Word: egypt
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...again on Nov. 18, Egypt went head to head with its archrival Algeria in an intense bid for a spot at next year's World Cup in South Africa. It was the first time the two had played a World Cup qualifying match in 20 years, and in the weeks leading up to the first game and the days that followed, everyone from the Egyptian regime to local industries was busy ratcheting up support for the home team. (Read "Cairo Braces for a Soccer Bombshell...
...Cameroon - traditionally the dominant teams of West Africa - all have the talent to shake up the tournament. Ghana and Ivory Coast, in particular, bristle with confidence and star power. The dark horse of the African field is Algeria, which qualified only after a tense playoff match with bitter rival Egypt on Wednesday in Sudan following outbursts of violence by both teams' fans in Cairo and Algiers. The victory has catapulted Algeria into its first World Cup since the 1980s, when a "golden generation" of Algerian players upset West Germany in the first round of the 1982 tournament and qualified...
...Even in a sport known to sometimes provoke extreme behavior among fans, the scene following Saturday night's win - and the tension building up to Wednesday's game - might seem a bit extreme. Some hint at a deeply rooted historical animosity between Egypt and Algeria, suggesting that a cold history between the two North African states could be partly to blame for the tension and violence. But the country's social frustration that is largely suppressed by its authoritarian government may also be finding expression in the soccer hysteria...
...book, Inside Egypt, John R. Bradley observes, "Egyptians are the most patriotic people in the Arab world." But, he adds, "I have never come across a local who does not despise his president to one degree or another." The police state that has kept Hosni Mubarak in power for three decades does not tolerate much expression of political opposition, and that may help explain why many Egyptians get more openly riled up for a soccer match than they do for a national election. Soccer provides an outlet for emotion, both positive and negative, that so many Egyptians so desperately crave...
...Wednesday, we'll set up a big tent and 1,000 additional chairs," says Gamel. "It has been 20 years since Egypt played in the World Cup. It is the dream of 80 million Egyptians." Indeed, the emotions on Wednesday's playoff are likely to be even more intense than what was witnessed on Saturday - particularly if the result does not go Egypt...