World Cup: Back to Basics

Over the weekend, I caught a glimpse of a children's soccer tournament at a local park. And I couldn't help but stop and reflect on what a lot of adults hope children will gain when they play sports: sportsmanship, fair play, love of the game....

As I watched, I was disappointed how some adults have drifted away from those ideals. I had been quite excited about following this year's World Cup in South Africa. It started off great! The build up to the games, seeing all the different flags around the city, feeding off the energy of the fans (and vuvuzelas) and discovering that the Simpson's were correct (that listening to Spanish commentators makes the game more exciting).
However, one day changed all that. The first incident was during the game between England and Germany, when the ball hit the crossbar and went in. The German keeper, Neuer, quickly grabbed the ball and put it back into play. At first, I gave him the benefit of the doubt. It had been so fast maybe he missed it and just saw the ball as it was in the air. Alas, no. In post game interviews he flaunts how he acted purposefully to fool the ref into thinking the ball hadn't crossed the line. Then he goes on to say who he felt the his team was better anyways. First of all, if you were so confident in your team's superiority, why bother cheating? Be a professional, a role model, a representative your grandmother would be proud of and accept that you let a goal past you. Secondly, you've just admitted to cheating. In an arena where it should be the best of the best, where you walk onto the field holding a child's hand, how is this behaviour anyway to represent your sport and your country. If our team had done the same thing, regardless of the result, I would be ashamed. No matter how talented you maybe (in athletics, or in this case, in dramatics) That's not the way anyone should want to win.

Then came the reaction. Again, I return to the children. I recently read a graduation quote from our school's year book on what their future goal was: "To never make the same mistake again". Amazing what a 14 year old has grasped, and yet adults have failed to, or forgotten. Instead of looking at the 2 incidents that occurred that day as learning experiences and an opportunity to improve the game, FIFA was non-apologetic, saying they had spoken with the teams. Yeah, lots of good that will do the teams that got eliminated due to your results. And it's not like the situations wasn't foreseeable. Not to mention, the readily available solution...If a sport like tennis, where a little ball is going over 100m/hr has the technology to track the ball, I think they can handle a soccer ball. But what irked me most of all was the attitude they displayed. Not too long ago, a missed call cost a pitcher a perfect game. However, the umpire that made that mistake was professional enough to go and look at the replay, admit he was wrong and apologized. While the solution wasn't perfect, the attitude was there. FIFA's response to the situation has only left a bad aftertaste.