Tor! Tor! Tor! Tor!!!!! The World of Soccer

[isabelle]

More important than nationalism, politics, governments or anything else is the question that's been troubling me:

Do soccer players have

a) better sex after a winning match
b) better sex after a losing match
c) no sex -- are you f--king kidding me, honey?  Did you see me running for two straight hours out there?  I know I'm made of muscle but please, can we do it in the morning?

ThierryHenrypie? LOL! Want me to want you? ahem...

Well, if you had a close look at Henry's pic, I'd pick answer n#1

And opinionista (can I call you by your real name here?), the Spanish coach actually passed a racist comment on Henry! My own lovely Henry!!

[opinionista]

And opinionista (can I call you by your real name here?), the Spanish coach actually passed a racist comment on Henry! My own lovely Henry!!

Oh, Aragonés is a racist pig. No doubt about it. Everyone knows that in Spain. He got in trouble here not long ago for making racist remarks against a player, can't remember who.  Few people like him. He's a total pig.

You can call me by my name, no problem.

[Lumière]

ThierryHenrypie? LOL! Want me to want you? ahem...

Well, if you had a close look at Henry's pic, I'd pick answer n#1

Let's bring the said Thierry pic to this page ... , and the others too ...










And in this pic, he seems to be wearing some 'package-supporting gear' ...

[Pipedream]

Oh, Aragonés is a racist pig. No doubt about it. Everyone knows that in Spain. He got in trouble here not long ago for making racist remarks against a player, can't remember who.  Few people like him. He's a total pig.

You can call me by my name, no problem.

Hey Natali, that reminds me of something I have read a while ago. In an interview with the German paper "Die Tageszeitung" the actor Daniel Brühl (who has a Spanish mother) said something about latent racism in Spain and gave football as an example. During a football match of the F.C. Barcelona, he said, he could hear guttural sounds resembling monkeys directed at black players. He pointed out that something like this would be commented on by the Chancellor immediately, should it happen in Germany. In Spain, however, nobody seemed to care much.

A couple of Spanish newspapers and websites quoted him:

Daniel Brühl denuncia

El actor alemán Daniel Brühl, que se dio a conocer en todo el mundo con la película 'Good Bye Lenin' y con la de 'Los Edukadores', se encuentra en España rodando 'Salvador', una película del cineasta catalán Manuel Huerga. El actor denuncia en una entrevista concedida al izquierdista diario 'Die Tageszeitung'('taz') que existe "un racismo latente" en España.

El actor alemán Daniel Brühl, que rueda en España 'Salvador', del cineasta catalán Manuel Huerga, denuncia en una entrevista concedida al izquierdista diario 'Die Tageszeitung'('taz') que existe "un racismo latente" en España.

Daniel Brühl constata que hay diferencias entre España y Alemania, ya que "por ejemplo, en España no hay éxitos electorales de partidos neonazis como en Alemania del este, pero sin embargo hay un racismo latente".

Brühl, que dará vida en el filme de Huerga al anarquista Salvador Puig Antich, pone como ejemplo que en los partidos de fútbol del F.C. Barcelona se oyen sonidos guturales que imitan a los monos contra jugadores negros.

El actor, hijo de un alemán y una española, asegura que si esto ocurriera en Alemania, inmediatamente saldría el canciller Gerhard Schroeder para denunciarlo, cosa que no ocurre en España, y lo achaca a que los españoles tienen "otra mentalidad". (...)

Here's a link:

http://www.fotograma.com/notas/actualidad/3743.shtml

[Lumière]

Hey Natali, that reminds me of something I have read a while ago. In an interview with the German paper "Die Tageszeitung" the actor Daniel Brühl (who has a Spanish mother) said something about latent racism in Spain and gave football as an example. During a football match of the F.C. Barcelona, he said, he could hear guttural sounds resembling monkeys directed at black players. He pointed out that something like this would be commented on by the Chancellor immediately, should it happen in Germany. In Spain, however, nobody seemed to care much.

Yap.  I remember such a case with Samuel Eto'o who is originally from Cameroon and plays for Barcelona!



He endured quite alot of racial insults during one game he was reduced to tears ..    (this happened in Spain..)
The crowd from the opposing team and some 'fans' had to be warned to stop the monkey sounds they were making ...wtf is up with that?? 

Related links..
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/4751876.stm
http://racerelations.about.com/b/a/247546.htm

[Pipedream]

Yap.  I remember such a case with Samuel Eto'o who is originally from Cameroon and plays for Barcelona!



He endured quite alot of racial insults during one game he was reduced to tears ..    (this happened in Spain..)
The crowd from the opposing team had to be warned to stop the monkey sounds they were making ...wtf is up with that?? 

Yeah, wtf, indeed. I'm really happy that there hasn't been anything like that in our World Cup, so far. On the contrary, I really can confirm what Isabelle said: 

it is so good for me to see this team win, because back in 1998, their victory took on an anti-racist claim: they were the same players: Black, Arab, white, and this team winning was like: this is how France will win, by having all colors of people come together. And the Black and Arab youths had national heroes to identify with, it was really a big thing. So, I wouldn't mind witnessing such a great spirit of togetherness, "brotherhood" as our motto says.

