I love soccer. Any sort of soccer. 1 love it all. Anybody running around in a silk shirt kicking a round ball, 1 want to see that. Call me passionate, call me crazy, call me obsessed.just put 22 players on a field with a ball and let me watch them. What is it about soccer that so engulfs not thousands, not millions, but billions of people worldwide? What is it about this sport that can turn grown men to tears, lead over-zealous fans to violence and unify a country in national celebration. Perhaps the appeal of soccer is that it means so much to so many in a number of ways. The aesthete perceives it as a form of art, an athletic opera if you like.The cynic can't see past the dollar signs - big bucks and big business.The socially-conscious see it as a way of keeping kids off the street and giving them heroes to idolise. To some, soccer is a kind of religion, but to most it is a spectacle which takes them out of their every day lives and on a journey through the entire spectrum of human emotion. The anticipation of watching a game, the anxiety of waiting for a goal, the ecstasy when a goal is scored, the jubilation of victory, the sadness of defeat. You would be hard pressed to find a Hollywood script that twists your emotions in a two hour film the way soccer does in 90 minutes. For some fans, the emotion of the game pushes them to breaking point. Take, for example, the caf6 owner in Macau who died from exhaustion after watching the World Cup on television for two days and nights - and working - without a moment's sleep. How about the Nigerian student who suffered a heart attack during the 1994 World Cup and died in hospital after watching his country lose to Argentina. A Bangladesh Supreme Court lawyer sued former FIFA President joao Havelange for $35 claiming that after hearing of Maradona's suspension after a positive drug test, he was too upset to work. And iet's not forget the Albanian, short of cash, who staked his wife on a bet that Argentina would beat Bulgaria in the 1994 World Cup. His wife disappeared with the winner when the Bulgarians won 3-2. These are extreme examples - but examples nonetheless - of the way in which soccer takes a stranglehold on its audience's emotions, in particular through its showcase event, the World Cup. The first temptation of the modern fan is to say that tradition has abandoned the World Cup, that this grand spectacle, this enticing blend of athleticism and celebrities has been taken hostage by billion dollar corporations and television companies. But tradition is alive and well because despite the money, it is the allure of World Cup gold that brings the planet's best players together every four years. The very trophy that immortalised Peld, Beckenbauer, Kempes and Maradona. The symbol of excellence that inspired Cruyff, Platini, Baggio and Australia's own johnny Warren. A lineage created by jules Rimet and Henri Delaunay some 70 years ago. Every four years, through sacrifice and pain, through breathtaking displays of athleticism that defy mortal boundaries, these athletes whose enormous price-tags and lucrative sponsorships shun tradition, are destined to take part in it. The World Cup will forever remain the showcase of the immortals, a time to revel in the occasion, and prove furthermore to the watching world that soccer is life, the rest is just details.
