The StuSie: Sport Diplomacy

Donnerstag, Januar 12, 2006

Sport Diplomacy

Diplomatic backchannels have long included unlikely ambassadors such as musicians, celebrities and sports stars. These figures have the international recognition necessary to attract attention to a cause, movement or plight, but their most attractive quality (from a diplomatic perspective) is that their actions carry no official weight. It's all of the bacon with none of the fat - they're free to improve things as much as they'd like, and the moment they do something politically unfortunate they're instantly transformed from ambassador back into the wacky star that nobody can control.
Or at least that's how it used to be done. Now however, these "ambassadors," are being taken to task in a way that I think is highly inappropriate. Last week as you may have read, Bayern Munich played an international friendly match against Iran's Persepolis Tehran, and now they're being dragged over the coals for supposedly showing support for Iran's hardline president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. We can all agree that Ahmadinejad is world-class pillock and no more deserves to be running a country than everyone's favourite Texan reject. The issue as I see it however, is that although soccer or any other sport can certainly be used to build informal ties between countries with even the most politically distant regimes, it is also vitally important that such events be treated as actual political acts. Not only would this rob them of their positive behind-the-scenes bridge-building ability, but it would turn them into highly politically contentious events. Again, I think we can agree that one thing soccer in particular doesn't need is additional contention.
There's also talk of excluding Iran from the World Cup because of Ahmadinejad's holocaust denying comments. This would also be a mistake. I only know one Iranian, but he's good shit and I don't see the point of punishing a populace because of their administration. I know, I know, "but that works so well" is what you're thinking, "I mean just look at Iraq, we disliked the regime, pounded the shit out of the population, and voila - one piping-hot cup of petroleum-fueled shitstorm." Despite that very compelling argument, maybe we should try a different route with this one, you know, just for shits and giggles. See what happens.