A word about the World Cup final

After days of French TV channels focusing only on les Bleus' games and almost shutting out the rest of the world and its state of affair, we've spent a week seeing the journalists ask 'why, why, WHYYYYY Zizou?'

Indeed, the reaction of the commentators on TF1 were: "No, nooooo. Zidane, no. Why, no. Why? Not tonight! No tonight!".

While there is no doubt the French team is (was?) a very good team, they didn't manage to win the final game. Period. Les Bleus missed a goal at the shoot-out (indeed, Trezeguet missed the goal).

Back in 1998, I thought it was good news to see the French celebrate their victory: they still had a sense of getting together, celebrating, and some kind of national sentiment. Or so I thought.

Then came 9/11. You ask what does it have to do with soccer? I'm thinking about national flags.

Back in 1998, French and Algerian flags were flying in celebrating hands on the Champs-Elysées and eveywhere in France. Last Sunday, I saw many, many people with French flags. 500,000 t-shirts of the French team have been sold in a week and shops ran out of French flags in Paris. As far as I can remember, that's the only two times - except for the celebration of the 200 years of the French Revolution - when I saw so many French flags.

Owning a French flag isn't always well-seen in France. I won't even mention flying it on your house. That's something reserved for "fundamentalist" Americans.

And yes, American flags everywhere in America after 9/11 was a problem to many Frenchmen, a sign of nationalism, extremism, even sometimes racism. The French like to mock Americans' respect for their flag. It's just a flag, they most of the times argue. Among the other things I heard: "Seeing all these American flags everywhere makes me want to puke. Don't they get it that's the very reason why they were attacked. They'd rather keep it down low and ask the question 'why'".

So the French only get their flags out for sports celebrations, or very exceptionnally. Not for their soldiers in Afghanistan. But for their rebel sporstmen. Of course, we are increasingly being taught that the French flag means colonialism, racism, nationalism, everything the French should be ashamed of. Forgotten the Voltaires, the Bastiats, the Guyots.
On the opposite, the world cup was something the French could be proud of. Not to say a reason to be arrogant. A little like opposing America in Iraq. No, not in Iraq, just at the corrupt U.N.

Mais voilà, France lost the World Cup. Just like it lost in Iraq (and at the U.N.). But it didn't lose like a good player. The Italian player may not be entirely innocent - he certainly isn't but chances are we'll never know to what extent - Zidane was not able to control himself, to think about bringing his team, his country to the victory - which would have been the best way to the first step toward a revenge. He gave up everything. The "hero", the "half-God" that used to be France's example of successful integration and of hard-work being rewarded, an example for children all over France, behaved like a mere racaille, no less. And instead of regretting, he insisted he wasn't guilty.

I'll confess I wasn't supporting the French team, for reasons over than soccer. I found the team arrogant, a true symbol of France. I found the display of flags hypocritical. I didn't appreaciate the government stealing me to support their last hope to revive France a little. A political move, not a supportive one, paid for by the taxpayer. Arrogance. That's precisely what the Italian player reproached Zidane for explaining his insulting him. One of the word used to describe France mostly everywhere in the world.

Unfortunately, I realize that France and her reprensentatives keep on confirming my reasons for being definitely disappointed by the country where I was born.