Numerous questions have been asked over the past month about how best to fulfill Canada’s ongoing quest for respect and success in international football. Or at the very least, moderate doses of both.
One country that fought similar battles and appears much closer to actually winning them is Australia. The land Down Under shares many similarities with Canada, including a large population of angry men and women who have historically viewed soccer as a game solely for foreigners and homosexuals.
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Hence the title of 2002 book: “Sheilas, Wogs and Poofters, An Incomplete Biography of Johnny Warren & Soccer In Australia.” I’ve been meaning to read this for some time but I now know enough to confirm it details how Warren helped grow the game in Australia and his fight against hostile mainstream attitudes.
Before he died in 2004, Warren said he wanted his legacy to be a simple response to his detractors, “I told you so.” In the lead-up and during the 2006 World Cup that phrase served as a something of a rallying call for Australian supporters and even as the studio backdrop for one network’s soccer programming. Warren always maintained soccer could be popular in Australia and that his country was not only capable of being decent at the game but of being extremely good at it.
A catchphrase can be stupid, ironic, hilarious or some weird combination of them all (think of the sitcom Ricky Gervais’ character in Extras! developed for the BBC: “Are you having a laugh?”) but it can also serve as a powerful force. You could argue that a catchphrase helped elect the first black U.S. president. Turning to two obvious soccer-related examples, we have Barcelona’s “More than a club” (which is more of a motto) or Manchester City’s “Thirty-five years and we’re still here.”
No, the myriad of problems stacked on top of Canadian soccer won’t magically be swept away with the introduction of a simple phrase. But for the sake of assuming such a phrase might actually help, what would Canadian soccer’s be? And here I’m referring specifically to fans and supporters of the national teams, no matter where their club allegiances lie.
“I told you so” was centred around Warren’s heroic struggles, and the fact he passed away before seeing Australia qualify for the 2006 World Cup lent it a celebratory air. A classic tale of overcoming the odds and winning the prize to inspire every right-thinking Australian. Without that hero, I think a similar call to defiance would actually come across as somewhat vindictive in the Canadian context, like flipping a big middle one at half of the country when everyone’s finally paying attention.
A catchphrase, war cry, rally call, whatever you call it, shows how a particular group defines themselves and whatever they see as their cause. Barcelona’s points to a noble purpose, serving a greater good by nourishing the beautiful football from the ground up; Man City’s hints at solidarity, loyalty and defiance. But what about Canada and its fans?
Usually the way these things work is that the writer suggests something and then asks for better ideas. But I’m stumped. When I think of the game in Canada and its most passionate supporters the words and phrases that pop into my head include: desperation, blind hope, resignation, borderline insanity, fierce loyalty, insurmountable odds... and despite all the depressing stuff on the field, a barnstorming fuckload of fun. This phrase would desperately need to be inclusive. There’s plenty of naysayers but circling wagons is the last thing Canadian soccer supporters should be doing.
So, Canadian soccer. What’s the catchphrase?