World Cup 90
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ORLD CUP WORLD CUP 90 Football's biggest international extrava- ganza kicks off in Rome on June 7. The Final will attract the largest audience of any previous sporting event in world history. In the 13 World Cups since 1930, the world's best players have gathered in an ever-expanding display of skill and enthusiasm for the game. Looking ahead to 1994, however, Stan Hey sees the World Cup at a turning point. Tensions within inter- national football could mean that the four- teenth World Cup will be the last of its kind Also in our World Cup Special: Your essential A-Z guide to the Finals Italy's champions of style The football fan phenomenon Ten ways to avoid the World Cup Plus: The Marxism Today World Cup competition 40 MARXISM TODAY JUNE 1990 WORLD CUP ith 24 teams compet- their increasingly independ- iations, began to enthusias- ing in 52 matches ent-minded republics. These tically embrace professio- Wstaged over more than four trends are bringing world nalism, blissfully unaware of weeks, this year's World Cup football to a new stage in its the social coding that En- competition in Italy will be internationalisation, which gland sought to apply to the the largest and longest since could lead to the corruption game, the FA leaders re- the tournament began in of the game. treated behind their en- 1930. Superficially, this is a Since school-yard games trenched ideas of what foot- sign of the continued buoyant brought instant history less- ball represented. It certainly growth and adaptability of ons from the PE teacher, all didn't appeal to them in its football as the world's most small boys have known that new form, as an inter- popular sport. There's cer- we, the British, 'gave' foot- national, populist sport. And tainly more money being ball to the world and have a there was a certain xenopho- spent on the Italian football- duty to uphold this heritage. bia informing the official ing infrastructure - stadia, Even after stripping out the English view of what had spectator facilities, local tra- jingoism that tends to im- rapidly become a world game. vel networks - than ever be- pose itself on British atti- England withdrew from fore and, although the sales tudes towards the game, the Fifa in 1928, as discussions figures have been distorted fact remains that it was a began for the organisation of by dumping tickets on the host of late-Victorian engin- the first World Cup competi- domestic market, these could eers, merchants and military' tion, and remained disdain- nevertheless be the best- men who took the rudiments fully on the sidelines until attended World Cup Finals of football abroad with them, 1950, when England's 'supe- in history. almost as missionaries. riority' complex was quickly But the predicted economic The fact that the game was dissipated by a 1-0 defeat in a success of this year's compe- received so enthusiastically pool match against the United tition may not be sufficient in such places as Argentina, States. But the arrogance to hide or hold back the Uruguay and Brazil, coun- bred of years of insularity potentially destructive ten- tries which had had south wasn't truly dissipated until sions that the growth of foot- European rather than British the shattering 6-3 Hungarian ball throughout the world has cultures thrust upon them, victory at Wembley in 1953. created. And these tensions testifies to the wide popular It is surely more than just will be amplified when the appeal of football. It was the coincidence that Alf Ram- 1994 tournament is staged in first 'peasant' sport, an ac- sey, later to lead England to the United States of America. tivity which required little World Cup victory in 1966, The developments which expense and even less un- played in both of these eye- threaten the World Cup as derstanding, yet still boasted opening defeats. we have come to know it are appreciable aesthetics. England was finally forced an increased concentration You need only contrast it to look at what the rest of the of the economic wealth of with cricket, a complex game world had been doing with football in a handful of coun- over-burdened by social atti- the game. For in each coun- tries, the more intrusive role tudes and codes, and depen- try where the game had of television and its hand- dent upon specific items of taken hold, the essential maiden, advertising, and the equipment to make it work, English principles had been blurring of national ident- to understand how accessible retained, but the game had ities created by the political football must have seemed. been redefined, building up upheavals around the world. At this stage in the game's traditions and skills as sub- Soon, for example, there will development, Britain was, stantial as anything within be a united footballing Ger- however, unable to offer the English game. It was an many, with the already for- the sport international