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World Cup Brings World Closer

Rasheed Abou-Alsamh
By:
Rasheed Abou-Alsamh
July 6, 2006
March 27, 2022
World Cup Brings World Closer
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WATCHING the World Cup for the past several weeks has been both exhilarating and fun. In football-mad Saudi Arabia that was to be expected, unlike in basketball-mad Philippines where this tournament has caused hardly a ripple of excitement.

Many people have asked me if I’m a regular football fan, and I invariably reply that, “No I not. I only watch football during the World Cup.” I’m sure I’m not alone in this quadrennial obsession, with many more people like me yawning at soccer during other times but loving it during the World Cup. But hey, at least we get into it.

The World Cup brings out sometimes irrational reasons for why a person roots for a particular team. Some have told me they like France because Zinedine Zidane is of Arab origin and is Muslim. Others, both female and male, like a team because of their hunky-looking players. The Italian team certainly fits into the “hunks” category as did the Australians and the Argentines. I had been rooting for Brazil because I lived in Brazil for seven years while growing up, and my parents still live there. My mother, who is definitely not a football fan, World Cup or no World Cup, especially dislikes it because every time Brazil wins a game, the guys in our Brasilia neighborhood set off firecrackers which in turn make all of the local dogs bark like mad. You can just imagine the noise!

Many Indians in our office refused to support England, their former colonial masters, something we Saudis do not have to worry about. I rooted for England, for Joe Cole, Wayne Rooney and Peter Crouch. Unluckily for them they lost to the hyped-up and ultra-aggressive Portuguese, who thankfully lost on Wednesday night to France’s first half penalty shot by Zidane in one of the most boring World Cup matches I have ever seen.

Luis Felipe Scolari, the infamous Brazilian coach of the Portuguese and one of the most highly paid coaches in Europe (25 million pounds this past year alone), looked furious at Portugal’s loss Wednesday night. The bad boy of the World Cup, he always seemed to be cheering his boys on from the sides, even when they elbowed opponents in the eye and raked up a record number of yellow and red cards for their shenanigans in their game with Holland.

Which brings me to the quality of refereeing during this Cup. The first half of the tournament had many dubious calls by referees, which because of FIFA rules still don’t have access to viewing video replays of contentious shots. This led to some unfair calls, with free kicks given when none should have been given. Many of these officials were sent home by FIFA after the first round of the Cup, and the judging improved afterwards.

The expulsion of Rooney from England’s last match, when he got a red card for kicking a Portuguese player in the scrotum, is an example of subjective refereeing. I think it was unfair and uncalled for. Rooney is still appealing this decision, with FIFA yet to give a response.

What was so funny to watch during this World Cup were the shifting loyalties of viewers as their first-choice teams got knocked out of the tournament. I myself was guilty of doing that, shifting from being a rabid Brazil fan when they played France, and then shifting to supporting the French when they played against Portugal. Some may call this opportunism, but I think it points to a healthier attitude of appreciating the talent of individual players and teams, no matter where they and I are from originally.

Football has become so international with Brazilian and English players playing for Spanish teams like Real Madrid and Barcelona, and French players playing on English teams such as Arsenal and Chelsea, that it was fun to watch players who are teammates outside this tournament, forced to face each other on the pitch in Germany. But it was equally nice to see friends reach out to each other in times of pain. The sight of France’s Thierry Henry comforting and hugging an obviously distraught Ronaldinho after Brazil’s defeat by France, was touching and reminded me of what this World Cup is all about.

For those of you who get all riled up and upset over their favorite team’s loss, I say get a life and enjoy the moment. Football is about fun, experience and technique. It’s also about luck, which means sometimes you lose, sometimes you win. Portugal’s virtual bloodlust to win was off-putting. I’d much rather support France or Brazil, who exhibited poise, calm, experience and, above all, dignity.

Rasheed Abou-Alsamh
By:
Rasheed Abou-Alsamh
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Comments

Term Papers
3/9/2010 12:36 PM
3/16/2022 7:04 PM

I really thank to one who wrote this article. I have always been reading and writing texts like this in blogs. Thank you very much for the excellent and useful subject.

Edward Ott
7/12/2006 2:33 PM
3/16/2022 7:04 PM

Only watching soccer during world cup is not really very strange. think of how excited people get about all sorts of sports during the olympics. many of which only watch sking, weight lifting and such during the olympics.

Matt Cooper
7/11/2006 8:31 PM
3/16/2022 7:04 PM

you have a cool blog!
check out mine, but its really
new.
detectivemattcooper.blogspot.com

version
7/10/2006 1:25 PM
3/16/2022 7:04 PM

I wonder what incited zidane to headbutt that guy, maybe a comment or something. Hilarious stuff. Oh btw check out my blog if you want some pics of pretty girls, over at http://hot-girl-blog.blogspot.com/

chochochoice
7/9/2006 11:27 PM
3/16/2022 7:04 PM

In Japan,duaring World Cup the whole country is soccer fan,as you.
So when japan was defeat Australia and Brasil,(Croatia a drawn game),most japanese people lost interest to World Cup.

charles ravndal
7/9/2006 11:19 PM
3/16/2022 7:04 PM

Havent been here for a long time. I love the new layout. Very nice!

CoralPoetry
7/9/2006 9:23 PM
3/16/2022 7:04 PM

Hi,

Italy won the World Cup but they didn't exactly dominate the game. It was an interesting and clean final until Zidane lost his head in his opponent's chest. I should have placed a bet.

Regards,
Coral

jonyol
7/8/2006 11:03 PM
3/16/2022 7:04 PM

nice blog...visit mine

CoralPoetry
7/8/2006 5:54 PM
3/16/2022 7:04 PM

Hi,

Rooney is an adolescent hot-head who needs to control his temper. He was unfit to play, having hardly recovered from a broken foot and he was dragging it around like a millstone. There was NO weight behind the "foul" foot against Carvalho. It wasn't going anywhere. One could discern from Rooney's stance that he was merely off-balance, but the temptation was there to inflict some damage on his opponent. The general opinion was that he received the red card for pushing Ronaldo.

I now support France to win, probably because of their gentlemanly behaviour towards the losing team. I believe Italy will win, though. It will be a tough and interesting final.

Coral

chumly
7/8/2006 1:37 AM
3/16/2022 7:04 PM

A tribute to world sports. Wonderful!

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