The "Beautiful" Game

So the World Cup is over and Spain has won, playing sometimes lovely football, though their finishing skills have been suspect throughout. But the final ended on an up note with a beautiful goal my Iniesta, just as it looked like penalty kicks would again decide the most important sports tournament in the world. Immediate reaction from the press and fans was that the Netherlands played an ugly game, fouling relentlessly, attacking causiously and infrequently and turning a much anticipated game into a rather dull and brutish spectacle. But the Dutch's initial response to their play was to say, who cares? They feel winning at any cost trumps the "silly" calls for making the game engaging. "I'm a little sick of that entire discussion," standout goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg said after rolling his eyes when asked about his team's opting for wins over beauty. "It's really just about results at a tournament like this. You can play beautifully and … then you get bounced in the first knockout phase. We made the final. So beautiful soccer you can set on fire for all I care."

This might make sense to many -- particularly in America, where winning is everything. But missing is a rather obvious counterpoint: the reason so many people are interested in the game is more the style of play than the wins alone. Winning at any cost often comes at the expense of those very fans -- who, by the way, indirectly pay the salaries of the superstars, and everyone else on the pitch. It is probably true that no other sport puts such a premium on victory for teams, with fights or deaths occasionally following losses (or wins for that matter). But as someone who loves the beautiful game, I think the game should be played beautifully. The ghost dives (Cristiano Ronaldo was the worst this cup), the hard, unnecessary fouls, the rather cynical, though understandable hand ball by Sanchez, constant arguing with referees (though often completely understable in this year's cup) and stacking on the defensive end, simply looking for counterattacks, really cheapen the game. I understand the desire to win, particularly when so much is at stake, but watching the rather meaningless third-place game between Uruguay and Germany, or most premier club matches in Spain and England, show us what is possible and I can only hope that Spain's win (and Brazil's early exit with a more defensive style than I ever remember) will make teams consider that their defensive strategies don't really pay off in the end. Viva Espana!