More than just a game - the mixed impact of football in Honduras

Often people that do not understand the passion for football question why so many people care about 22 players running around after a ball for 90 minutes. Even some passionate fans feel that it is simply a game, and nothing more important than that. However, try telling that to football fans in Honduras. Football has caused both tragedy and healing in the Central American country over the past 40 years. Both war and peace; both preceding and preventing violence; football is more than just a game there.

In 1969, the so-called ‘Soccer War’ broke out between Honduras and El Salvador. Whilst the war was not solely as a result of the football, the match between the two nations was widely seen as the catalyst for the outbreak of violence. Honduras travelled to El Salvador in a playoff for a place in the 1970 World Cup in Mexico, but went down to a 3-0 defeat. A bad tempered game, where the Hondurans were subjected to abuse, xenophobia and outright hatred, just as the Salvadorans had been in the reverse fixture back in Honduras. Indeed, the Honduran coach, Mario Griffin, commented that “we are awfully lucky that we lost.”


Honduran fans were attacked in San Salvador, both before and after the match, the Honduran flag and national anthem were insulted, leading to relations between the two sets of fans and populations becoming extremely strained. Salvadorans residents in Honduras were killed or attacked, including several vice consuls, and thousands began fleeing the country. Less than a month after the match, the Salvadoran army and air force launched a full-scale attack on Honduras. The war lasted only four days until a cease-fire agreement was reached, but a final peace settlement would not come for over a decade. Over 3,000 people were dead – the majority being Honduran civilians – whilst thousands more were left homeless. The economic situation in Honduras was affected by the expulsion of almost 100,000 Salvadorans.

Whilst there were far more complex reasons behind the war, hinging mainly around economic disparities between the countries, the events surrounding the football match are often viewed as the catalyst for the outbreak of violence. It gives a whole new importance to football beyond merely a game for 22 people.

However, football can also act as a major healer. Fast-forward to October 2009, and once again, the Honduran national side travelled to El Salvador in the final qualifying match for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. They knew that they had to win, and needed the USA to beat Costa Rica, to ensure qualification. However, the game took place amid a situation of political turmoil in Honduras. Democratically elected President, Manuel Zelaya, had been forced into exile last July following a power struggle concerning his plans for constitutional change.


The scenes inside the stadium in San Salvador were confused for the Hondurans. They wrapped up a comfortable 1-0 victory, after top-scorer Carlos Pavon had headed the ball home just after the hour mark. However, Costa Rica had gone 2-0 up against the USA, and when the final whistle had gone in San Salvador, the Americans had pulled one goal back, but the Hondurans thought they had missed out. However, a 95th minute equaliser confirmed Honduras’ place in South Africa.

Honduran FA President and former Honduran President, Rafael Callejas, said that “if we had not qualified for the World Cup, the differences in Honduras would have become enhanced and probably we would have had high levels of violence. People were tranquilised by the game; it gave them hope and happiness.” Now, the political crisis in the country seems to have resolved itself and is nearly over. Whether this would have happened without the success of the national side is a different question.

It is not the only example of football, and sport in general, having far more extensive effects that people would expect. The qualification of the Cote d’Ivoire in 2006 helped to distract attention from the civil war raging in the country. The mix of different ethnic and religious groups in the national team helped the country to bond, and a cease-fire was declared and observed during the tournament. As one Ivorian said, “everyone is thinking about soccer and the World Cup, and we have forgotten about the war. Thanks to soccer, the country is going to reconcile its differences.”

Iran’s qualification for the 1998 World Cup led to massive celebrations, alcohol-fuelled parties and women throwing off their veils. Some thought that the qualification that may have been the spark that overthrew the government. It was not to be, but the impact that football can have on the population of a country is clear.


Other sports can have a similar effect as well. The Filipino boxer, Manny Pacquiao, is a true hero back in the Philippines. Virtually the entire country stops during his fights, and crime rates fall to zero during the period of the bout.

Football has often been described as an international language. The influence of football in Honduras over the years has shown that anyone that views football solely as a game severely underestimates the impact that the sport can have on emotions in a country, and even the political future of the nation.

