# The new World Cup commercial with Owen Wilson and Sofia Vergara **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** commercials-ads\ **Created:** [February 20, 2026, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-world-cup-commercial-with-owen-wilson-and-sofia-vergara/1027863 "2026-02-20T22:55:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Drum\_God](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drum_god/32/44_2.png) [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-world-cup-commercial-with-owen-wilson-and-sofia-vergara/1027863/1 "2026-02-20T22:55:36Z")
Is the Spanish spoken in the commercial grammatically correct? In the ad, Sofia Vergara is teaching Owen Wilson how to say his name. They both say “Mi nombre es Owen.” My high school Spanish teacher taught us that the proper way to introduce yourself is with “Me llamo Owen.” which translates to “I am called Owen.” Saying “mi nombre,” as in “my name” is improper and/or rude. So what is the correct, polite way to introduce yourself to a fellow futbol fan? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-world-cup-commercial-with-owen-wilson-and-sofia-vergara/1027863/2 "2026-02-20T22:57:44Z")
Non Spanish speaker here (other than high school and college). However, I found this on [Quora](https://spanish.stackexchange.com/questions/13177/me-llamo-vs-mi-nombre) (and similar statements on other sites) > `Me llamo` literally translates to `I call myself`, whereas `Mi nombre es` is `My name is`, but the two mean essentially the same. Also, found this, from [here](https://spanish.kwiziq.com/revision/grammar/me-llamo-name) > Note that while these more literal structures are grammatically correct, it is **not the general custom** to use them when asking someone’s name or saying what your name is: > > ¿Cuál es tu nombre? > What is your name? > > ¿Cuál es su nombre? > What is your name? (formal) > > Mi nombre es… > My name is…: ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-world-cup-commercial-with-owen-wilson-and-sofia-vergara/1027863/3 "2026-02-20T23:21:23Z")
This formation is found in many languages. In Luxembourgish, “mäin Numm ass…” = my name is, versus “ech heeschen…” = I’m called. Both are used and understood but the latter is more casually common. However — and this might explain why a commercial pitched at a white audience — the “my name is” version feels more transparently accessible to non-speakers. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2026, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-world-cup-commercial-with-owen-wilson-and-sofia-vergara/1027863/4 "2026-02-21T17:04:46Z")
Same in German. (which is somewhat close to Luxembourgish apparently) ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2026, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-world-cup-commercial-with-owen-wilson-and-sofia-vergara/1027863/5 "2026-02-21T18:38:43Z")
As far as I know, both “Me llamo” and “Mi nombre es” are equally correct and polite. ---
**Author:** ![Thumper668](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thumper668/32/20803_2.png) [@Thumper668](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thumper668)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2026, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-world-cup-commercial-with-owen-wilson-and-sofia-vergara/1027863/6 "2026-02-21T18:48:10Z")
Both are equally correct grammatically and neither are rude or unsophisticated. Spanish teachers prefer “Me llamo” because it is an easier introduction to conjugating verbs. The difference between “ser” and “estar” is a bit nuanced, so they prefer to save that for later when there is a fundamental vocabulary. “Yo soy Owen” (I am Owen) would also be correct, but “Yo estoy Owen” is not. ---
**Author:** ![sunacres](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@sunacres](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sunacres)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2026, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-world-cup-commercial-with-owen-wilson-and-sofia-vergara/1027863/7 "2026-02-21T23:56:05Z")
Has anyone else noticed that learning Spanish in tiny bites here on the Dope is way more comfortable and enjoyable than trying to cram the barrage of new knowledge into your brain was back in high school? Same with math. Someone should fold this observation back into the curriculum. Fat chance! ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2026, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-world-cup-commercial-with-owen-wilson-and-sofia-vergara/1027863/8 "2026-02-22T01:05:20Z")
Is there a link to this commercial? Why [yes, yes there is](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvfJ8Ehw3AU) (I think this is it, anyway). Maybe [this version](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x9ziv7i) is better.