What I’m Reading: May 20, 2007
Given how often he sticks his foot in his mouth, it’s a bit of a surprise that Sepp Blatter has become president of FIFA. Blatter, who has previously called for female players to wear tighter shorts, recently made headlines by saying that FIFA had alternate plans in case South Africa is not ready to host the 2010 World Cup. Blatter apparently thinks little about how his proclamations will be received, and this case was no different.
The Christian Science Monitor’s Scott Baldauf wrote this week that in South Africa itself, Blatter’s words were seen as insulting and border-line racist. Many there believe that Blatter’s willingness to question South Africa’s readiness is because it is an African country. Baldauf writes that “any public statement about South Africa will be seen through the lens of race, even if it is about something as harmless as sports.”
It’s questionable whether sports are harmless, but their symbolism is certainly not inconsequential. South Africa was chosen to host the 2010 World Cup in order to give Africa its first chance to host the tournament. If Blatter wants to applaud soccer’s ability to overcome historical wrongs, he must also realize that history leaves scars. Blatter probably meant no harm, but someone in a position as powerful as FIFA president must recognize the way his words will be interpreted by others.
Gaffe-prone Sepp Blatter
The blog Two Hundred Percent has an interesting piece about the merger of two non-league clubs, Hayes and Yeading. While the idea of a ground-share is enough to bring Liverpool and Everton fans to the streets in protest, these two teams are quietly making what is, ultimately, a very rational move. The author at Two Hundred Percent writes that “[m]ergers are more widely tolerated in non-league football, where practical concerns over the ongoing existence of clubs often have to take precedence over more abstract notions of identity.”
An interesting article in the New York Times this week on an Irv Smalls, who is trying to create futsal fields in the Big Apple. Mr. Smalls, ironically a former American football player, is head of a youth soccer team in Harlem and sees the creation of futsal fields throughout New York as a way to change the image of soccer in the US. Alex Mindlin quotes Smalls saying that “I want to work on this perception that it’s a white sport in this country, and played only out in the suburbs.” Repurposing urban space as futsal fields is part of Smalls’ vision to create “a culture of gritty pickup street soccer, much like the culture that exists around basketball.”
In addition to bringing soccer to neighborhoods that have not been exposed to the sport, putting futsal fields in cities can have another effect. Futsal is the ideal way to develop technique. It is played throughout Latin America and is one of the major reasons why players from that region have such skill on the ball. (See, for example, a documentary called Ginga: The Soul of Brazilian Football, which shows how many players grow up playing futsal.) If futsal does become popular in the United States, it will be interesting to see if it has any effect on shifting the American style of play.
Brazilian futsal star Falcao
One American player who already has incredible technique is Colombian-born Jose Angulo. Angulo, a star at St. Benedict’s Prep in New Jersey, was in the news this week because he is making the jump from high school to the pro game in Europe. As Ives Galcarep reports, Angulo joins former St. Benedict players Gabriel Ferrari and Vincenzo Bernardo in going straight from high school to professional teams in Europe (Ferrari plays at Sampdoria, Bernardo at Napoli).
It’s incredible that there are players like Angulo, Ferrari, and Bernardo who can make the direct switch from American high school teams to Europe (Angulo has already drawn interest from Lazio, Hannover, Armenia Bielefeld, and Arsenal). What’s even more amazing is that these three players were never considered “top” prospects. This shows, I believe, two things: 1) scouting is an inexact science, and 2) the level of American soccer has been raised tremendously in the past few years.
While American soccer is improving quickly, it still has a ways to go. That was evidenced in an article about the Columbus Crew’s efforts to reach out to Latino fans. While the Crew have done outreach to this growing segment of the population, many have yet to be convinced that MLS is good enough to merit their interest.
Columbus Dispatch reporter Shawn Mitchell spoke with Roz Auddino, an Argentine immigrant, who says he doesn’t go to Crew games because the team just aren’t very good. Auddino says, “[T]he losing is like a broken record … [T]hey can have a team of all Americans. I don’t care. But show me they can play. Show me they know how to win.”
This runs counter to the main strategy MLS has used to appeal to Latino fans. In addition to “outreach†(whatever that means) to Latinos, MLS has tried to attract Latinos by signing players who fill an ethnic niche (Mexican Cuauhtemoc Blanco’s in Chicago, Salvadoran Raul Diaz Arce in DC, Guatemalan Mauricio Cienfuegos in LA, etc.). These moves almost always bring an initial flurry of attention (5,000 fans in Chicago turned out to welcome Blanco to town), but the long-term effects are less clear. As Crew coach Sigi Schmid told the Dispatch’s Mitchell, of the 30,000 fans who came out to see former Mexican star Luis Hernandez in his debut for the LA Galaxy in 2000, only 12,000 returned for the next game.
Fans in Chicago lined up last month to get a look at new signing Cuauhtemoc Blanco
And some quick hits to finish off:
- I came across some great pictures this week. One involved Spanish fans in Glasgow for the UEFA Cup final between Sevilla and Espaynol who were getting into the local garb.
- The FA Cup may have been a boring game (or so I’ve heard since I didn’t care to pay $20 to watch it on TV), but it did provide this excellent picture of Wembley.
- Argentine team San Lorenzo are sponsored by Wal-Mart. An example of the often-criticized business giant looking for new markets to expand into. And how better to be noticed than by sponsoring a local team?
- A short article on Soccernet this past week said that Mexican team Atlante are moving to Cancún (yes, that Cancún). Mexican teams have apparently learned from their American counterparts, which are seen as franchises and able to move cities. To my knowledge, this has only happened once in Europe (Wimbledon), and that caused outrage. Oh wait, I just checked Wikipedia and it turns out this isn’t the only instance of a European team moving to a new location.
- And for a bizarre sport to finish off, how about swamp soccer? Who Ate All the Pies reports on its introduction into Scotland.
