Posts Tagged ‘soccer’

Soccer cultures of the World Cup

soccer ball

As World Cup soccer action heats up, it’s worth taking a moment to reflect on the varied playing styles of different countries, particularly if you have an interest in cross-cultural topics. That’s because these differences are more than just tactical choices – in many cases, they’re actually a window into each nation’s culture.

June 25, 2010 Windows into Culture 1 Comment

Soccer-loving Brazilians

Brazil is a country that is mad for soccer (or football, as most of the world calls the sport). Now, that passionate love for the game has been permanently documented in a new National Football Museum in Sao Paulo, Brazil. What’s unique about this museum is that it not only celebrates Brazil’s star players and team [...]

October 22, 2008 sports cultures 0 Comments

Can soccer unite Iraq?

The sport of soccer appears to have achieved – if only temporarily – what politicians have failed at, which is to unite Iraqis across sectarian divisions. The underdog Iraq national team pulled off an improbable series of upsets, defeating Vietnam in the quarterfinals, South Korea in the semifinals, and then three-time champion Saudi Arabia in the [...]

July 30, 2007 sports cultures 0 Comments

Patriotism in Germany, Sleepy monks in Thailand

There have been some good stories this week with World Cup connections that have nothing to do with the actual games… One of the more interesting is the widely reported rise in German pride and patriotism during this World Cup.  The Germans have been notoriously cautious about showing any sort of nationalism since the end of [...]

June 25, 2006 sports cultures 0 Comments

Partying in Ghana

Yes, it’s sad that the U.S. was eliminated from the World Cup.  Yes, a bad call at the end of the first half changed the complexion of the game and contributed to the loss.  But you have to admit, the win probably meant a lot more to Ghanaians than the loss meant to most Americans. If you want [...]

June 23, 2006 sports cultures 0 Comments

Creative Brazil, Orderly U.K., Optimistic U.S.

Lots of World Cup coverage in the news this week.  Last week, one of my posts discussed the influence of culture on a country’s style of soccer play, particularly as it related to Brazil.  This past Sunday, the New York Times published a sports magazine with a few Cup articles.  If you read through the stories, you’ll [...]

June 7, 2006 sports cultures 0 Comments

World Cup culture

It’s June – the month soccer/football fans around the world have been anxiously awaiting, for it means the start of World Cup ’06 (June 9).  With teams from 32 nations about to descend on Germany, it’s also a chance to look at how culture interacts with sports. In March, I wrote about this topic in connection [...]

June 1, 2006 sports cultures 1 Comment