Soccer As Social Change?

Obviously, at Cleats For Bare Feet we believe soccer can change lives through giving. In this post I want to explore another relationship between soccer and social change. The one of protest and soccer. All over the Middle-East and Africa soccer is being used as a platform of protest. These protests break the established barriers within the soccer world.

Tear gas. Screaming. Innocence killed. Singing."Tayyip do you know Istanbul United? Since 31 May 2013." This is Turkey. The recent protests that broke out in Taksim Square have been widely publicized for the violence. The demonstrators were trying to stop the “renovation” of the historic, Gezi park, into a shopping mall complex. Originally the protests had an environmental theme, but they then became a more general anti-Erdogan/AKP (the current prime minister and regime) demonstration. It’s interesting that these protests, which will likely drastically change Turkey’s political climate, started with a park. This open green space means so much to the people of Turkey that it could spark such a violent response. 

Fans of rival teams embracing

Now how does this relate to soccer? Other than the park, being used for soccer, the protests have united polarized soccer fans for the first time in 30 years (see report by the Huffington Post). To give you an idea of how much these fans dislike each other, earlier in May a Fenerbahce fan was stabbed to death (report) by two Galatasaray fans after a big game. These are two of the “Big Three” soccer teams in Turkey whose fans participated in the protests, the last being the Besiktas. There is bad blood between these fans to say the least. But somehow the political pressure has reached a breaking point and the fans have taken to working together to bring attention to their cause. “Istanbul United” being their new coalition of fans. "It's very clear that even if Gezi Park (protests) achieve nothing else, they have still brought peace in football," Erten wrote in the Radikal newspaper. "At least for now."

Protesters playing soccer

Not only has soccer played a role in Turkey, but a similar phenomenon happened in Egypt. In fact all over the region soccer can be tied to political unrest. Many argue that soccer can be used to predict social uprisings, and reportedly the CIA regularly sends agents to matches to gauge the mood of a country. Soccer gives people a voice of protest they wouldn't normally have, by using matches the public can express their discontent through what the government labels “hooliganism”. These fans are using soccer as a way to unite their country and prove the strength of their beliefs. Political implications aside, we at Cleats fully support the comradery of soccer fans all over the world. 

Photo Taken by: Piotr Zalewski
The  Hakkari Gucu (or Hakkari Power) practicing in Turkey

However, there is a voice missing in this union. Women are gaining rights all over the Mideast and Africa, but they are far from equal. In Saudi Arabia, women are only now being allowed into soccer stadiums, and must sit in their own separate section. In Turkey, more and more women and girls are playing soccer. (Check them out here and here) Though the sport is growing, the women playing have yet to be accepted by the public. As we know soccer is a huge part of Turkish culture, drawing tens of thousands to matches, but the controversy of women participating has robbed them of a large fan base. Female players in the premier league have been heckled, discouraged, and given little to no sponsorship. This might explain the startling statistic of a NY Times report claiming that Turkey has 798 registered female players to the 230,000 male ones. But it does seem that as the girls gain success they gain popularity and their fan base is steadily growing. Women were among the protesters in Turkey fighting against the regime.You may have seen the woman in red photos. Soccer is being used to break barriers for women all over the world. In Northern Uganda, Girls Kick It! is a program designed to help girls deal with the effects of the civil war through soccer and education. C4BF contributed equipment to in the past few months. 

We will focus on women in soccer more in later posts, but we at C4BF are inspired by this bravery and trailblazing spirit in the soccer world. Soccer is clearly more than just a sport, it’s a language. A way people express their passions and ambitions. Whether it be political change, gender equality, education, or healing, soccer breaks boundaries and brings so many different types of people together.