Association football and politics

While many clubs don't have a fixed political identity, some clubs are known to have clear leanings. According to YouGov statistics, supporters of the English club Sunderland AFC predominantly lean to the political left,[4] and often sing "The Red Flag" during games.[5] While Sunderland fans are generally regarded as left wing,[4] the hooligan firm Seaburn Casuals was known for having far-right associations. When 26 Seaburn Casuals hooligans were arrested in a police raid before the 1998 FIFA World Cup, some of them were found to be involved with neo-Nazi groups like Combat 18.[6]

One of the biggest and oldest football rivalries is the Old Firm rivalry between the Scottish clubs Celtic and Rangers from Glasgow. The competition between the two clubs had roots in more than just a simple sporting rivalry.[7] It has as much to do with Northern Ireland as Scotland and this can be seen in the flags, cultural symbols, and emblems of both clubs.[8] It was infused with a series of complex disputes, sometimes centred on religion (Catholic and Protestant), Northern Ireland-related politics (Loyalist and Republican), national identity (British or Irish-Scots), and social ideology (Conservatism and Socialism).[9][10] The majority of Rangers and Celtic supporters do not get actively involved in sectarianism, but serious incidents do occur with a tendency for the actions of a minority to dominate the headlines.[11][8] The Old Firm rivalry fuelled many assaults on Derby days, and some deaths in the past have been directly related to the aftermath of Old Firm matches.[12] An activist group that monitors sectarian activity in Glasgow has reported that on Old Firm weekends, violent attacks increase ninefold over normal levels.[13] An increase in domestic abuse can also be attributed to Old Firm fixtures.[14]

Many of the Spanish football rivalries outwith local derbies involve politics, either ideological or geographical.[15] The term morbo (roughly translating to morbid fascination and antagonism)[16] has sometimes been used[17][18] to describe the attitudes relating to the complex network of identities and relationships between Spanish clubs.[16] An informal system of alliances and enmities exists across the nation's hooligan groups based on their political allegiance,[19] with arguably the most prominent of these being between Atlético Madrid's right-wing followers and the left-wing group attached to Sevilla.[20] At a local level, Sevilla is perceived as the middle-class club in the Seville derby in contrast to working-class Real Betis, one of the main elements of the rivalry between them.[21] The largest 'ultras' groups who follow Real Madrid and Barcelona, the two clubs in Spain's most famous rivalry, El Clásico, are both aligned to the right, but the cause of the hostility between them is their wider profiles as the symbolic representatives of the Castile and Catalonia regions,[22][23] which escalated under the Madrid-based ruling fascist regime of General Franco in the mid-20th century and continued into the next, with many Barcelona supporters sympathetic towards the Catalan independence movement and visibly displaying this during matches and the team being met with anger by many other clubs' fans when they visit as a result.[24] Barcelona's claimed position as the persecuted team in their relationship with Madrid contrasts entirely with their city rivalry with Espanyol, who are aligned more towards Spanish unionism and whose owners see Barça as the club unfairly favoured by the law-makers within Catalonia.[25] Real Madrid's rivalry with Athletic Bilbao, the biggest and most successful team in the Basque region, is one which involves differences both in culture and ideology, although the competitive element between them has diminished in the era of global exposure and recruitment due to Athletic persisting with a policy of using only local players to emphasise pride in their origins.[26][27][28]

In Italy, the Derby della Capitale in Rome is often characterised by political tensions. A minority of Lazio's ultras used to use swastikas and fascist symbols on their banners, and they have displayed racist behaviour in several occasions during the derbies. Most notably, at a derby of the season 1998–99, laziali unfurled a 50-metre banner around the Curva Nord that read, "Auschwitz is your town, the ovens are your houses". Black players of Roma have often been victims of racist and offensive behaviour.[29] During the late 1970s, Lazio developed a strong hate for Pescara Calcio, who in return consider Lazio a rival.[30] The far-right Lazio ultras consider both A.S. Livorno Calcio and Atalanta, known to have strong left-wing leanings, to be among their greatest enemies due to political ideologies. In addition to Lazio, Livorno often have clashes with opposing right-wing supporter groups, especially those of Inter Milan and Verona.[31][32] Lazio icon Paolo Di Canio and Livorno counterpart Cristiano Lucarelli have both performed controversial ideological salutes to fans during some of their matches.

The Israeli club Beitar Jerusalem F.C. is known to have far-right leanings and are known for their long refusal to allow an Arab Muslim player into the club. The most vocal supporters of Beitar Jerusalem make up the controversial nationalist La Familia group.[33] Fans in and out of the stadium's stands chant anti-Arab and racist slogans. The club has also been penalised many times for the behavior of its fans.[34][35] Their arch rival is the club Hapoel Tel Aviv F.C., known for its left-wing leanings, and politics is the main reason for the two clubs being rivals. Often, fans of the clubs have violent clashes.[36][37][38][39]

The most infamous declaration of politics and sport was the Football War between El Salvador and Honduras. Though the build-up to the war had to do with more socio-economic issues like immigration and land reform, the impetus for war was an inflammation of tensions set off by rioters during the second North American qualifying round for the 1970 FIFA World Cup. Disturbances broke out during the first game in Tegucigalpa, but the second leg saw the situation get considerably worse in San Salvador. Honduran fans were roughed up, the Honduran flag and national anthem were insulted, and the emotions of both nations became considerably agitated. In retaliation, violence against Salvadoran residents in Honduras, including several Vice Consuls, increased. An unknown number of Salvadorans were killed or brutalised, and tens of thousands began fleeing the country. The press of both nations contributed to a growing climate of near-hysteria, and on June 27, 1969 an attack against Honduras. The Organization of American States negotiated a cease-fire which took effect on July 20, with the Salvadoran troops withdrawn in early August.[40]

