Finding Somewhere To Play Is The Least Of Their Problems

Give this article from the Times a look, just in case anyone is under any illusions as to how difficult it is to kick a ball around in some parts of the world. Money quote:

The professional league halted at the 2003 invasion; play was not resumed until late 2004. Though the stadiums remain remarkably free of violence, fear of attacks has cut into attendance. Ticket revenues and government support have declined, and the stadiums and practice facilities are in poor shape. The best players have fled abroad, seeking safer conditions and more lucrative contracts. “All the players would be happy to leave the country,” said Amir Sabah Hussein, 18, a forward on the Police Club. “I wish it weren’t so.”

Violence has also precluded professional league matches in areas of the country where the insurgency is particularly strong, including Anbar Province and the area north of Baghdad known as the Sunni Triangle. Teams from several violent, troubled cities have either folded or moved: the Samarra team, for instance, has relocated to Baghdad, and Mosul plays in Erbil, according to Tareq Ahmed, the acting director of the Iraq Football Association.

Amateur and school leagues have also been crippled, with many teams no longer traveling outside their neighborhoods to play because of fears of attack.

In recent months, athletes and sports officials have been shot and kidnapped. In November, Hudaib Mejhool, director of the professional Students Club, was kidnapped by gunmen while driving to work. His body turned up in the morgue. Ghanim Ghudayer, a member of the Air Force Club and the Iraqi Olympic team, was kidnapped in September.

Makes you feel lucky doesn't it?

Iraq’s Escape Is Soccer, but Soccer Can’t Escape War [New York Times]

-ac