Region in revolt

The recent unrest in Libya has been dominating the news and rightly so. We are constantly hearing about the progress of the Libyan rebels’ fight against Colonel Gaddafi, the no-fly zone and the air strikes carried out by the US, UK and France. But how has Libyan football been affected?

In terms of football, Libya is never really mentioned. Partly because in the UK we are enclosed in the European football bubble and therefore rarely hear about the African nations. The African Cup of Nations being an exception to that of course, but even in that tournament it is only the later stages that manage to garner some press attention in Europe.  At the World Cup last year, Ghana flew the flag for Africa as they advanced the furthest and altogether there were 6 African teams involved. Six African teams however still leaves 47 we seldom hear about. Libya is included in those 47.

The Libyan team have never appeared at a World Cup and have only qualified for two African Cup of Nations (one of which they qualified for as hosts). They are currently ranked 71^st in the World, forty-five places above Wales.

Libya are currently involved in qualifying for the African Cup of Nations and their unsuccessful London Olympics qualifying campaign has just finished. It was their attempt at Olympic qualification that had been hit the hardest by the uprisings and the resulting no-fly zone. Libya faced South Africa in the first leg of an Olympic qualifier 2 weeks ago with the match taking place in Daveyton, SA. Normally, according to the Libyan assistant coach, the team would have met up a few days before the match and flown straight to South Africa but these are not normal times in Libya. The no-fly zone also affects all commercial flights and therefore the Libyan youngsters were wondering if they would even be able to get there to play the match.

 The Libyan football authorities did what they could and organised a mammoth journey to South Africa via Tunisia and Germany. The team met in the Libyan capital of Tripoli and drove 435 miles to Tunisia from where they flew to Munich only to transfer onto another plane to Johannesburg. The journey took 25 hours altogether and was clearly not the ideal preparation for the Libyan team, especially as they arrived late the night before the match. 

South Africa, unsurprisingly, won the match. The second leg was played yesterday and it finished goalless so South Africa have progressed. The game took place at a neutral venue (Mali) due to the continual fighting in Libya. The African football authorities had already had to find a neutral venue for Libya’s match against the Comoros Islands which also took place in Mali 2 weeks ago.  The match was part of the African Cup of Nations qualifiers and the Libyan first team had to travel to Bamako, Mali for their “home” qualifier against Comoros. This time it was a happier ending for the Libyan side (they won 3-0) after what we can only assume was a long and tiring journey from Tripoli to Bamako (if they went by road it would have taken over 3 days). The result wasn’t the main talking point of the match however. It was the 20,000 Malians who turned up to support Libya. A Colonel Gaddafi ruled Libya has always enjoyed a close relationship with Mali and its people. This would explain the Malian Libya fans chanting “Gaddafi, Gaddafi” after each of the three goals were scored. This is an example of how sport and politics can collide.

A potential problem for the Libyan team would be a difference of opinion on their Leader Colonel Gaddafi and whether or not he should be in power. The Libyan captain, Tariq Ibrahim al-Tayib quashed any suggestions of a politically motivated dressing-room divide when he told the BBC “the whole team is for Muammar Gaddafi”. Don’t be fooled into thinking that this match was a completely smooth operation for Libya though. The uprising had caused a few problems for some players who are based in the Libyan second city of Benghazi as they were unable to leave the city and join up with the team.

Benghazi is currently occupied by rebel forces and the city’s football team Al Ahli Benghazi has a fierce rivalry with Al Ahli Tripoli. The rivalry between the two cities is not only due to football but also politics. Colonel Gaddafi’s son, Saadi, once made himself captain of Al Ahli Tripoli after essentially buying his way in. Some of the matches against their arch-rivals in Benghazi suffered from some very questionable refereeing in Tripoli’s favour while Saadi was involved. Knowing this history between the clubs and cities it wouldn’t be too farfetched to assume that the rebels occupying Benghazi played a part in preventing some Libyan players meeting up with the national team. Of course, it is also possible that some of the players themselves want to see the back of Gaddafi and therefore refuse to represent their country while it is under his power.

All of the above illustrates just how far political turmoil can spread. Looking at a situation like the one in Libya through the viewpoint of football can also show people that there is far more going on in these countries than a simple battle between two different groups. Above all, it reminds us that warfare really can and does affect everything.