Political contest played out on football fields

About four decades ago, Bill Shankly, the late Liverpool manager, said, "Some people think football is a matter of life and death. I assure you, it's much more serious than that."

This rings true now in the Arab world, going by the competition between Egypt and Algeria to qualify for the Fifa World Cup in South Africa. Though Algeria eventually prevailed, the lead up was extremely hostile. English football hooliganism is as nothing compared with the farcical ranting of Egyptian and Algerian supporters.

It started early, with media outlets in Egypt and Algeria feeding inflammatory rhetoric to their respective audiences. Though the media are normally quite closely controlled in both countries, the battle of words was unchecked to the extent that it reached unprecedented levels, not even matched when they target Israel.

Though I am not a football expert, I could easily tell from the match itself that there was not much to enjoy. Most likely, the qualifying team — in this case Algeria — will be knocked out of the competition in the first round in South Africa. All that will remain is a bitter rivalry between two peoples that might take years to mend — if it is mended at all. One wonders if those responsible understand what they have done.

Clashes

The Algerian team bus was attacked in Cairo by Egyptian mobs, while the Egyptian team bus met a similar fate in Khartoum at the hands of Algerians. Citizens of both countries attacked, harassed and intimidated each other. Is that sport? Or is it "much more serious than that"?

Before the decider in Sudan on Wednesday, the Algerian president commissioned his brother, Saeed Bouteflika, to lead thousands of supporters to Khartoum, all expenses paid.

The Egyptian president, meanwhile, sent his son — and political heir-apparent — Jamal Mubarak to the Sudanese capital, after opening the floodgates for thousands of supporters to cross the border. The battle of the Brother and the Son in Sudan meant that Khartoum had to draft in forces from the south and Darfur to control the armies of Saeed and Jamal.

Both countries sought to use sport to achieve ‘virtual' victories, making up for any failings in other areas. The public got carried away, and the media spread propaganda. The trick worked, but the consequences might be disastrous.

Algeria accumulated billions during the boom years of its energy exports, yet unemployment is at record levels. Plans to open up the economy and diversify it did not result in the promised improvement of ordinary people's lives. Political stalemate and corruption scandals are the talk of the streets.

The main outcome of the last few years of development may be the widening of the gap between rich and poor. Attempts to distance the country politically from the erstwhile colonial power, France, and adopt a more pro-US stance did not help to sway the people. A popular legacy needs to be sought by other means.

After more than seven years of economic reforms spearheaded by a Cabinet dominated by businesspeople, Egypt is not much different. The trickle-down effect of macroeconomic improvement has not materialised. Corruption has been unprecedented and political uncertainty clouds the already polluted Cairo skies. Egypt's regional position is weakening, especially with a new far-right Israeli government in office and showing little interest in peace with the Palestinians — an area in which Egypt traditionally plays a significant role. A popular legacy needs to be sought by other means.

No wonder then that these two countries, in their fierce battle of words, drew heavily on past achievements and patriotism. The Egyptian media were the worse of the two, almost tarnishing the history of the country as a major regional power. Journalists, writers and broadcasters started reminding Algerians of old favours.

They recounted the history of Egypt's assistance to Algeria's independence movement, half a century ago. They falsely claimed that Cairo did this selflessly, though the fact is that Algerian independence was in Egypt's interest, as an Arab power of the time. Algerians, in turn, did not hold back when pointing to the number of Egyptian companies and workers that are making money in their country.

Simply put, when the present is lacking the weak resort to the glorious past. Winning a football match can't fill the void.

Dr Ahmad Mustafa is a London-based Arab writer.