The 2006 FIFA World Cup reached its climax on Sunday night with Italy defeating France in a penalty shootout to claim the trophy for a fourth time.
Soccer pundits around the world have said that this year's event was a disappointment for purists of the game because, from the knockout stages on, almost all the matches were approached with a negative, defensive attitude, with neither team wanting to surrender the first goal.
Another disappointing aspect was the record number of red and yellow cards shown. Sometimes the quality of the refereeing did not meet the standards required, but then officials were not helped by the number of players willing to dive or fake injuries and go against FIFA's stated aim of encouraging fair play.
But despite the perceived disappointment with the quality of the soccer on display during the final stages of the competition, the tournament itself should be viewed as a resounding success. Everything ran like clockwork and fears raised before the start of running street battles between hooligans of various nationalities proved to be unfounded.
That the 32 teams and their hundreds of thousands of followers from every continent and of every religion who descended on Germany could come together and mingle on the streets and in the stadiums without any serious incident is a testament to the power of the "beautiful game." It also goes to show that in today's world, where -- if one believes the mass media -- the threat of terrorism lurks around every corner, people from across the globe are still capable of coming together peacefully to celebrate everything that is good and put aside their differences.
Soccer once again proved to be a great leveler, where the world's superpowers can be humbled at the hands of global minnows. And although there were no major shocks this time around, there were a couple of surprising results, like the talented Ghanaians defeating and eliminating Team USA to advance to the last 16, and the gifted "Soca Warriors" of Trinidad and Tobago holding on for a point after playing over half their game against Sweden with just 10 men. These are the kinds of results that bring joy to a nation and its people.
Germany should be congratulated for being gracious hosts and putting on an absolutely magnificent show. The whole event was a month-long party and by all accounts extremely well organized -- but then what else would you expect from the Germans?
The tournament also proved once again that politics and sport shouldn't mix. Thankfully, the threat of a visit by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad should his country qualify for the second round never materialized, after they were eliminated early on. That would have cast a cloud over the whole event. But that didn't stop other national leaders whose countries got to the final stages suddenly turning up and trying to cash in on the "feel good" factor. Such behavior should be deplored, as the more VIPs there are in the stadium, the more real fans are prevented from getting to see the games.
After all, that is what the World Cup should be about. It is not about politicians but about ordinary people cheering on their heroes, forgetting their troubles for a few weeks and enjoying the soccer. And on this score Germany 2006 has been an all-round success. It's just a shame that the next World Cup in South Africa is four long years away.
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