FIFA Fever

I knew I had it bad when I slipped quietly out of bed early Wednesday morning, grabbed Mr. Johnson's iphone off his nightstand and wandered into the hallway where I could pick up the wi-fi signal through the concrete construction of our two story apartment home. I was searching for results for the North Korea game. And to my surprise the tiny, walled-off nation, that shuns all global interaction (yet stupefyingly qualifies for the World Cup) staved off a pounding by the much favored Brazil. The match in Johannesburg ended with a score of 2-1, in favor of Brazil, @ the end of 90 minutes of play.

I've printed off the official "Match Schedule: 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa". I've watched matches until mid-night. (Sorry, I'm not as die-hard as my European friends who set their alarm clocks for the wee hours, stumble out of comfy beds and go to watch footie on the big screen of local pubs.) I've learned new things: A screamer is good. A howler is bad.

Most Americans don't really get soccer. Or they don't appreciate it. American culture is more geared to innings. Or halves that involve statistics on touchdowns and injuries. We don't even call the sport by the name the rest of the world uses.

I can't really explain my interest in watching the sport, except that somehow it feels like a great global party. And I want to be a part. There is festiveness to the atmosphere. It is there in the shiny uniforms and lanky athletic bodies; and in the flamboyant hairstyles and dramatic antics. (Some of these guys could be theatrical actors!) And, there are the horns. The Vuvuzelas drone ever on in the background, emphasizing just how many fans this sport draws out for its once-every-four-years global play. There are all sorts of opinions about these horns, most of the vocal ones negative (If you have time and mild interest in this topic and the culture of football fans in Africa consider reading: http://kevin-blackistone.fanhouse.com/2010/06/14/vuvuzela-long-live-the-horn-despite-european-scorn/).

There is also the skill and precision of the game. And teamwork: 10 men working together to bring a ball up the 100 meter field, while 10 more men oppose them. (By contrast, an American football field is 10 meters longer, but they get four tries to move the ball every 10 yards. AND the offense and defense players rotate en masse on and off the field.) In soccer the offense and defense are on the field at the same time and sometimes their roles overlap. They work tirelessly. The clock is constantly running. They are constantly moving. And they don't use their hands. This is the big sticking point for most American dissenters. A sport should involve your hands, they argue. (Just ask England's keeper Green about this theory and wait for his embarrassed response.)

But perhaps the most magical part of Soccerfootball (as my Bei Bei has dubbed it) is it's pure globally unifying aspect. Football is sport played around the world. From dusty pitches in continental Africa to the more posh fields of Europe, soccer is a game played by the children of the world. An untold number of stories have been published in the year leading up to Africa's first opportunity to host the World Cup of young Africans who can't afford a proper ball making them out whatever materials they can find. (The stories include descriptions of balls made from plastic bags or coconut palm leaves twisted around themselves to form an orb.)

Football is a great unifier. The Cote d'Ivoire (with a World Bank estimated per captia GNI of $980 USD) can play alongside Portugal (whose same statistics are closer to $21,000 USD). And for those little boys who play football barefoot... on a dusty patch of land that works as their make-shift pitch... the little boys who could never afford the orange and green official World Cup Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire jersey by Puma, let alone a real soccer ball, can at least dream of one day becoming the next Didier Drogba or Salomon Kalou, who still has scars on his feet from playing barefoot himself, and the Chelsea jersey to prove it was worth it.

(Read more about Salomon's feet here: http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?art_id=vn20100413101518127C445649)

Other stats found @:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/country_profiles/1043014.stm
and
http://siteresources.worldbank.org/DATASTATISTICS/Resources/GNIPC.pdf