It's almost time for the World (not series) CUP, and although FIFA says we should separate politics from football, that never seems to happen on the world stage.
So: I'm trying to figure out if this is even really a big deal, so forgive me if this is petty, but shouldn't the Iranian President be allowed to go to a World Cup match (providing he has proper documenation), I know this guys a loon, but otherwise, I think it's fine.
My point is this? HOW would it upset the US, as stated in the article?? Would we get so upset we'd have to go invade that "other" country? That's just the type of nonsense we need to tip the floodgates open to another "dramatic" event, and I'm not talking about the US going up 2-1 over Italy.
Any thoughts? If not I'll just wonder to myself where we go from here.
Germans fret over political football
Email Print Normal font Large font By Colin Nickerson
May 24, 2006
GERMAN security forces are ready to deal with hooligans, right-wing protesters, and even suicide bombers.
But the possibility of Iran's President making a surprise appearance at next month's World Cup football championship is causing the country's leadership much anxiety.
The prospect of such a visit started to emerge last month after Mahmoud Ahmadinejad -- the world's best-known Holocaust-denier, despiser of Israel, and supposedly a hopeful wielder of nuclear arms -- expressed his passionate love for soccer. Iran's national team is one of 32 that have qualified for the championship, and it will play its first game in Nuremberg.
Suddenly, it seems possible that Mr Ahmadinejad and his entourage might show up to cheer Iranian players in a city where Adolf Hitler set the stage for the Holocaust with massive Nazi rallies.
No Iranian official has publicly suggested that he might come. Still, the hint of such a visit has set off frenzied debate.
Some German leaders and editorialists have demanded that the Government ban him. But Chancellor Angela Merkel so far has taken the position that Mr Ahmadinejad cannot be turned away, even though his presence would surely trigger international outrage and protests from Israel.
But that's a far cry from saying that Mr Ahmadinejad is welcome. "Everyone is welcome to the World Cup except one person: Iran's President," Germany's Bild newspaper said in a commentary. "As long as the madman of Tehran denies the Holocaust, continues work on the nuclear bomb, and supports terrorism, he should stay at home ... The World Cup must not be poisoned by a political fanatic."
The month-long World Cup offers Germany a rare chance to shine on the world stage. But the appearance of Mr Ahmadinejad could be an enormous embarrassment, and could hurt the country's fine-tuned relations with the Islamic world if he is not accorded full respect. It also could upset the US.
Germany would plainly prefer not to have to ruffle a leader who sits on some of the world's richest oil and natural gas fields. And Iran is an important market for German exports.
BOSTON GLOBE
Another Quote:
"The West is against Iran's glory and do not want the Iranian youth to be glorious in any field," Ahmadinejad told the national squad when he donned a football kit and paid a surprise visit to a training session in March. AFP
ideas? thoughts? concerns?