The two week break from club football for World Cup Qualifying often feels a bit like tubing down a lazy river at an amusement park – lulling football fans worldwide to sleep with meandering (and sometimes meaningless) World Cup Qualifiers. But every so often the river makes a sharp turn or traverses a waterfall to provide an exciting international encounter that fills the fan’s heart with joy.
But this weekend in the Ivory Coast, there was little joy. At least 22 people were killed and 132 injured yesterday ahead of a World Cup Qualifying match between the Ivory Coast and Malawi.
Thousands of fans pushed against each other, setting off a panic that led to the stampede.
And this sad summary from the Associated Press describing stadium accidents in general:
“Stadium accidents are far too common in Africa, where soccer is intimately entwined with national pride. In June last year, 10 people died in an overcrowded stadium before a World Cup Qualifying match between Liberia and Gambia… The worst stadium disaster in Africa killed 127 people in Accra, Ghana in 2001.”
So, I’m still attending the World Cup next year in South Africa with little fear. But yesterday’s tragedy coming out of the Ivory Coast is a bitter reminder that while our beautiful sport is just that, beautiful, and 9 times out of 10 – it is joyous and fantastic; we all still love a sport that despite all of its glory, is sometimes injected with a bit too much fanaticism, and in some parts of the world, is poorly organized.
So enough about poor infrastructure or worse stadium safety. It’s all too tragic to stay focused on forever. But it’s just a somber reminder that in our beautiful world of “fantasy football,” with Didier Drogba scoring for Chelsea and Frank Lampard and Michael Essien bringing in the bonus points, while Peter Cech protects himself with a fluffy piece of black headgear and keeps the opposition out, the opposite of fantasy football (the Premier League) is reality - the tragedies that so often in Africa taint the beautiful game.
Related posts:
- From the Archives: World Cup Qualifying
- Benitez is a Bell-End: "Torres is Injured, Let’s Change World Cup Qualifying!"
- European Goal of the Year via World Cup Blog
- Let the FIFA Club World Cup Winners – Investing Begin: A Friendly Reminder & A Very Quick Wrap-Up
- A Weekend of FA Cup Football & Footbo Surfing