This tournament really brings upon a feeling of brotherhood. During the last couple of weeks the sunny weather seems to have sunk deeply in people's minds overhere. Imagine, there have been millions and millions of people celebrating in the streets after every single game Germany won (about one million in Berlin's famous "Fan-Mile" alone), and you hardly heard anything of fights, vandalism or racist incidents. On the contrary: foreigners were thrilled in the face of the welcoming and hearty atmosphere they encountered everywhere.
The motto of this World Cup is "Die Welt zu Gast bei Freunden" which translates literally into "The World as Guest at Friends'". And it's true. It really looks like Germany has made some new friends recently. From what I heard and read, the foreign press was quite impressed with what was going on here, also with the perfect organization, the security/savety and the overall light mood. It's a great international party, and I hope we can keep that feeling for a while, even though we are not going to win this tournament. This country hasn't seen so many happy faces since the Berlin Wall came down in 1989, and it's just so much fun to experience this!
Well, I'm convinced that the party is not over yet. Peoples' tears have dryed already and next weekend we will cheer for our boys like crazy, no matter if they win or lose against Portugal!

I want to see more of this! 

[Lumière]

I love the spirit of the game that brings people together like this! 
Just awesome! 

ANke - THANK YOU for the pix! 

[Pipedream]

Yeah! Some more crazy fan pictures!

[Pipedream]

The following article is from the international sites of Spiegel-Online. It describes the current mood in Germany quite well: 

http://service.spiegel.de/cache/international/0,1518,425267,00.html

KLINSMANN'S REAL VICTORY

Germany's New Attitude

By Marc Young in Berlin

Germany's World Cup dream might be over, but that doesn't mean the tournament won't have a lasting effect on the country. The soccer spectacle has already altered the way the world sees the Germans and even how the Germans see themselves.

Germany's coach Jürgen Klinsmann has helped inspire the country.
Germany's team might not have made it into the final, but the country is clearly a better place for hosting the 2006 World Cup. Long considered a dour and gray nation of moaners, Germany has shown the world -- and itself -- that maybe it's not so bad after all.

The soccer tournament has unleashed a torrent of feel-good vibes from Hamburg to Munich that has stunned the locals probably even more than all the foreign visitors from around the globe. Germans -- long shy about expressing positive attitudes toward their country in light of their difficult history -- have experienced three weeks of unabashed fun and pride decked out in the national colors black, red and gold.

The Germans are positive. The Germans are friendly. The Germans have hosted an unforgettable World Cup. How can this be? For years, commentators both at home and abroad have derided the Germans for their pessimism and often glum or crabby manner. A sudden transformation brought on by the sunny, California-style optimism of German national soccer team coach Jürgen Klinsmann?

To be sure, Germans have reveled in the wave of enthusiasm that has accompanied the unexpectedly strong showing of Klinsmann's young and confident squad. But now that the team has been tossed out by Italy, will the wave break and roll back leaving Teutons with a World Cup- sized hangover?

Not right away at least. Two ladies working in a Berlin supermarket on Wednesday were so extremely friendly and nice that one gets the impression Germans are as happy to have shed their old image as they are about the World Cup.

Besides, much of what has seemed so surprising over the last three weeks is less some dramatic transformation than simply a new perspective on things. Germany was always full of friendly and optimistic people like Klinsmann -- it's just that they were often drowned out by all the complainers and pessimists. The World Cup hasn't changed the foundations of the country, but it has changed the balance within it.

Not such a bad place after all

Just as Germany was never as bad a place as many foreigners thought, it was certainly much nicer than many Germans were willing to admit. Yes, there are problems, serious ones. The economy might be doing okay at the moment, but far too many people remain jobless. And Chancellor Angela Merkel's so-called grand coalition appears more willing to simply milk taxpayers than undertake real reforms that would overhaul the country's bloated welfare system or creaky healthcare.
 
Still, Germany remains a very comfortable place to live. And much of the new attitude unleashed during the World Cup simply seems to be people realizing this.

And Germans aren't the only ones. The black, red and gold flag fest has been a boon for the country's integration of its citizens with immigrant backgrounds. Many Turks and Arabs flew the German colors at their shops or on their cars. A small gesture perhaps, but an important one to both those Germans concerned about integration and those immigrants acknowledging that this is their home too.

This outpouring of good-natured patriotism is only logical: if the Germans are more willing to express their affection for the good aspects of their own country, then so too will others.

Of course, there will be challenges both private and public that will make it difficult for some Germans to stick to their newfound positive ethos. But the naysayers no longer have the upper hand here. Many optimists will not cede the country back to the moaners so easily. And that, in many respects, is a greater gift from Klinsmann and his team than winning the World Cup ever could be.

[Giancarlo]

You know Isabelle I was mad at the french team because of the way they beat up Spain! But I have gotten over it already. I have to admit they're playing very good. Their defense tactics are very good, although sometimes they get a little dirty. Thought they played dirty against Spain, but that's football. I loved how Zidane hugged Figo at the end of the game, and how the exchange their shirts, and just put them on neverminding the sweat. Zidane did the same thing with Ronaldo when they played against Brasil.

Even though I think France is winning this cup, I'll be rooting for Italy on Sunday, SORRY! Nothing against the french, seriuously. Just that I have tons of italians friends here in Madrid. (They'd kill me otherwise, LOL  )

I just didn't Spain did that well that day. And it was quite sad. But really, I don't think France is playing all that well. People on this forum are crowding behind the French, even though they were really sloppy against Portugal. Portugal was sloppy too. I don't see what is so good about the French team. Zidane is quite old, and does not shine like the way he did in 1998. The Italians have a lot more going for them. How can the French team win this cup? What do they have that is sooooooo special? I mean come on... the Italians have Andrea Pirlo, Iaquinta, Buffon (the best goalie in this cup), Cannavaro, Totti, Gattuso, Gilardino, Del Piero, Luca Toni... and others..

I just don't see much in the French team beyond Thierry and Zidane... and they are not enough against a whole team of stars. Zidane is past his prime.

Also the Spanish coach apologized for the comments he made. Spain is not a racist country based on one comment! If anything, I think France is the one that has more issues with racism.