Sofia Vergara reveals World Cup traditions, opens up about Detect the SOS campaign, Modern Family

Sofia Vergara is opening up about her family when it comes to traditions, health, and her iconic role on Modern Family.

The World Cup kicks off tomorrow, and the Emmy-nominated actress reminisced on spending time with her family back in Colombia watching the game. 

"I used to live in Colombia, and I have been in the United States for a long time," she exclusively told The Sporting News.

The actress explained that while previously living in Colombia, you didn't need to wait during the World Cup to sit down with your family or go to games.

"But now that I'm away, the World Cup is when it happens now because, you know, the important thing is that we get together, or I go to Miami or they come here."

Now that Vergara is involved with the Detect The SOS campaign, she revealed that she will be attending the World Cup and will relive that tradition.

"Now that I'm involved with the mission. I'm going to be there at the World Cup, and they're asking me for tickets," she said. "I can't bring my whole family, but when we're together, it's great. It's all about eating and drinking and enjoying.

Sofia Vergara on Detect The SOS campaign

While the World Cup is an experience that Vergara loved watching with her family in Colombia and also when they are over in the U.S., the Emmy-nominated actress is using her platform to advocate for her family when it comes to her health. She is partnering with Boehringer Ingelheim's Detect the SOS campaign alongside actress Octavia Spencer to spread awareness for heart and kidney health. 

The timing of the World Cup was important for Vergara to get this mission across, as she explained, "when all these Latin people are watching together, and they're going to be able to see what they can do,  for their health."

"I thought it was very interesting and very close to my heart, this mission, because my mother has been suffering," she said of her reason to join the campaign. "My mother is 70, and she's been suffering for quite some time from high blood pressure. I have become her health advocate because, you know, she's at that age and she gets very stubborn."

The actress explained that her mom, "didn't want to go to the doctor and she forgets these pills and everything," adding that "it's a little bit confusing for her, so I have to be on top of her."

Since then, she has been an advocate for her mother and learning a lot about high blood pressure. The partnership is also about advocating for her culture as well, adding that, "I am Latin, and Latin people, there are a lot of people that have high blood pressure and diabetes, which is one of the signs that you can be suffering from kidney disease, heart attacks, strokes."

In the campaign, there is advocacy for a test called the uACR, which simple urine screening used to detect early kidney damage. Boehringer Ingelheim's public health mission works in collaboration with the American Diabetes Association, the National Kidney Foundation, Mended Hearts, and WomenHeart. You can find more information on the campaign here. 

Sofia Vergara on most-quoted Modern Family moment

As Vergara is fighting for the health of her family and spending time with them as the World Cup begins, the actress already won the hearts of many fans on the sitcom Modern Family. The ABC sitcom ran for 11 seasons, spanning 250 episodes. Vergara claimed the spotlight in the sitcom as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett, where she took fans by storm with her fashion, hilarious one-liners, and of course, her thick Colombian accent that fans adored. 

When it came to boiling down one moment that was her favorite, the actress shared that there were so many to choose from her time on set. She did share that one moment from season 2, episode 6 titled "Halloween," is the moment many fans recall to the actress.

In the episode, Gloria asks Jay's secretary (Jay played by Ed O'Neill) to order a box of "baby cheeses." Because of her accent, it sounds exactly like "baby Jesus."

"Jay wanted like those little cheeses, baby cheese. And he thought that I said baby Jesus," Vergara explained. "And he ordered like a bunch of little Jesus's instead of cheese."

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