A Stain on the Beautiful Game
You
|
|
But wait: Is it O.K. to play unfair in order to win? Yes, says the captain of England, the country that was on the receiving end of Maradona's sneakiness—and has never stopped moaning about it. David Beckham said Wednesday that England must learn to cheat more: "We're too honest ... We are not cunning enough." Asked if he would do a Maradona for Queen and country, the Manchester United star turned coy: "To win the game? Yes ... No ... I don't know. I'll let you answer that."
There were altogether too many other examples of players behaving badly during week one, on the field and off it. Red cards for Turkey's Alpay Ozalan and Hakan Unsal, Croatia's Boris Zivkovic, France's Thierry Henry, Senegal's Salif Diao. Slovenia's best player, Zlatko Zahovic, channeled Roy Keane and shouted obscenities at his coach; like the Irish captain, he was promptly sent home.
So why pick on Rivaldo and his theatrics? Because he's a Brazilian, because he represents a nation that glories in the Beautiful Game (a term coined by the most illustrious Brazilian to wear the No. 10 shirt now donned by Rivaldo: Pelé) and prides itself on playing fair and with panache. That is why Brazil is always the favorite of the neutral football fan at any World Cup. It deserves to be held to a higher standard.
To compound an already ugly situation, Rivaldo's coach and teammates rallied to his defense. Diminutive left back Roberto Carlos claimed he had himself faked "many fouls and penalties. To fool referees." This is especially distressing because it's not even true. Carlos, the ever-smiling purveyor of incredible free kicks, is a genuine Mr. Clean. He doesn't resort to underhanded tactics to gain advantage over an opponent; in fact, he has even been criticized for not employing his elbows as deftly as that fearsome left foot. When saints pretend to be sinners, something is terribly wrong.
This World Cup was preceded by pious declarations from FIFA that referees would crack down on playacting by footballers. And yet the sport's governing body—which itself has displayed some deplorable behavior off field in the lead-up to Sepp Blatter's re-election as president—only fined Rivaldo a piffling $7,300. For years now, FIFA has been pressuring referees to protect "flair" players like Rivaldo by handing out harsh punishment to defenders who try to mow them down. The punishment for taking unfair advantage of such protection should be equally uncompromising. He should have been suspended for at least two matches.
Instead, FIFA merely issued a warning and demanded that Rivaldo part with less than his daily wage at FC Barcelona. You might have expected the player to react to this limp slap on his wrist by slumping to the ground, clutching his throat. But no, he responded with a shrug. "No regrets," he said. "This is going to happen a lot at this World Cup."
The dreadful truth is that the cheating Brazilian may be very right about being so wrong.
Most Popular »
- Five Things the U.S. Can Learn from China
- World Leaders Put Off a Climate Change Treaty
- China Investigates Deaths After Swine Flu Shot
- The Prisoner Review: A Pretentious Reimagining
- Good and Bad News for Boxing: Only One Pacquiao
- Box Office Weekend: 2012 Masters Disaster
- The Meaning and Mythos of Manny Pacquiao
- How a Bank Robber Became an Antihero in France
- Does Mexico City Need a Red-Light District?
- YouTube Effect: Making Money From Viral Videos
- Five Things the U.S. Can Learn from China
- Good and Bad News for Boxing: Only One Pacquiao
- Happiness Paradox: Why Are Americans So Cheery?
- Beijing: 10 Things to Do in 24 Hours
- Does Mexico City Need a Red-Light District?
- Why Legalizing Marijuana Makes Sense
- Time Essay: The Death Penalty: Cruel and Unusual?
- Now It's Official: There Is Water on the Moon
- Armed Forces: The Men in the Green Berets
- In a Malaria Hot Spot, Resistance to a Key Drug







RSS