Palestine's New Soccer Home: Political Building Block or Temporary Distraction?

As an international soccer friendly came to a close on Sunday, resulting in a 1-1 tie between the 180th ranked team and the 112th ranked team, one had to wonder why FIFA president Joseph (Sepp) Blatter was smiling and cheering alongside the rest of the six thousand frenzied fans in attendance. For Blatter, the outcome of the match between Palestine and Jordan mattered very little. Instead, as the General Association of International Sports Federations reports, he was content to celebrate the significance of the first-ever Palestinian home game (pictured below), describing the event as "a historic moment and a victory for football." Of course, the day meant much more than the initiation of a long overdue stadium for a nation that has been a member of FIFA since 1998. Given the abundance of political tension in the area over the past decade, Sunday's match provided fans with a rare opportunity to express their national pride with unbridled optimism. The PA announcer belted cheers such as "football is more noble than war," while Blatter effectively endorsed Palestinian political aspirations, echoing that, "football is hope for politicians to reach the goal." Certainly, a new soccer stadium will not fix the seemingly unsolvable land dispute with Israel, but for many, such as Palestinian Football Association (PFA) President and former national security adviser Jibril Rajoub, the occasion marked an opportunity to politicize the determination and unity of the Palestinian people. As the Reuters Soccer Blog notes, Rajoub's insistence on referring to Jerusalem as the location of the new stadium, rather than the town Ram (as stated by FIFA), was in many ways a "statement about nationhood, sovereignty, and identity that goes to the heart of the Middle East Conflict."

Certainly, this momentous occasion is a symbol of hope for the future, but it is important not to blow its effects out of proportion. Although many, such as thirty-nine year old Hiyam al Wahwah, are encouraged that "things will really change and that [they] can live like any other people," circumstances may signal otherwise. The hostility between Israel and Hamas, which controls Gaza, has led Israel to impose severe rules and regulations that greatly restrict travel to and from the area. Consequently, Palestinian soccer players from the area have often been unable to attend training sessions, practices, and even games abroad. In fact, team captain Saeb Jundiyeh missed the historic game because he was not allowed to travel to the West Bank. Earlier this year, moreover, the entire team failed to show for a World Cup qualifying match in Singapore, claiming that the eighteen members of the team based in Gaza did not receive Israeli permits to leave. Even the excitement surrounding the new stadium is somewhat stifled when one needs to look only yards beyond the stadium to notice what one blogger calls "Israel's apartheid wall." Such issues are bound to persist if violence continues to dominate the region, as it has since Hamas's aggressive seizure of the Gaza strip (pictured below, right). Fairly or unfairly, Israel's travel restrictions are essentially a form of national security, which inevitably takes precedence over complaints relating to soccer matches.

However, the emergence of a home soccer stadium has provided a renewed sense of nationalism, something that cannot be understated. Certainly, the people understand that the conflict will not end overnight and that the forces of soccer cannot produce an internationally recognized Palestinian state;

still, every piece of the puzzle, small or large, is an important stepping stone, a necessary building block. As fifty-year old soccer fan Suleiman al-Suhairi pronounced, "this shows the world that we are capable of hosting a major sporting event and that our people aspire to live a normal life despite the occupation." Rajoub goes even further, asserting that the new stadium establishes that "Israeli occupation, the closures, and the difficult living conditions have not defeated the determination of the Palestinian people." Indeed, the remodeling of a national institution has, at the least, reemphasized a unity among Palestinians that has been rare in recent years. Before the game, for example, senior Hamas leader Ismail Haniya actually called Rajoub, a former leader of the secular Fatah party, in order to wish the team luck. Such an occurrence by no means signifies that the two opposing political parties will reconcile their differences to form a united front, but as mentioned above, every small step counts during times of hardship. Still, questions linger regarding what to do next. It remains to be seen if the current optimism will remain on the rise or begin to drop off as the remodeled stadium becomes old news. Perhaps the One Voice peace movement has the right idea in its proposal for Israel/Palestine to host the 2018 World Cup. Such a move would not only force the two sides to coordinate together, but would also bring in players and media from around the world, shining an international spotlight on the region. Practically speaking, however, this proposition remains idealistic and improbable. Again, there appears to be no easy solution in sight, but at the least, the reemergence of soccer in Palestine should provide temporary reprieve to the difficulties of the current conflict.