A Club in Crisis

Rewind to October 2004. Juan Bautista Soler, a Spanish property developer, took over as president of Valencia CF, one of Europe’s biggest clubs at the time. In the previous four years, they had reached two Champions League finals, won the Primera Liga twice and had lifted the UEFA Cup. Their starting eleven included the likes of Roberto Ayala, David Albelda, Rubén Baraja, Santiago Cañizares and Pablo Aimar. Although Rafa Benítez had just left, Claudio Ranieri, the man who had led Valencia to the Champions League final, had returned. The future looked bright for Valencia. Fast forward back to the present day. With debts reported to be over €450m, construction having stopped on the new stadium and relegated to the depths of the Europa League, Valencia are a club in crisis. How could things go so badly wrong in such a short period of time?

As an example of how not to run a football club, the past 5 years at Valencia should be used to warn off all future owners. Major mismanagement, combined with the effects of the economic crisis, has hit Valencia hard, threatening the very existence of the famous club. Arguments between the boardroom and the coaching staff, and amongst the coaching staff and the playing staff resulted in club captain David Albelda taking the president and club to court. The inability of the club to pay its playing staff led to a downturn in results on the pitch. Valencia virtually turned into a tragic soap-opera.

We will come to the mismanagement and the financial problems later, but the first, and one of the more bizarre, happenings was the ostracism of three of Valencia’s star players. David Albelda, the most successful captain in the history of the club and an icon at the Mestalla; Santiago Cañizares, arguably the second best Spanish goalkeeper at the time behind Iker Casillas; and Miguel Ángel Angulo, who had made over 300 appearances for the club over 10 years. The decision came as a major shock to everyone. It is suggested that they were excluded by Juan Soler – the three were major critics of his regime and he wanted to silence them, potentially fearing the influence of the three as a threat to his power. The three players were eventually reinstated over four months later, following a court case and the dismissal of Ronald Koeman, but the whole incident had caused major divisions in the squad, with some squad members supporting Soler and others supporting the exiled stars.

However, it is the financial problems that are the biggest threat to the club. With reported debts of over €450m, up from around €100m when Soler took over, there have been many worrying events in recent times. Last season, they were forced to delay payment to player for two months, leading to a dramatic collapse in form; the club fell from second to eighth, and slumped out of Europe during this period. On the 25th February last year, construction on the new stadium stopped due to lack of payments. A fortnight later, coach Unai Emery admitted that the club had reached ‘rock bottom’. Mass player sales were expected in the summer, although the club defied the predictions to retain all their players, other than Raul Albiol, who moved to Real Madrid for around €15m.

The economic crisis has hit Valencia badly in comparison to other clubs, due to their position at the time. Soler’s grand plan was to build a brand new stadium and training ground, and finance it by the sale and redevelopment of the existing stadium land and training facilities. However, they were dependent on the housing and construction markets remaining strong. With the economic crisis, these two sectors were amongst the worst hit in the Spanish economy. The club were left with two stadia and two training grounds – one that they couldn’t sell and one that they couldn’t build. Huge expenditures under Soler on both players and coaches added to the problems. Severance pay totalling over €35m went to Quique Sánchez Flores, Claudio Ranieri and Ronald Koeman. The club spent around €20m each on the likes of Manuel Fernandes, Ever Banega and Nikola Zigic – none of which has justified the large price tag.

The club was rapidly going through staff members as well. Over the course of Soler’s four year reign, the club went through five sporting directors, three director generals and three medical chiefs. The departure of Soler as president in March 2008 hardly stemmed the flow. In the following 12 months, the club had four different presidents, whilst in only six months between October 2008 and March 2009, they had six different sporting directors. Within three weeks of Unai Emery taking over as head coach in May 2008, he had worked for more different bosses than he had in the rest of his four year career combined.

When Soler stepped down as president, he sold his shares to Vicente Soriano, who claimed he would pay €90m for them and find a buyer for the Mestalla at €350m, but he broke both promises – he didn’t actually have the money he claimed he did. The club were dropped by their shirt sponsor and ditched by the local government. As if to spite Soler, the club won its first trophy in five years months after Soler had left.

The club missed out on the Champions League again last year, denying the club a crucial source of revenue. They are currently playing in the Europa League, but the difference in the money between the two competitions is huge. Qualification for next year’s Champions League would be a major boost for the club, and they currently sit in third place, despite poor recent form and a major injury crisis in defence. It could be argued that with a strong defence, the club would have the ability to challenge for the title with Barcelona and Real Madrid. In an attacking sense, the club is blessed with a number of highly talented individuals.

