By Michael WilliamsThe role of whites in South African soccer is again in the news, with Tokyo Sexwale saying that he would like to see more whites attending the World Cup than attended the Confederations Cup.
Late last year Essop Pahad said that he thought that some white South Africans wanted the 2010 World Cup to fail – a sentiment that raised some hackles and even elicited charges of hate speech.
While Pahad’s comments were inflammatory, Sexwale’s seem to be a more gentle and inclusive attempt at talking about the elephant in the room of South African soccer: whites don’t go.
It’s no secret that race and sport are not easily separated in South Africa, but race – or class – and sport is not easily separated anywhere in the world. There is nothing wrong with certain racial groups preferring certain sports.
Strong cultural and historical forces have, thus far, pulled whites towards cricket and rugby and blacks towards soccer, and this fact of South Africa is not worth getting too upset about. But I still have to agree with Sexwale when he says that whites should show more interest in this country’s most popular sport.
As far as I know, Indian South Africans do not have a particular affinity for soccer - compared to cricket, for example - and yet they greatly outnumbered the white fans at the Confederations Cup games that I attended.
I have also seen far more non-white fans at cricket and rugby games than I have seen whites at soccer games. So is there a lack of generosity on the part of whites, when it comes to supporting local soccer? Some will say that a team needs to win to attract new fans; that nothing unites like victory.They say that if Bafana Bafana played better soccer, more whites would attend games.I don’t buy this argument. Many whites will support European clubs through the good times and bad, so why not their national team?
I think it has more to do with the emotional baggage carried by some whites, which disallows them from embracing South Africa in its entirety because of the misguided instinct that doing so would invalidate or trivialize the South Africa they know.
This is silly. White South African culture is flawed and conflicted, but also proud and important. It has too many achievements and too many heroes for it to be defeated by a self-loathing tendency towards isolation.
I hope that white South Africans heed Tokyo Sexwale’s call and turn up at the World Cup, and other local soccer events, in droves.
I hope that white South Africans also realise that soccer belongs to all of us, and that the time is ripe for whites to add their cultural contribution to South Africa’s version of the beautiful game.
source: http://www.shine2010.co.za/
+ comments + 2 comments
Who said Whites do not contribute to soccer cultural mix. Many of us suppoters must come out and tell the truth. Well I know I am not the only one, whenever my team play my boss will buy me two tickets and let me go early and his done this for years. No one has ever complained evrything is done well. All my boss wants is for me to tell him how the game went, besides he let us talk soccer all day long while we work and he even take my sowetan to read in his office. I can tell you my boss is true bucaneer and he will not buy a ticket for the derby rival fan worker. The next ticket goes to a fan who does not even work at my boss job, he lets me decide who comes with me at the game. It takes a while going to the townships to watch a game and back in the suburbs you have last second customers who want to shop before the store closes. Besides you know when the boss close the store he feel good when you are out there with him and walk him to the parking lot. Now what happens on those days he let me go eraly, yet his never said a mumbling word. Some people have told my boss if he ever goes to the township and watch a game, he must leave his Rolex Watch at home. His response was if " I go then my watch is going too ... whats more precious between life and a watch"
Only peace and quiet follows after that.
Again, if you look at the food stands you know you will see a delicious fingerlicking Boere Wors. Stop and ask yourself who in this whole wide wold ever made such a set piece. Hope you do not forget Biltong too.
Its not over, you have lots of fans getting home very late and thus getting to work a little late yet never fired and some of us the fans come to work smelling like all that we do out there at the stadiums. I am sure many would not like their boss to see they be doing at the stadium. We still have a long way to deal with all types of all air polusion sold in match boxes and half envelopes.
Again, if they all come you already know the ticket is going to get high and we will have to watch the kitchen black and white battery TV set. Trust me they follow our games, we have same Tv stations, same radio and read same news papers. Are you telling me each time something about soccer pops up they switch channels. No no no we are all South Africans. Just as much as we go to the game we live behind too many than we bring in. Let us rally behind our local team branches and prove to Fifa that these stadiums are to small. We can let the high schools and Mark Fish use these new stadiums when all of as the home stayers get out to the game. Our people still got that old myth that it is adngerous at the stadium or your car will be gone. Those unending myth that tsotsi will get you when you try to open you gate on your way back. I have not seen or heard any of that, I have seen young kids stranded and staying all over Soweto and drove them home and made sure somebody old enough knew that little boy. When your team is playing some kid is going to make his way to the game some way. You recall at some time kids under 12 would go free, all they needed was an adult. These are the kids who be litening to us when we come back from the game talking about all the wonderful things boys be doing wiyh the ball. That is exactly where these kids are appetised.
Peace Out
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