Who says football isn’t political?
Right from the kick-off, this year’s World Cup has seen much politics. Numerous protests involving thousands of people outside the deluxe stadiums have focused on the corruption of both FIFA and the Brazilian government. On and off the pitch, fans, players and team staff have been involved in a range of political acts of their own.
Standing in the centre circle during the opening ceremony, a young boy, surrounded by officials and players, unfurled a banner reading “Demarcation Now!” His name was Jeguaká Mirim, and he was protesting for indigenous rights for his Guarani people. Of course, the TV coverage immediately cut away from the moment and his message, but the ball was already rolling.
During the last-16 match between the USA and Belgium, the pitch was briefly invaded by a man wearing a shirt with a slogan in support of children in favelas – the urban slums. Although some debate has taken place over the nature of his protest, it certainly created discussion about the issue.
Controversy raged after FIFA imposed a four-month ban on Uruguayan striker Luis Suárez for biting Italian player Giorgio Chiellini. Venezuela’s president Nicolás Maduro reportedly alleged an imperialist plot: FIFA had imposed the harsh punishment as revenge: “They can’t forgive Uruguay that a son of the people has eliminated two of football’s big nations, so they invented a whole case.”
More significantly, the Algerian team gained admiration and support from around the world after announcing that they were going to donate all of their prize money to the people of Gaza. Progressing further than expected during the tournament, the team returned in triumph to tour the capital, Algiers. The team bus proudly displayed a large Palestinian flag. According to star striker Islam Slimani, the team are donating their estimated US$9 million because “They [Palestinians] need it more than us.”
And then there were the Chilean fans who, in defiance of the astronomical ticket prices that exclude so many working class people from the continent, attempted to force their way into the Maracaná stadium via the press gallery.
Ann Coulter – a prominent, rabid, right wing social commentator in the US – was so struck by the game that she saw the need to strike back against this so-called “moral decay”. In a widely quoted opinion piece, she wrote, “Soccer is like the metric system, which liberals also adore because it’s European. Naturally, the metric system emerged from the French Revolution, during the brief intervals when they weren’t committing mass murder by guillotine.”
The World Cup didn’t stir up fervour of revolutionary proportions, but the political moments were welcomed by all of us morally decaying fans around the globe.
