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The African Cup of Nations: Celebrating the Other Side of Africa

by Miriti Murungi

Shane Smith doesn’t usually take the easy route. Kind of a hipster Richard Engel-Christiane Amanpour hybrid, the co-founder of VICE Magazine can easily get you nodding, laughing or dropping your jaw at his audacious attempts to uncover stories off the beaten path. Once you start watching his VICE Guides to places the State Department probably suggests you should avoid, it’s hard to stop watching.

So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that listening to Smith recount tales from his adventures is fascinating. But a recent, relatively innocuous-seeming comment made me flinch. Waxing lyrical about the various levels of hell he’s visited, Smith said that there are no cell phones or internet in the Congo, which is mind blowing if you think about it – a massive country, the size of the United States east of the Mississippi River, cut off from all modern forms of communication, internally and with the rest of the world. That’s eerie. (more…)

Media | Outside the Lines
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Uncategorized

Daily Banter 9.16.2010

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

We have all heard about teams complaining about substandard conditions during away matches. Hostile crowds and horrible pitches are common gripes for road teams, but rarely do these gripes escalate to a point where formal complaints are filed. Enter Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwean Football Association (ZFA) (more…)

Uncategorized
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Culture

Roadtrip! Taking the Bus to the World Cup … Seriously

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

I thought he was joking. Several months ago, my cousin suggested that we fly to Kenya get a bunch of people together, rent a bus, drive to South Africa, attend the World Cup, and then sell the bus and go home. I was tempted. Very tempted. But at this stage in my life, and his, the trip was never very likely.

Turns out he wasn’t the only one with this brilliant idea. Seven days of travel through Eastern and Southern Africa and four border crossings is not too much to sacrifice for some.

But check this out. Akamba, a public bus company in Kenya, has put together a package costing US$ 2,500 (KSh 197,500) which includes transport, food and a seven day stay in South Africa. That’s how much some people paid for just a plane ticket. Not to mention, the trip includes stops on the Zambezi River and at Victoria Falls. For anyone trying to put that trip together themselves, you might just want to give Akamba a call to get a real African experience.

(Are there fake African experiences? Indeed.)

The stories of dedication are just beginning. As we come across more over the next few weeks, we’ll be looking forward to sharing them with you.

Interested in more details about the seven day overland trip from Nairobi of Johannesburg? Check it out here.

I thought he was joking. Several months ago, my cousin suggested that we fly to Kenya, get a bunch of people together, rent a bus, drive to South Africa, attend the World Cup, and then sell the bus and fly back to the States. I was tempted. Very tempted. But at this stage in my life, and his, the trip was never very likely to happen. Ten years ago, it definitely would have happened. In fact, I’d be on that bus right now making one bad decision after another. (more…)

Culture | Supporters
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Globalization

Samuel Eto’o’s Question: Is the World Ready for an African Champion?

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

He leans forward animatedly: “The question we have all the time is whether an African team is able to win the World Cup. But the real question is whether the world is ready for an African team to become champions?”

Does he believe some officials might still subconsciously favour the more traditional European and South American powerhouses over the six African teams? “I’m still a player,” Eto’o smiles. “I can’t say that sort of thing. We’ve covered a lot of ground in the last 20 years and in Europe so many leading players are African. If we prepare properly, then one of the African teams can do something special.”

He leans forward animatedly: “The question we have all the time is whether an African team is able to win the World Cup. But the real question is whether the world is ready for an African team to become champions?

Does he believe some officials might still subconsciously favour the more traditional European and South American powerhouses over the six African teams? “I’m still a player,” Eto’o smiles. “I can’t say that sort of thing. We’ve covered a lot of ground in the last 20 years and in Europe so many leading players are African. If we prepare properly, then one of the African teams can do something special.”

– Donald McRae’s interview with Samuel Eto’o (via The Guardian)

Interesting comments by Eto’o. Eto’o’s struggles with racism in European football have been chronicled. Unfortunately, the only reason his struggles have been chronicled is because he is a bone fide global superstar. (more…)

Globalization | Outside the Lines
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Culture

Rewarding Dedication With A World Cup: Randomness, Awesomeness and Identity In Africa

by Miriti Murungi

Rewarding love is a worthwhile endeavor. A reward signifies acknowledgment that the recipient is seen and appreciated. The South African World Cup is an exciting time for South Africans who have been loving soccer for decades. But if you look closely at how Africa has reacted since 2004 when South Africa was awarded the World Cup, you will notice that much of Africa has been acting as if they are co-hosts, as if this is the first communally-hosted World Cup. If this concept is difficult to grasp, just think of how excited Canadians would be if Mexico won the right to host the World Cup, or how excited the French would be at the prospect of an Italian World Cup, (more…)

Culture | Supporters
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Coaching

One Style Does Not Fit All: Deconstructing A Universal Football Style

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

Africa has some of the best footballers in the world dominating some of the world’s best leagues. Yet African nations tend to struggle when their players come together for internationals. What gives? The easy answer to this conundrum almost always begins and ends with what has become a familiar refrain; African football lacks discipline. But if that’s the case, someone needs to explain why African teams have dominated for years at the youth level. Consistently beating the best footballing nations must require a certain level of organization and discipline even at the youth level, no? Surely the answer to this age old problem is more complex than discipline. (more…)

Coaching | The Game
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Culture

Puma Football Commercials Keep Getting It Right

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

Puma somehow always seems to get it right. I mean you can hardly go wrong when you can capture Emmanuel Eboue dancing.

Here is a Puma commercial that takes you right into the African streets and stadiums. It’s amazing what can be captured in a minute and a half. This, my friends, is called storytelling. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do. Well done, Puma. (more…)

Culture | TV/Movies/Books/Web
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Coaching

Ivory Coast Provides Another Example of African Football’s Dependence Problem

by Clive Longbottom-Fellow, Esq.

So we’re still waiting on the announcement of the Ivory Coast job. Sven Goran Eriksson and Bernd Schuster are known to be on the shortlist. In the last couple of days, former Manchester City boss Mark Hughes has sadly surfaced as an option, probably because of his wildly successful stints at Blackburn Rovers and Manchester City. You already know how I feel about the African coaching selection process. But after this recent news of Mark Hughes’ inclusion on the shortlist for the Ivory Coast job, it is clear that someone is playing a practical joke. (more…)

Coaching | The Game
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secondfig: Dalglish; “For me the most important person, who is under the greater spotlight is Luis… The...
John _in_VA: Miriti, I loved your article. You are an excellent writer. Many US soccer fans wonder how a country as...
Mark Stevens: It’ would be prudent to note that the translation of “calcio e’ un...
Bob: An excellent, thoughful piece. As referenced, it is fair to both want increased Hispanic (and African American)...
Jen: Thank you so much for the answer. We are near Pittsburgh, and he does play on a travel team and cup team, which...
dreamingpixel: “Debussy – Claire de Lune”.. amazing work

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