World Cup jingoism leaves a sour taste

Terry Baddoo is co-host of World Sport, the international sports show that airs live on CNN International. He will regularly contribute Postcards from South Korea to CNNSI.com during the World Cup.

SEOUL -- Maybe it's just me, but with so much conflict in the world at the moment, is anyone else feeling a little bit uneasy about the amount of nationalism associated with the World Cup?

Italy claims an international plot was afoot to oust the Italians at the earliest opportunity, by fair means or foul. The chairman of Italian club Perugia says he will fire South Korea's Ahn Jung-Hwan for scoring the golden goal that, in the chairman's words, "ruined Italian soccer."

The South Koreans themselves unashamedly gloat in the local media over their advancement to the quarterfinals and the failure of co-hosts, Japan, who were beaten in the second round by Turkey. "Korea makes history, Japan is history," read the back page headline in the Korean Herald in the aftermath of the game. So much for the "hands across the ocean" charade that preceded this joint World Cup venture.

England too has done its share of flag-waving. Though, to be fair, the "we bashed up the Argies" sentiments expressed in the British press in the wake of England's victory would have been just as crass in South American Spanish, had Argentina won the match.

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Mexico, too, saw its clash with the U.S. as much more than a game. Various quotes in the newspapers, supposedly coming from Mexican fans, having alluded to the view that defeat by the U.S. was that much harder to take because it came at the hands of a nation that treats soccer and Mexicans with an equal amount of disrespect -- their interpretation, not mine, I hasten to add.

These are just a few examples, of course. I'm sure that if I could read German, Turkish, Polish or the myriad of other languages that have been heard at this tournament, I wouldn't have had to look too far to find other examples of jingoism that leaves a sour taste in the mouth.

I'm not naïve enough to think we can all get along. What's the evidence of that right now? But, when all said and done, the World Cup is supposed to be a celebration of football, not just another chance to stick the political boot in.

Whatever happened to gracious winners and good losers?

 

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