For the Love of the Game: For the Pain and Bliss Football Brings

'I fell in love with football as I was later to fall in love with women: suddenly, inexplicably, uncritically, giving no thought to the pain or disruption it would bring with it' -Nick Hornby, Fever Pitch

I have set a new record for myself. Not only have I found that one sport I am certain to enjoy for the rest of my life but also, I have found addiction for it. It was strange to have gotten hooked in such a snap; it all started with the 2006 World Cup. Yes, it all started just some 7 months ago.

Before it began, there was all the buzz, World Cup here, World Cup there. Of course, this isn't the kind of buzz you get from an upcoming Manny Pacquiao-Erik Morales game wherein you hear about it in every news break of each broadcasting network in the Philippines. Nor is it the kind of buzz where almost every other person you meet and every other paper you read talks abouts the NBA finals, Miami Heat winning, who scored the most in Game 6, how the Mavs were crushed and so on. Rather this is the rare kind of buzz, at least for me, living in such a basketball-boxing-(and billiards)-inflicted culture, where it seems like the three are the only sports recognized by everyone.

To say World Cup is to always say something big- whether in terms of the participants- participated by 32 countries from all over the globe, the game attendees- there was more than 2 million people for the first round games, and the audience- simply the most watched game on earth. I tried watching not because everybody was talking about it (apparently not, especially in my case) but because my curiosity was aroused by the sport's magnanimity. It is the same question that gets everybody after chancing upon something new to them that got me: what is the fuss all about? My 'journey' started on the very first day of the FIFA World Cup: the opening ceremonies.

I tried watching the opening ceremonies through the old television set with crappy reception, with a newly found interest, curiosity and open eyes. Everyone who knows me can attest to the fact that I have NEVER been a sports fan- what may be the biggest thing missing in my life. I was never one of the millions who stay tuned to Star Sports or ESPN watching basketball games or boxing or billiards (yes, in that particular order). There were times when i tried to enjoy the game, but to no avail. Though I had occasional peek at some golf and pool tourneys, that was it. To actually attempt to learn the rules, to know who plays well for one team and who's rubbish at the other, to stay up until 5am day after day just trying to wait for the victor, to try to avoid mistakes of having to make unnecessary noise that might wake up parents who would send me to sleep- all of that was just plain new.

After watching several matches of the World Cup, I've already come to realize why I got hooked to football like I've never been before by anything:

Score arrives at unexpected times; sometimes it even doesn't. Getting a goal could take as much as the whole stretch of the game, yet it could also take a measley 15 seconds from kick-off. These are people running from one end to the other of the field, whose area is three to four times the size of a basketball court. Just to get from one point to the other already takes time. Getting a goal while three or four defenders try to tackle the ball away, all of you using just your feet, arguably more difficult to control than the hand, is even triple the work and thus could take much longer. Therefore, as time elapses, excitement continuously arises as every member of the audience waits for that one time when their favorite team would get the ball past the goalkeeper. It could take forever yet once it goes in, then fulfillment is just overwhelming. No wonder players who score throw themselves right in front of their teammates, their coaches or the fans and celebrate the moment by doing some emotionally-filled, sometimes even ridiculous moves. No wonder these people, when they score what could already be the winning goal, run all over the field as if they've won the 100M jackpot of the lottery. Ah, euphoria. The fruit just couldn't get any sweeter. Moreover, the gratification usually found in football is just too much to handle. It isn't like basketball where almost every 15 seconds, someone scores. While at some point, crucial shots are made, such a shot is not as rare as having to come back from trailing 2 goals and eventually win with just 5 to 10 minutes left of the game. From a point of comparison, and I hope that this part doesn't get cut out, one can think of football as an intercourse with possible mutliple orgasms while basketball is just a long monotonous copulation.

The second reason why I've come to love football was because of the endless possibility of anyone becoming the game's hero. You have your strikers, alright and you always expect them to score for the team. If you weren't a follower of the sport, you'd expect them to always be the Man of the Match. However, another beauty of the game is, you don't know who would score next. There is the unpredictability as to who would catch the ball and get it in or do a header some 15-30 yards away from the net and then become the game's hero. That man could be the striker, the midfielder or even the defender! Sheer luck is what some might call it. In the Philippines, many would call it ala-chamba. But whether it really is ala-chamba or some pure stroke of talent , it is the very reason why people love the game. Score could come in at any unexpected, nerve wracking moment, from just about anyone. The previously unheard of player suddenly becomes the hero of the match for letting his team win (or in some unfortunate nevertheless sometimes acceptable draw) over their opponent. He could have scored the only goal, given the equaliser or led the team to some sweet, unexpected victory for a last-minute goal. A hero is made out of a single goal precisely because of the very nature of the game. The extremely difficult manner by which a person could score, whether due to the lack of an opening or the very good tackling skills of the opponent, always seems to be in search of some stroke of luck to hit one of the players. A goal could come in as fast as the blink of an eye and the slowly dying crowd could easily come back to life as one partakes on the team's never-ending creation of football history, hopefully leading the team to advance.

Third, while there is the unpredictability of scoring a goal and winning an unexpected victory, there is also the unpredictability of an upset. All of us, I'm quite sure, have been victims of this. Many of us have witnessed how our teams, most especially those in top form- national or club- have been subject to some heavy criticisms for an unexpected defeat. I understand how Nick Hornby was able to open his autobiography with the opening line I used. In the last World Cup, we have all witnessed how Brazil failed to even reach the semi-finals when they have been favorites to win again. We have witnessed how Ronaldinho failed to become a contender for the Golden Shoe. Many of us have witnessed England's early exit as well. We expected them to go far, didn't we? (Yes, I was devastated too when that happened.) Even Sven was sure they can reach the finals and bring back the trophy after 40 years of football drought. Fans were waiting for that moment while singing along to Baddiel and Skinner's "Football's Coming Home". Just recently in the English Premier League, we have seen how Manchester United, on top of the table, was defeated by West Ham United, who have been in the relegation zone for several weeks now. Then there's Chelsea who faced their first defeat of the season in the second week against the struggling Boro. Then just a couple of weeks back, ManUtd was again beaten by Southend United, currently at the bottom of Championship table, and struggling Charlton was beaten by Wycombe Wanderers, a League 2 club.

Finally, there is some real challenge; there is hardcore requirement for skill. Passing the ball in itself carries some tough challenge because the opponent can easily tackle if the man handling it isn't skilled enough to keep the ball with him. Again, the idea of using the feet already requires so much work. The structure of the feet per se makes it difficult for one to move them as freely as one does with the hands. Any kid playing basketball can easily dribble and pass. Whether they know how to play it well or not, a pretty good simulation of the game could still be created. However, any kid attempting to play football might not even get past someone who is blocking him. Nor could he make a decent pass. This could be made worse by two kids who do not know how to play it. A rough simulation might be impossible.

I am not ditching basketball as the easier sport, although it might've been implied with some of my statements. I know that basketball, all in itself, requires a totally different set of skills. My only point is, personally, football is better and more attractive for me for the reasons stated above. I know other lifelong fans could give more. I do believe, however, the bulk have already been discussed here. Anyway, the way we answer to our own biases makes our own POVs problematic from the eyes of the other people. That is the very reason why some hardcore basketball fans would disagree with my thoughts about football (and please don't call it soccer) or even curse me for even attempting to compare the two, and why football fans would be eclectic for my defense of our favorite game.