Anthony McIntyre  🏴‍☠️ Just in through the door from the chemist, my son is sprawled out on the settee watching some game Mexico is involved in.

Who the opposition is I don't know. On her chair tucked away beside one of this home's many bookshelves my wife is most likely telling some far right hater of refugees where to go. She does a lot of that. 

I turned to face her with my arms folded, back to the TV, and my son took the bait. I am refusing to recognise the World Cup. He groaned and moved to tell me who was playing. My response, a curt no interest. Of course I was winding him up, but thus far have refused to watch a minute's play and have not the slightest intention of doing so.

My wife then said to me imagine Saudi Arabia beating Argentina. I was tempted to say that the Saudis are quite adept at beating people, often to death, but pulled back when I considered that Argentina had also been a high achiever in that particular blood sport. What they both had in common were the fingerprints of the US State Department left at the scene of the crime. Before leaving the room to scribble this, my parting shot was anybody fearful of being chopped up on return to the Kingdom for losing has to stand a good chance of becoming a world beater.

There are some countries represented at the World Cup in Qatar, in which it is dangerous to dissent. Iran is one. Therefore, the public display of solidarity by the Iranian men's team with the women of Iran in their battle against the country's theocracy was in such sharp contrast with the timidity of the England and Wales teams. When ordered by FIFA and their respective Football Associations not to wear the One Love armband, the Three Lions and their Welsh counterparts rather than vent a roar of defiance emitted a meow of compliance. They had bid successfully to become card carrying members of the Groucho Marx club where the motto is Those are my principles. If you don't like them, I have others. After initially promising to wear the now verboten armband Kane and Bale backed down when threatened with a yellow card by FIFA. Here was an opportunity, with cameras from every country across the globe in place, to put it up to an alliance of theocrats and kleptocrats - the bigots of Qatar and the gangsters of Thiefa. Yet, all we got were yellow cowards avoiding yellow cards

Between them, Fifa and Qatari authorities - eager to keep the gravy train on the tracks - have robbed the World Cup of its prestige as the planet's premier sporting event. From the stars to the sewers the drop has been as swift as the retraction of Kane and Bale's undercarriage. 

A risk free stance is placebo protest. If Kane and Bale raise their arms in salute to goals scored it will be a limp wristed affair. A raised hand that could not be held aloft in support of human rights might as well be used for scratching balls. But they would have to go to the Iran dressing room to find them.

⏩ Follow on Twitter @AnthonyMcIntyre.

Thiefa

Anthony McIntyre  🏴‍☠️ Just in through the door from the chemist, my son is sprawled out on the settee watching some game Mexico is involved in.

Who the opposition is I don't know. On her chair tucked away beside one of this home's many bookshelves my wife is most likely telling some far right hater of refugees where to go. She does a lot of that. 

I turned to face her with my arms folded, back to the TV, and my son took the bait. I am refusing to recognise the World Cup. He groaned and moved to tell me who was playing. My response, a curt no interest. Of course I was winding him up, but thus far have refused to watch a minute's play and have not the slightest intention of doing so.

My wife then said to me imagine Saudi Arabia beating Argentina. I was tempted to say that the Saudis are quite adept at beating people, often to death, but pulled back when I considered that Argentina had also been a high achiever in that particular blood sport. What they both had in common were the fingerprints of the US State Department left at the scene of the crime. Before leaving the room to scribble this, my parting shot was anybody fearful of being chopped up on return to the Kingdom for losing has to stand a good chance of becoming a world beater.

There are some countries represented at the World Cup in Qatar, in which it is dangerous to dissent. Iran is one. Therefore, the public display of solidarity by the Iranian men's team with the women of Iran in their battle against the country's theocracy was in such sharp contrast with the timidity of the England and Wales teams. When ordered by FIFA and their respective Football Associations not to wear the One Love armband, the Three Lions and their Welsh counterparts rather than vent a roar of defiance emitted a meow of compliance. They had bid successfully to become card carrying members of the Groucho Marx club where the motto is Those are my principles. If you don't like them, I have others. After initially promising to wear the now verboten armband Kane and Bale backed down when threatened with a yellow card by FIFA. Here was an opportunity, with cameras from every country across the globe in place, to put it up to an alliance of theocrats and kleptocrats - the bigots of Qatar and the gangsters of Thiefa. Yet, all we got were yellow cowards avoiding yellow cards

Between them, Fifa and Qatari authorities - eager to keep the gravy train on the tracks - have robbed the World Cup of its prestige as the planet's premier sporting event. From the stars to the sewers the drop has been as swift as the retraction of Kane and Bale's undercarriage. 

A risk free stance is placebo protest. If Kane and Bale raise their arms in salute to goals scored it will be a limp wristed affair. A raised hand that could not be held aloft in support of human rights might as well be used for scratching balls. But they would have to go to the Iran dressing room to find them.

⏩ Follow on Twitter @AnthonyMcIntyre.

3 comments:


  1. But they would have to go to the Iran dressing room to find them.

    If Harry or Gareth went to the Iranian footy teams dressing room to scratch balls, wouldn't that be gay.....the very thing they were meant to wear an arm band (support the LBGers).....?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Tony Maguire Comments

    There was an opportunity here, a penalty kick, to stand up against something evil and bad. Imagine the media storm if the captains had been issued yellow cards! There could have been an ‘ I am Spartacus’ moment. Perhaps the referees might have joined in a mutiny of sorts, after all, they cannot all be bastards. History could have been made here but moral paucity prevailed. Like yourself, I find this tournament tawdry and meaningless. I’m only looking forward to the England team’s customary hard luck story and a resumption of normal evening television scheduling.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Davy Clinton comments

    Imagine the world wide publicity if after the Captains had been yellow carded that they handed the armband over to another player....right down through the whole team.

    The time for protest was 12 years ago and that protest should have come from all the world's football associations. They should have told FIFA...NO.

    In this everyone has been found wanting, from the Associations to the players, to the TV companies, to the commentators and to the fans who travelled there.
    If ever we needed confirmation that football is just about the money then this is it....though any football fan with a titter of wit would have known this for years.

    ReplyDelete