Soccer, or dare I say…football, hit Europe with a fury on June 7 2008 in the form of the Euro Cup 2008. Sixteen teams vying for continental supremacy, divided up into four groups and bashing on each other for a couple games. France was part of Group C, the group that had been labeled as the “Group of Death” due to the collective football strength of France, Italy, Romania, and the Netherlands.
When in a foreign land, always bet against the home team. It really is your only option. If you lose, you are belittled in a language you don’t understand - no big deal. But win…win, and you get to play the mockery card for a day or two. So yesterday, when the French were taking bets on the victor and score of that night’s game against Italy, I went for the shutout: Italy 2, France 0.
Since I’m American and generally indifferent about soccer I spent the night forgetting that the fate of a nation hung in the balance. So it was a very rewarding email that I found waiting for me in my Inbox the next morning:
There really is but one correct manner in which to reply to an Italian victory over one’s host country…
