For the bonus readings I read the piece on US Soccer’s upset of England in the 1950 World Cup. A lot of what I found most interesting about the article wasn’t about that game itself but rather some of the historical background information the article discussed. The first thing from the article that stood out to me was the politics that went into the first couple tournaments. When discussing the 1930 World Cup, the article states, “The boycott was led by the United Kingdom, guardians of the game and progenitors of morality: more than a century earlier, in his capacity as foreign secretary, George Canning had declared “every nation for itself and God for us all,” an idea that solidified into a policy of “splendid isolation.”” It’s kind of funny to me that England had such a self righteous attitude that meant they essentially boycotted the tournament because they didn’t like sharing soccer with foreigners. The next thing that I found interesting was the role World War II played in creating unity in soccer, specifically with how it led to England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland rejoining FIFA. The article states, “And naturally, there remained an imperialist imperative: Rous recognized that declining empire meant declining influence, and football was a means through which to sustain at least some of it, so in 1946, England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland rejoined FIFA.” We learned a lot growing up about how World War II played a big role in promoting patriotism and unity at home, but outside of its impact on Major League Baseball, I hadn’t learned anything about its impact on sports, so I thought that tidbit was really interesting. Another thing that stood out to me was the arrogance of some of the English players even after the game. In discussing the aftermath of the game, the article states, “That was because the English players, though banned from voicing their various gripes, were significantly less than gruntled. Tom Finney later described the Americans as a “rubbish side, really,” while Williams was aghast at their uncouth refusal to submit.” Athletes tend to be more diplomatic than that today, and the ones who aren’t get criticized for it endlessly. It was just surprising to me that even after being fairly beaten without controversy, some of the players still had that attitude.
