An Indicator of National Reconciliation?
On Soccer and Politics in Lebanon
By KARIM MAKDISI

Amidst the torturous negotiations to form a ‘national’ unity government in Lebanon—and the rhetoric employed by both March 14 and opposition members alike about building a strong ‘nation’ to bind all of Lebanon’s communities—Lebanon’s national soccer team recently completed the last of six qualification round matches for the 2010 World Cup. The results have been nothing short of disastrous, with consecutive ‘home’ and ‘away’ defeats to Saudi Arabia (1-4, 1-2), Uzbekistan (0-1, 0-3), and Singapore (1-2, 0-2), and fourteen goals conceded in the process. Far from being a trivial sporting matter, the manner of Lebanon’s defeats illustrates the Lebanese political class’s chronic lack of imagination and willful neglect of a genuine nation-building project that could transcend sectarian or clientalist considerations.

Soccer and national projects have always gone hand-in-hand in the modern period. The fascist Italian dictator, Benito Mussolini famously used Italy’s triumph in the second world cup of 1934 to bolster his fascist project in Italy. Iran’s memorable victory over the USA in the 1998 World Cup boosted not only Iranian nationalism but also third world solidarity; while the shameful German-Austrian collaboration in the 1982 World Cup (with the full knowledge of the political and commercial interests) to deny a brilliant Algerian team from progressing into the latter rounds recalled European colonial bullying practices. India withdrew from the 1950 World Cup after their national sensibilities were apparently slighted when their request to play with bare feet was turned down by FIFA, the world soccer association. South Korea’s astonishing run to the world cup semi finals it co-hosted in 2002 expressed strong national solidarity, while the 2006 World Cup showcased an attack-minded German team that clearly raised the national morale and confidence of its German hosts. Indeed, soccer has also been used to unite divided communities within a country as was the case when France’s 1998 World Cup triumph showcased a team composed mostly of African and Arab origins, or when Spain’s 2008 European Championship triumph brought together Castilians, Catalans and even Basques under the banner of the Spanish flag.

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