The World of Sports: An Exploration of Online Sports Resources

This week, I decided to probe the vast resources of the World Wide Web in search of dynamic and distinguished web sites, including organizations, news sources, and blogs that I believe will not only serve the interests of my readers, but will complement the content that I provide in my postings. In order to ensure the utility of these sites, I applied Webby and IMSA criteria for evaluating blogs and websites, which led me to the discovery of twenty fine websites based on content, structure, visual design, functionality, interactivity, authority, and depth. I began with ESPN, widely considered the best source for sports news. It is a beautifully designed site, functions smoothly, and allows the visitor to easily interact with the contributors of the site. However, it is only useful for surface level stories, and as such, is generally beneficial solely for a quick search. I then unearthed several key organizations and associations that pertain directly to a few of the key international aspects of my entries, such as UEFA (European Soccer League), FIBA (International Basketball Federation, pictured right), and the IOC (International Olympic Committee). I found each of these sites to be authoritative, extremely well organized, and navigable, while effectively attaching both audio and video clips. They are, however, prone to become cluttered with small blurbs regarding scores of games rather than with in-depth news stories. Similarly, the ICC (International Cricket Council) suffers from the same flaw, although easy access to its news archives allows the visitor to quickly uncover relevant information. The final two international organizations that I linked to, the Institute for International Sport and the General Association of International Sport Federations, are both helpful sites, specifically by exploring a wide variety of content. However, like many of the other organizations and associations, they demonstrate very little interactivity and are often muddled by news stories that are consumed by insignificant updates and announcements.

As noted, organizations are often restricted by their intent to serve merely as a reference website than a vibrant news site; thus, their limited interactivity and content is unsurprising. In contrast, World News Network Sports serves nearly all of the criteria for an effective site. It has a massive breadth and depth of content, is easy to navigate, and is visually appealing. It is particularly applicable because of its links to an assortment of sports and non-sports sites, and even exhibits a feature that allows the visitor to submit his/her own videos or photos. An offset of this site, Africa Sports News, reveals a similar interface and expresses more in-depth news, making it a useful source that was helpful to me in my first post concerning exploitation in African soccer. Also beneficial to my initial entry was the World Cup 2010 South Africa site, which is not only visually pleasing, but produces various tidbits of soccer information that frequently explore the off-the-field aspect of the game, which is of precise importance to my blog. Another site that attacks a specific to one aspect of international sports is Light the Torch, a blog that is devoted to all Olympics, all the time. Light the Torch is a masterful production of posts that concern Olympic issues instead of simply Olympic results. It is also easy to locate past entries as well as relevant links to other reputable sites. However, the blog is also littered with advertisements that visually offset many of its positive features. The well-renowned International Herald Tribune's Sports Blog is also organized nicely, and supplies a broader view of the sporting world, however, it focuses distinctly on the sports-related news stories, and exhibits little regard for international significance. The Tribune could take some lessons from PRI's The World Global Sports Blog, which effectively provides international stories, from soccer in China to rugby in South Africa. Yet, for all of its valuable content, it is visually quite bare, doing little to entice the visitor to explore the site. Similarly, the Globetrotting Blog benefits from the outstanding reputation of its author, Philip Hersh from the Chicago Tribune, who has been recognized as one of one hundred most influential people in world sports. As a result, his contributions are lively and significant, although, like PRI's blog, the Globetrotting Blog suffers from a lack of visual aid, and an uninspiring interface.

The most significant flaw in almost all of the links mentioned thus far is the lack of depth. In other words, most of the previous sources concentrate directly sports, albeit internationally. With the next several links, however, I aim to present sources that investigate the various aspects of international sports, such as sports law and sports business (pictured left). Globalex, an NYU Law-based guide to international sports law, efficiently illuminates the legal aspect of sports, although it offers zero interactivity, and fails to provide updated information at all. A more effective site, the Sports Law Blog, offers views from several knowledgeable contributors and offers new entries almost daily. It is not the most visually appealing site, but it is structured nicely and is quite easy to navigate. Another blog, titled Money Players, appeals to the business side of sports, from high school to the professional leagues. Unfortunately, it is rarely updated, and often goes off subject, although it occasionally posts further links to other sites that are generally helpful. Along the same lines, the Blog of Sports Business is well organized, despite its complete lack of visual aids, such as photos or videos. Yet again, this blog also suffers from a deficiency of new entries; the site indicates it returned from a hiatus on October 9, just five days ago. Perhaps the most noteworthy sports business site is Sports Business International, which delves into the international aspect while demonstrating a visually pleasing interface and attaching relevant news stories, updated daily. Indeed, the lack of an outlet for participation on the site is its only notable flaw. Finally, I linked to the Elias Sports Bureau, which is the most highly-regarded sports records site on the Web. This site is for reference only, and is not a news outlet in any way. Nevertheless, it is a very useful tool for those who wish to learn more about a player or a team that is part of the topic of discussion, specifically in regards to statistics. Certainly, these are only some of the incredible resources on the Web, but I believe that these twenty are extremely valuable, and will be beneficial to anyone interested in international sports.