Focus: Why foreign footballers capture our hearts

“We have defeated you at you own home….even when you come to Old Trafford, we will wallop you,” shouts Murenzi at the top of his voice after English soccer side Manchester United gives a beating to FC Roma in the ongoing UEFA champion’s league. It is the ‘we’ in Murenzi’s sentence that caught my attention. Murenzi is not alone in claiming a stake in a British soccer club. This is something that has intrigued me for some time. Why is it that so many Rwandans claim some sort of ‘membership’ of a soccer side in a country he has never set foot in? As I sit at Hotel Lando watching European football teams tussle it out, I realise that of the over 100-strong crowd packed into the bar all people are passionate about “their teams”-European ones at that. What is perplexing however, is a group of whites who show only a passing interest in the game which I thought was supposed to be theirs. Surely the match should at least ignite interest as a reminder of their homeland. As I observe the mood of the many people crammed at the hotel terrace, I get the feeling that the group of ‘mzungu’ huddled together, is also rather surprised at the kind of support people show for the European teams. It is quite clear that some people are at the brink of exchanging blows. I see that one guy, Muzeyi (though there is nothing to suggest he is an elder in a any community given his verbal artillery towards supporters of Manchester United), is about to whack a guy seated just next to him. He is supporter of Arsenal FC, Man U arch-rivals in English soccer. His neighbors are all Man U fans and it appears he is the only one rooting for FC Roma. At the end of the first half of the match, I take Murenzi aside and ask him why his support of Man U is strong enough to get him into a fight. “I have always supported Man U. In fact since 1997 when I was in high school, this has been my team”. I ask him if he also supports local soccer teams and he replies in the affirmative, but hastens to add: “You see our local teams are not so entertaining… the quality of play is so miserable and boring”. Jack, another viewer, also supports the local football team APR FC apart from rooting for Manchester United on the European soccer scene. He says that many people support local soccer but it is not so much of a talking point compared to European soccer leagues and championships. “It is just that European soccer finds you in your bar through DSTV or GTV”. However, what he does not doubt is the fact that the quality of play is superior. He is quick to add that this is not because of lack of talent. He points out that most of the European soccer stars are from Africa. ‘There is no lack of local talent, it is just because we lack the resources to develop our players and teams,” concludes Jack as he walks back to his seat to watch the last half of the match. The next day I went early to watch the Rayon Sport play against Electrogaz at the regional stadium in Nyamirambo. Evidently there are supporters rooting for the different sides. But unlike the European matches the stadium is not filled to capacity. As I watch this match I can not help but recall, a football game that was held at the Amahoro Stadium at Remera a couple of months ago. The match between ATRACO FC and APR FC attracted fans from all walks of life including some from the countryside. Mukasa, an ardent soccer fan, tells me that there is a lot of support for local soccer but the only problem is the lack of resources at the disposal of local teams. Mukasa adds that the presence of many foreign players in many local teams puts off some supporters saying there are many Congolese in Rwandan soccer teams. Eugène, another spectator at the match, for his part believes that the excellent quality of soccer is what has attracted many people into supporting European soccer leagues like the premiership, Bundensliga and La-Liga. “Before, we never had access to DSTV. But with the advent of DSTV we have been able to realise that there is good quality soccer.” Eugène adds that there is poor management of football in the country. He says that the football administrators especially at the national level have not lived up to the task as had been expected. He adds that many youngsters are not guided into developing their careers compared their counterparts in the West. He gives example of people like David Beckham who used to be part of youth football academies and have now graduated into soccer icons of international standing. “Many of our youth do not get that exposure and some of them end up being wasted.” Again he laments that soccer in most African countries like Rwanda is not rewarding enough for young people to dedicate all their time to the beautiful game. Many, he says, will combine a soccer career with other pursuits like work and education in order to have an assured future. Africa is not like Europe where soccer is lucrative for the players. Contact: frank2kagabo@yahoo.com