[Source: Reuters]

With customers queued up and spilling onto the sidewalk at Cookieteria by Lovely, eager to grab fresh World Cup-themed conchas, baker Erika Lopez is worried about letting some down.

The conchas, a Mexican sweet bread often eaten with hot chocolate or coffee, ​have become a hit in the Mexican and general communities in the area, as people ​demonstrate their support for their sides by chomping into their favourite colours.

“We want to ⁠give something to everyone, and then we don’t want anyone to feel like (they’re) left out, like ‘Oh! Where’s ​my jersey?,” said Lopez, 42, as she prepared June 20’s batch of conchas in the shapes of soccer ​shirts (U.S., Mexico and Argentina) the golden World Cup trophy, soccer balls and team mascots.

The World Cup conchas are also extremely shareable on social media, said 15-year-old Leo Ruiz, who finds them “really cute and like, it’s like ‘aww’. And then it makes you ​want to post and, like, take pictures of the conchas and post them.”

Los Angeles is home to ​millions of Mexico-born people and those of Mexican heritage and the green Mexico national team jersey can be seen on ‌people ⁠everywhere in the sprawling metropolis.

Combining those colours and conchas is something that came naturally to Lopez.

“As a Mexican, we’re always thinking like, what can we do to be like part of everything? And soccer is a really important part of us,” she said.

PASSIONATE SUPPORTERS

However, caring deeply about soccer is not simple joy for ​passionate supporters like Lopez, who ​comes from Mascota in ⁠Jalisco, Mexico.

Like a player facing a World Cup match with nerves swirling, Lopez wants to live up to her customers’ expectations in supplying the conchas.

“Sometimes I’m ​excited, sometimes a little scared. Happy. Worried. You name it. Every emotion is ​there every time,” ⁠said Lopez, who has lived in the U.S. for 23 years.

Indulging in a concha is a less fraught World Cup experience, and just plain fun.

Customer Nubia Wilson, 50, was picking up a box of Mexico and U.S. ⁠concha ​jerseys and concha soccer balls for a boy’s birthday party later ​that day.

“The little boy loves soccer, so what better way than to showcase the conchas? Because everybody loves conchas. At least at ​the party I’m going to,” said Wilson.