David Villa is one of the most sought after strikers on the planet; David Silva is a hugely talented midfielder who has been linked with big-money moves to the Premiership on numerous occasions; Juan Mata is a Spanish international, rated as having more potential than Silva by many; Ever Banega has been reinvigorated this season and praised as one of the best midfielders in the league. If they were forced to sell players, there would be no shortage of suitors.

It is a shame to see one of the historic clubs of Europe in such dire straits; indeed, there were major worries over bankruptcy only recently, and officially, the club is still insolvent. However, Unai Emery has done a magnificent job on a very limited budget – he has taken the club from finishing in the lower half to realistic challengers for the Champions League, virtually without spending any money whatsoever. Qualification for the Champions League next year would provide some hugely needed revenue. However, it would be expected that the club are forced to cash in on some of their assets this summer – David Villa and David Silva are two names that are likely to be mentioned with regards to this. Hopefully the club can hang on to their stars and continue their gradual recovery, but the new unfinished stadium will remain as a monument to the financial mismanagement of the past.

Economic Bailout Package

I haven't written in a while, but I have been busy. The work at my paying job has picked up, which is good when you see the economy melting down before your eyes. And family life is as busy as always. Soccer practice continues to occupy several days a week of my time and I was able to squeeze in the collapse of the Ravens last night on Monday Night Football.

So what has been occupying my thoughts for the past week or so is the crisis on Wall Street. I have watched my stocks tumble 10-30% in a short amount of time. I have not sold anything, so I haven't lost any money. As any good money manager will tell you, you haven't lost any money in the stock market unless you sell. When you sell, you've solidified your loss.

I have watched institution after institution collapse in terms of stock price and in name. It seems that the mere mention by the media that a company poised for collapse causes said company to collapse. In a short amount of time we have lost Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, Merrill Lynch, Washington Mutual (WaMu), Wachovia, and AIG. What would normally be a major headline for each company has become second page news given what it happening everywhere else.

The Congress continues to bicker about providing an economic bailout to rescue Wall Street and Main Street. Each round continues to fail and each party blames the other for the failure. However, the average Joe, while not having a great understanding of what is going on, does understand that his family is the one that is going to pay for it.

With the economy sliding into recession, by whatever definition you want to use, the government continues to print more money to devalue the currency, making our hard-earned dollars worth less. The government continues to borrow money from China and the Middle East, giving them more leverage over our economy and our future. And as the proverbial slap in the face, we are told by the government that the foundations of our economy are strong and that inflation is in check. Meanwhile, we are watching our retirement plans dwindle in value. Our salaries are rising at 3-4% per year if we are lucky. Yet we're paying 100% more for gas than we were several years ago and $100 doesn't go that far at the grocery store anymore. If inflation is in check, then why does everything cost more?

Americans are tired of the lies. The President lies to us. The Congress lies to us. The media lies to us. The 2 major candidates for Presidency lie to us. Wall Street lies to us. We are tired of the lies. We want the truth.

Explain this economic crisis to us. If a bailout is needed, let's pass one that doesn't have riders giving subsidies to farmers in South Dakota. Pass a bill that does not just give a handout to Wall Street to provide more cheap credit, which will cause more people to go out and buy homes they can't afford. Do not pass a bill that makes United States Government the largest financial firm in the country. Do not try to over-regulate the market and artificially inflate the housing market, the credit market, and the stock market. Do not pass a bill that you know will only make things worse in the long run.

We are not stupid. Stop treating citizens as if we are. As for the voters, it is time we wake up. Why are our Senators and Congressmen in office for 20, 30 years? We holler for change, then vote for the same bozos every election. Steny Hoyer has been in office since 1981 - that's 27 years. Barbara Mikulski has been in Congress since 1976 - 32 years!

I urge you to contact your elected leaders - Senators, Congressmen, and tell them what you think. And let me tell you - they are pretty tricky. I wanted to contact the other Congressmen in Maryland, but they hide their email addresses and the only way to email them is to complete a online form and lie about your information. Otherwise, it directs you to the Congressman in your district. I want all Congressmen to hear what I have to say, but they make it so that you can't tell them.

If you want change, it will not come in the form of incumbents. I don't care who your party is. If you're a Republican, perhaps it is time for vote for a Democrat. If you are a Democrat, perhaps it is time to vote for a Republican. If you want change, DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT! Otherwise, sit back and expect things to continue the way they are.