How does Iraq play so well as a football team representing a war torn country?

How do the players ever get together or play club games?

Do the Kurds, Sunnis and Shiites all play in the same team?

To come 4th in the Asian Cup is amazing. They even won it in 2007.=d>


Fair play to Iraq.=d>

it sure isnt KNVB

Haven't been there for a few years but there were regional leagues in some of the safer areas and clubs all over the country would just play each other on an ad hoc basis, sort of like mid nineteenth century Britain. The recent troubles can only have made things worse. Despite this many talented players still play there. Like most things in Iraq it shouldn't work but somehow it does, nobody can explain why.

Kurds, Sunni and Shia all play together and even clubs organised on secular lines enjoy good relationships. Iraqis tend to view themselves as having many overlapping identities, sect, tribe, national, regional and the football community also see each other as part of a community even when other aspects of their identity are opposed. Again it shouldn't work but somehow it does, nobody can explain why.

That is just Iraq.

Edited by crusader: 31/1/2015 02:14:38 AM

Iraq have akways been a decent footballing nation. It helps that Saddam's brother isn't running the show nowadays either. They're not as strong as they've been in recent years, but theres plenty to like about them as a footballing natioN. Plenty of young talent in there.

The country as a whole need to fuck ISIS off so that doesnt fall into jepody

Interesting post.

Just Google them, decentric.

Read about the rise of the Afghanistani cricket team. A team borne out of the refugee camps on the borders of Pakistan. It's such an amazing story and I hope they do well in the upcoming WC.

I think there's a certain resilience and focus that can only come from being put in those situations.



Edited by Shatter: 31/1/2015 10:06:53 AM

Iraq have always been a rough, tough side. They qualified for the World Cup finals in 1986, in the middle of the Iran-Iraq war; their game against Paraguay then was one of the roughest world cup games i've ever seen.