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Pantsil brought Israeli spirit to World Cup

Updated: 10/Jul/2006 14:47

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BERLIN (EJP)--- Although the Israeli national football team did not qualify for this year’s FIFA World Cup, 25 year old John Pantsil of Ghanaian national team saw to it that Israel’s presence was felt.

After Ghana’s stunning 2-0 defeat over the second ranked Czech team on June 17, Pantsil pulled out a notebook sized Israeli flag from his sock and ran through Cologne’s football arena with it, waving it triumphantly before tens of thousands of cheering spectators and millions more astounded television viewers from around the world.

Message to Iran

In a Juedische Allgemeine (JAZ) weekly commentary, Daniel Guenther, of Germany’s sports television network DSF likened it to a veritable slap in the face to Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his losing World Cup team. Iran’s relatively quick losses at this year’s tournament saved German politicians a potentially embarrassing visit by the Holocaust-denying Ahmadinejad.

Ahmadinejad has been censured the world over for his anti-Israel and Holocaust denial rhetoric. Unfortunately, the Iranian president has done more than simply use words. He has already spoken at several controversial conferences including one run by an organisation called “A World without Zionism”.

So far, only student and Iranian political opposition groups, some politicians and union members as well as Jewish organisations have made concerted, if not always very effective, efforts to keep the Iranian threat front page news in Germany.

They organised protests prior all three games in which Iran played – in Nuremberg, Leipzig and Frankfurt. The Frankfurt demonstration attracted less than 500 protesters and was a mere footnote in nightly news broadcasts.

Immortal player

Pantsil is currently on contract with Israel’s second ranked and UEFA-Cup qualifying Hapoel Tel Aviv football club – transferring there last year from Maccabi Tel Aviv following a brief scandal.

Despite smaller incidences that occurred during in his Israeli career, JAZ editor Martin Krauss wrote that Pantil has made himself “immortal” in the hearts of Israelis.

But not only are Israelis enamoured with Pantsil. Jews from across Germany have become emotional from the player's act as well, as have those hailing from his native country.

At one of the of World Cup venues set up along Berlin’s fashionable Kurfuerstendamm boulevard, Kaliana Asare, a systems analyst, pours out African blends of coffees to football revellers and their friends who pass by.

Asare took time off from work to promote African coffees and ‘fair trade’ foods at her “Coffee African Cup” stand. The heart of Dutch born Asare, after having lived for many years in Ghana, beats loudly for the African continent and any success story that can come from there – including the Ghanaian wins against top seeded teams such as that from the Czech Republic.

But the pride that this Jewish resident of Berlin felt for Israel could not be contained after Pantsil’s performance. “Isn’t this great,” Asare told EJP, dancing and singing to the reggae version of “Shema Israel,” (Hear O Israel) that was playing from a CD, in the background.