By Danial Golforoush
It almost feels like the distant past when, across the globe, football on all levels was halted in the spring of 2020 as COVID-19 cases were increasing by the day. The future of the game was just in limbo—no fans in stadiums, no ticket sales, no entertainment, no badge to play and bleed for. But that’s old news! Everyone, from fans to the clubs, from the players to the media worked extra hard to make up for a difficult and depressing year of football and life. 2021 yielded a summer unlike any other! We not only witnessed two of the all-time greats of the game change teams during the same transfer window, but Italy also took home the Euros in a dramatic penalty shootout over England, and Cristiano Ronaldo broke Ali Daei’s men’s international goalscorer record.
A Defaced Mural: England’s Bad Luck in Penalty Shootouts Continues, So Does the Racism
A free-flowing, fresh-yet-calculated Italian team—best described by Joshua Robinson’s Wall Street Journal article title: “This Isn’t Your Nonna’s Italian Soccer Team”—came head to head with Gareth Southgate’s Three Lines in Wembley Stadium. In a match with so many new and old talents on the field, goals, assists, and dramas, it is unfortunate yet important that the racism that some players faced overtook the headlines. It almost felt inevitable that it would happen. As the Italians were celebrating their team’s triumphs, England came to a rude awakening that the loss of the European Championship was not their biggest defeat of the night. What started as a moment of national courage and ambitions for future endeavors turned into an unstoppable tsunami of thousands of targeted, racially abusive insults on social media towards three of the Black players of the team—Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, and Bukayo Saka. This trio had earlier missed their penalties in the shootout and thousands of so-called fans took it upon themselves to hurl racial invective at these individuals.
Some went as far as defacing Rashford’s mural, which was put there to celebrate him as the individual who single-handedly raised millions of pounds to help provide less fortunate children free meals during the summer. The message was sent: a local hero is loved and celebrated until he misses a penalty kick. It is important to note that many fans gathered and placed thoughtful and heartwarming notes in place of the vandalized sections of the mural. Many others gave their support and thoughts to players over social media or in person near training grounds and stadiums. However, the damage has been done and the questions remain. Why are players the only people who are being relied upon for positive change? Why is the football hierarchy around the world so unwilling to take any actions?
Old and New Beginnings: The GOATs Move in the Same Transfer Window
No one in their right mind would suggest that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, two of the icons of the game, would be changing teams in the same transfer window or actually any window. Messi has been perceived as a one-club man, that club being FC Barcelona, and it seemed as though Ronaldo would be retiring at Juventus after a rumored 2-year extension on his contract. Well, we were all wrong. Within weeks of one another, Lionel Messi moved to Paris Saint-Germain F.C. and Cristiano Ronaldo returned home to Manchester United after 12 years. These deals seemed financially inconceivable—not only because of the negative effect of COVID-19 on the teams’ finances, but because the teams that could afford such multi-million dollar deals were not interested. Rest assured that these transfers were fruitful for both the players and their teams. Manchester United has gained more than 7 million new followers since the transfer was completed on August 27. This transfer not only broke the Premier League’s jersey sales within 12 hours, but the post announcing his return to Manchester United became the most liked sports-related post on Instagram. Messi’s move to PSG was not only fruitful to Paris but also to Jordan and Nike, sponsors of the team, who have sold more than $140 million worth of jerseys (fun fact: this earned Michael Jordan more than $7 million in a week).
A Record-Breaking Summer: Goodbye Ali Daei, Hello Cristiano Ronaldo
It was inevitable that Cristiano Ronaldo would break Ali Daei’s all-time men’s international goalscorer record, and it came during a dramatic win against Ireland, with the Portuguese player now leading the board with 111 goals and the retired Iranian trailing with 109 goals. Cristiano expressed his pride and gratitude for conquering such a prestigious record, posting on Instagram: “I can’t even start to express myself in words! I’m thrilled with an overwhelming sensation! From all the records that I have broken during my career — and fortunately, there have been a few — this one is very special for me and it’s certainly on the shelf of the achievements that make me truly proud. Another reason for me to appreciate this achievement as much as I do right now is because Ali Daei has set the standards at such a high level, that at some point even I started thinking that I might never catch him.” While Ronaldo has broken the men’s record, he has only just broken into the top 10 international goalscorers of all time, as all other record-holders are ex-professionals in the women’s game.
Unfortunately, not many knew about the Iranian goal scorer, Ali Daei, before he was dethroned by Ronaldo; however, many Iranians take special pride in his record and the tally that he achieved for the national team. Daei congratulated and paid his respects to Ronaldo, posting on Instagram: “Congratulations to Cristiano Ronaldo, I am honoured that this remarkable achievement will belong to Ronaldo – great champion of football and caring humanist who inspires and impacts lives throughout the world.” While it would be more poetic if the two had played one another closer to the time of the record-breaking, they did face off against each other in a 2006 World Cup group match, Iran vs. Portugal. That day, Ronaldo scored his 12th international goal as Daei watched the match from the bench as a substitute. I wonder if he thought that one day the young Portuguese would break his record 15 years down the line?
