmo as a quasi-mascot.
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Elmo and "Sesame Street" compatriot Cookie Monster hit up the 2026 FIFA World Cup Opening ceremony last week in Los Angeles. (Photo by Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images)
Until things go south, then his head might end up with a one-way ticket to Pike City.
Poor guy.
Matthew Reigle is a writer for OutKick.