Israel was one of the founding members of the Asian Football Confederation following its own independence in 1948 (prior to that it played under the banner of the "(British Mandate of) Palestine/Eretz Yisrael").[41] After the 1974 Asian Games in Iran, and Israel's 0–1 tense loss to Iran in the finals[42]), Kuwait and other Arab countries refused to play them. Following this, they were expelled from the confederation and spent a few years trying to qualify from such continental bodies as the OFC before joining UEFA.[43]

In the 1986 Mexico World Cup, following the Falklands War between Argentina and the United Kingdom, Argentina and England met in the quarterfinals, where Diego Maradona scored both goals in a 2–1 victory for the South Americans. Both of Maradona's goals, each named the Hand of God and the Goal of the Century have been immortalised in not only Argentina, but around the world due to impressive they are each considered to be. Many Argentines consider the win revenge to the British for what happened in the Falklands War.

At the 1998 FIFA World Cup, held in France, Iran recorded their first World Cup victory in the second game, beating the United States 2–1, with Estili and Mahdavikia scoring goals for Iran. The match was preheated with much excitement because of each country's political stance after the Iranian revolution; however, in an act of defiance against all forms of hatred or politics in sports, both sides presented one another with gifts and flowers and stood together for a photograph before the match kicked off.[44]

The 2004 AFC Asian Cup held in China made headlines due to events that took place during the final between China and Japan, apparently due to historical relations dating back to World War II (see Second Sino-Japanese War and Nanjing Massacre).[45] As the Japanese national anthem was being played, the home fans expressed their anti-Japanese sentiment by drowning out the national anthem with their chants. The Chinese home fans also continually booed the players, visiting fans and officials as they watched Japan defeat China 3–1. After the match, some Chinese fans rioted outside the Beijing Worker's Stadium.

The 2007 AFC Asian Cup was another facet of sporting politics. The victorious Iraq national football team came out despite ethnic factionalism in their country to win the biggest Asian football tournament. Following a previous round win, Iraqi military spokesman Brigadier General Qassim Moussawi said they wanted to stop "terrorists, Sunni extremists and criminals from targeting the joy of the people."[46][47][48] President Jalal Talabani said it was disappointing they couldn't celebrate at home with the fans.[49][50] Yet many hailed the victory as a show of unity.[51] Iraq's Brazilian coach Jorvan Vieira signified the importance of the win in saying "This is not just about football...this is more important than that...This has brought great happiness to a whole country. This is not about a team, this is about human beings." Likewise, Saudi coach Hélio dos Anjos chimed in that "Iraq deserved to win today...They were very motivated and we knew the whole world was supporting this team."[52] Likewise, the American leadership also came out in praise of the Iraqi win.[53]

Once again, on September 6, 2008, Armenia and Turkey faced each other in a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification match in Yerevan. In an unprecedented step, Turkish President Abdullah Gül was invited to watch the match, where he and his Armenia counterpart, Serzh Sargsyan, sat together, albeit behind bullet-proof glass. However, the Turkish national anthem was almost drowned out by booing from 35,000 Armenian fans, showing there is still a lot of mistrust between the two countries. However, the gesture "between the presidents showed that they believed 'football diplomacy' had achieved the most important result." This was a first for the two countries divided by the legacy of the 20th century's first genocide.[54][55][56][57][58]

In 2009, France and the Republic of Ireland met in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification play-off, where the winner of the two-legged tie progressed through to the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. After a 1–1 aggregate draw, the match went into extra time at France's National Stadium. The winning goal came from France's William Gallas, but in the build-up, Thierry Henry twice handled the ball, before passing to Gallas to score. It was seen as a "Hand of Frog" goal, in reference to the similar "Hand of God" goal in the match between Argentina and England. It the became an international incident with Irish Taoiseach Brian Cowen demanding a replay and the French President telling him to "stick to politics".[59] The replay was not given.

In 2010 relations between Iran and the UAE took a turn for the worse when the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran sent a letter to the AFC complaining about the misuse of the Persian Gulf name. "The move was made after the UAE misrepresented the name Persian Gulf during a match between Iran's Sepahan and the UAE's Al Ain. The Emirate television displayed various banners showing a fictitious name for the Persian Gulf during the match between Iran's Sepahan and the UAE's Al Ain. The AFC must take serious measures to deal with UAE actions of the sort", Taj added. "The UAE side must be fined for showing a fictitious name for the Persian Gulf during the live broadcast of the match."[60] In addition to official comments from the UAE in regards to comparing the three disputed islands of Greater Tunb, the Lesser Tunb and Abu Musa, held by Iran, to the occupation of Palestine, calls were made for a downgrade of ties.[61] This also comes after the Islamic Solidarity Games, to be held in Iran, were cancelled over the dispute of the Persian Gulf label.

When drawing for UEFA European Championships Qualification a special measure is put in place where by Gibraltar and Spain cannot be drawn together because of the Disputed status of Gibraltar. The same system is in place for Azerbaijan and Armenia because of the poor relations between the two countries. The same measure was put in place for Russia and Georgia after the 2008 Russo-Georgian War but was however lifted for the Euro 2016 tournament when the two agreed to play each other again.[62]

• Politics and sports
• William Kennedy Gibson
• Oleg Malyshkin
• Nationalism and sport