By As'ad Abu Khalil
Al-Jazeera
"The hooliganism and violence that have accompanied the football matches between Egypt and Algeria as they each seek to qualify for the 2010 World Cup have brought something new to Arab sports and political cultures.
The vehemence, fanaticism, and recriminations that were blatantly expressed in the media and on the streets of Algeria, Egypt, and Sudan [the host country where the deciding final game is to be played] all point to a trend. This is the logical outcome of the narrow nationalism that has prevailed in Arab politics since the death of Gamal Abdel Nasser, the former Egyptian president....
This narrow chauvinism and the association of national pride with the victory of state teams has become a staple of regime policies.
The battle on Facebook between Egyptian and Algerian football fans reveals the extent to which Arab youth are tuned in to the nationalist paradigm. The performance of the teams reflect on the reputation of the regimes themselves.
This helps explains why senior princes run the football teams in some Arab countries. Saddam put his own son in charge of the Iraqi Olympic committee. And Jibril Rajjub, one of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's former security chiefs, now runs the Palestinian football committee.
All sports are political in the Arab world, and that makes sports dangerous, and potentially violent."
Al-Jazeera
"The hooliganism and violence that have accompanied the football matches between Egypt and Algeria as they each seek to qualify for the 2010 World Cup have brought something new to Arab sports and political cultures.
The vehemence, fanaticism, and recriminations that were blatantly expressed in the media and on the streets of Algeria, Egypt, and Sudan [the host country where the deciding final game is to be played] all point to a trend. This is the logical outcome of the narrow nationalism that has prevailed in Arab politics since the death of Gamal Abdel Nasser, the former Egyptian president....
This narrow chauvinism and the association of national pride with the victory of state teams has become a staple of regime policies.
The battle on Facebook between Egyptian and Algerian football fans reveals the extent to which Arab youth are tuned in to the nationalist paradigm. The performance of the teams reflect on the reputation of the regimes themselves.
This helps explains why senior princes run the football teams in some Arab countries. Saddam put his own son in charge of the Iraqi Olympic committee. And Jibril Rajjub, one of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's former security chiefs, now runs the Palestinian football committee.All sports are political in the Arab world, and that makes sports dangerous, and potentially violent."
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