The Painstaking Path to Lebanon’s Football Victory

After Lebanese midfielder Abbas Atwi kicked a blinding shot past the goalkeeper into the South Korean net the crowd erupted in celebrations unseen amongst Lebanese fans for quite some time.

The match between the two countries that took place in Beirut on November 15 shocked the football world, with Lebanon beating their South Korean counterpart 2 – 1.

When the referee blew the final whistle, the jubilant crowds broke out into even louder cheers. Men, women, young and old all jumped up and down yelling “Lebnen! Lebnen!” (Lebanon! Lebanon!).

Even the elderly women who were only there accompanying their grandchildren couldn’t help but join in. One woman, perhaps in her 70s, could be seen waving her arms frantically, cheering on Lebanon’s national side at the top of her lungs.

That night, President Michel Suleiman gave the team a standing ovation.

The beyond capacity crowd of 50,000 spectators in the stadium, and the thousands of people who watched the game at home were obviously impressed by the significant improvement in the team’s performance, as well as their confidence.

Unlike many national sides on the road to qualifying for the World Cup, Lebanon's squad not only faced several financial and personal obstacles but the team also had to overcome some harsh realities and the country's volatile political life.

The miserable state the Lebanese sports domain is in is no secret. When some of the players were asked to explain the dire situation, they answered unanimously: the political situation.

Striker Mahmoud Ali said sports in general and football specifically “are in shambles because of the political situation.”

“Look at basketball. The Lebanese basketball team used to be one of the best teams around, but now, because of the unstable political situation, their performance is declining,” he added.

“One day the country might be OK, but you never know if tomorrow will be stable as well. Politics and sectarianism are tearing this country apart, and they are negatively affecting the sports domain,” Ali said.

Midfielder Abbas Atwi echoed Ali’s thoughts. “The many problems of this country, especially the political situation, have had a detrimental effect on football,” Atwi said.

While goalkeeper Rabie Kakhi agreed with his teammates, he added, “The core problem is the financial situation that affects football. Domestic teams cannot independently finance themselves, but rather a political party or businessman invests their own money to provide the teams’ funding.”

“The game is not yet able to stand on its own like in other countries. That is why it needs the help of the government to provide a healthy foundation to allow the game to develop,” Kakhi said.

Financial incentives are almost nonexistent for all players in the domestic competition, as well as the national team.The fact that only a few teams are able to provide financial stability discourages the youth from pursuing careers in football.

The lack of an overall professional sphere in football deters potential young stars even more.

“There are perhaps three or four teams that actually pay the player, but the rest of the teams don’t provide salaries or any kind of payment,” Ali said.

Before upcoming players reach the spotlight, they might receive no more than US$20 a day travel allowance, and almost US$200 if they have to travel for a week.

Since playing football doesn't provide a sufficient income, most players hold down a second job. That means they have to take time off from their other job to play football in another country for only twenty dollars a day.

Haytham Faour, a 21-year-old midfielder, is currently studying biochemistry at university and plans on finishing his degree to work in that field.

“I knew that I couldn’t depend on football as a source of living because in Lebanon, players rarely get paid and if they do, it’s barely enough. That is why I am pursuing this degree,” Faour said.

“But perhaps after our performance and improvement, things might change and players will get what they deserve. I’m hoping that will happen,” Faour said, smiling at the thought.

However, after the national side’s recent victory, each player received 10,000,000 Lebanese lira (LL) (about US$6,667) from the government, US$3,000 from three different businessmen and US$5,000 from the Lebanese Football Association.

But despite the unprecedented payout, Kakhi remained skeptical about the sport’s future. “I believe no matter how much the bonuses we collected were, they are still temporary and will not provide long-lasting support,” he said, adding, “None of us as players should depend on this new flow of money as the only source of their income,” he added.

The lack of funding and incentives also affects work out and training sessions, preventing the players from training professionally and regularly, as many other countries’ teams do.

“We would probably train a day or two before a big game,” Ali explained. “We trained like we were amateurs playing football as a hobby only and not as a profession, because we were treated like amateurs.”

This greatly influenced the players’ psyche and confidence before any game. “We would be playing knowing in the back of our minds that we will lose. That, obviously, made us play half-heartedly in most games,” Ali said.

But when Theo Bucker became the new coach of Lebanon’s national football team, he revolutionized their performance to the point where even spectators who are not avid football fans noticed the players’ significant improvement.

“He changed everything; our performance, confidence, training, diet…Without him we would not have reached this far,” explained Faour.

The most important aspect of the players that Bucker worked on was their confidence and psyche. “He made us believe that we are not a losing team, but rather a team to watch out for. We believe in ourselves and are much more confident now,” Faour said.

Ali agrees, noting Bucker’s work with the team’s morale and confidence. “He rebuilt our character and how we view ourselves; we were no longer playing half-heartedly, we were playing to win.”

“I am proud to be a member of a team that’s coached by Theo. He is a professional with class-A coaching abilities. He made us believe that we have as much talent as the other teams, and worked on our fitness and the defensive-attacking techniques needed in the game,” Kakhi said.

While being interviewed, the players showed a lot of gratitude for their fellow teammates, coach, other staff members, but most importantly, for their fans.

“When there were no fans watching us play, we felt less motivated to give our best. When I scored and wanted to celebrate, it felt odd with the fans missing,” said Ali.

“I believe the thousands of fans who were cheering us on during our last game really played a role in our win. The more they cheered, the better I wanted to play.”

On the night of the team’s win over South Korea, the entire country seemed united in celebrating the victory. Even those Lebanese, who on any other night might disagree over every single thing, stood side by side, cheering on the players.

Atwi explained how the extensive media coverage the team received that night also helped uniting the Lebanese.

“Because all channels were covering the game, everyone was watching the same game, at the same time and cheering for the same team,” he said.

At the end of the interview Atwi shook his head, and smiled. “If the team winning will unite the Lebanese like that night we beat South Korea, then we will try to win every game,” he said.