lea- inherent part of this 'foreign' midable West absorbing the dership. This was the result mentality to experiment with best players of the East to of the ideological feud be- and refine the idiom and to create a soccer superpower. tween the 'professional' Foot- test their new model in world And nobody knows what ball League and the public- competition. may happen to Soviet players, school, amateur ethos of the By the time the 1958 World torn between their new Football Association (FA). Cup was held in Sweden, work opportunities abroad When Fifa, the international the international game had and the emotional pull of federation of football assoc- reached what could be des- 41 MARXISM TODAY JUNE 1990 WORLD CMP cribed as the first flowering forcement of certain tions. Since then the tourna- of maturity. There were national stereotypes. The ment has inevitably become thriving professional lea- Italians lost to North Korea, bloated - too many teams, gues in most of the countries showing us what negative, too few really competitive taking part, continental cup cowardly football they exemp- matches - and has occa- competitions were being born lified; the Germans looked sionally been cynically ex- in both Europe and South arrogant but weren't strong ploited because of a struc- America and the improve- enough to stop themselves ture that can require teams ments in travel were creat- being beaten by England to produce only strategic, ing opportunities for profes- 'again' (as in two world wars); drawn games rather than sional players to move beyond while Argentina misbehaved daring wins. The modern their national boundaries. temperamentally at the 'home tournament is now won by a Most of this migration took of football', Wembley. side carefully garnering its place along colonial lines - By 1970, however, compre- resources for two or three Argentinians such as Alf- hensive television coverage vital games - witness Italy redo Di Stefano playing for in colour from Mexico finally 'in 1982 - rather than by go- Real Madrid in Spain, Euse- neutralised prejudice and ing all out for emphatic vic- bio of Mozambique playing truly internationalised the tories in each match. in Portugal for Benfica. But game. It helped that there Perhaps the most dispirit- there were economic as well were some fantastic games, ing aspect of the contempor- as cultural imperatives. Weal- and exceptional teams, each ary World Cup is the high thy clubs like Real Madrid of which reached the apogee level of homogeneity which were able to buy such play- of their national styles. It now applies to most of the ers as the brilliant Hunga- was virtually a cultural sym- top teams. National styles rian forward Ferenc Puskas, posium as England, West have been blurred by the dia- while the Italian league was Germany, Italy and Brazil - spora of players in search of beginning to trawl not just the best four teams in the money - most of this sum- England's Gary Lineker South America, but also En- competition - fought for mer's Brazilian squad, for gland (Jimmy Greaves, Joe supremacy. example, earn their living in door league nor any convinc- Baker, Denis Law, Gerry Each distilled their football the Italian league, and as a ing culture to justify its Hitchens, John Charles) for to pure essence - England result the national team has nomination as host country. talent. brave, dogged, hard-tack- inherited a less flamboyant, What it does have is the abil- A new internationalism had ling, hard-running; West Ger- more pragmatic European ity to market and organise been born in football. Ideas many all of this, but with a style of play. sports events, and extract a about tactics and style of more cerebral approach and a Tactical ideas and forma- high price from advertisers play could be exchanged and technical proficiency to their tions, set-piece plays, team and sponsors. Already Have- there was an acknowledg- skills; Italy were graceful, weaknesses are all exposed lange has talked of turning ment that football was now a inventive, passionate, defen- to the globe beforehand games into four 25-minute multi-faceted rather than a sively-minded but flecked thanks to satellite television periods so that television monolithic concept. Those of with great individual skill; and video cassettes, leaving commercials can be accom- us lucky enough to see the and then there was Brazil - little room for surprises. modated. Teams will be stra- wonderful 1960 European inspired by Pele, Tostao, Jar- Most of the big teams in this tegically placed in areas gua- Cup Final between Real Ma- zinho, Gerson and Rivelino, year's tournament will ranteed to provide ethnic drid and Eintracht Frankfurt they saw football as a means already 'know their enemy' support; South Americans in can truthfully say that it to creating beauty, and scor- and will have planned southern California and Texas, changed our attitude to foot- ing goals as a form of accordingly.