Irrational support
Two weeks ago I was Cote d’Ivoire or bust. But then they had that shocking exhibition of poor sportsmanship on Sunday, and I was heartbroken. So my orange jersey has been hanging limply in limbo. Can my love for my team trump my principles of justice? Not bloody likely. I might even find myself rooting for North Korea on Friday. . . Hmmm. No. That’s not very likely either.
But as I get ready to cheer for Ghana tonight, this LA Times article from Robyn Dixon spoke to me: Africans cheer for their teams, their continent, despite a lack of faith
Despite disappointment over the performance of Africa’s World Cup teams, the competition here appears to be bringing out a keen sense of Pan-African pride, a border-transcending spirit and attitude that one would almost surely not encounter on most other continents.
When any of the six African squads has scored a goal, shouts of joy have erupted across the continent, in exuberant food and beer joints like Mama’s Place in Lagos, Nigeria, in shops converted into mini-screening rooms in the narrow streets of Freetown, Sierra Leone, in the pubs of Nairobi, Kenya, and in open air, vuvuzela-infested parks in the townships of Johannesburg.
The idea of South Koreans rooting for Japan or the French cheering on England may be far-fetched. But in Africa, even those who don’t normally follow the game are praying that at least one African team will make it to the quarterfinal in the first World Cup on African soil. Or even to the round of 16.