What the World Cup could mean for Cote d'Ivoire

If you think soccer doesn't matter to politics, you must be American.

As the World Cup gets ready to kickoff today, the world is considering its potential larger geopolitical and economic impact. To some it's the country's coming out party as a global power. For others, the poverty and inequality are stirring reminders of challenges that remain. Regardless, people hope that the World Cup will do more than improve the ranking of Bafana Bafana, the South African National team.

In Cote d'Ivoire, from the countless kids playing soccer or jugging a ball on street corners , to taxis plastered with logos of Chelsea of Barcelona soccer teams, soccer is important, to say the least. It's also just about the one thing that brings this country together. There's hope that it can do so again and help the nation emerge from its ongoing political crisis.

There is a precedent for this hope. Soccer played a key role in ending its civil war and creating peace. My good friend Thomas Ginn brought this article to my attention which described how soccer, and particularly Cote d'Ivoire's omnipresent star, Didier Drogba, brought peace to Cote D'Ivoire. After an African Nations cup victory in 2006, Drogba and his teammates dropped to their knees and pleaded their fellow countrymen to stop fighting. Later that year when Drogba, a southerner, was crowned Footballer of the year, he began a nationwide tour in Bouaké, the capital of the rebel north. This act was only overshadowed by an African Nation's cup game against Madagascar that Drogba lobbied to have held in the north, against stiff security concerns. The 5-1 victory prompted celebrations that reverberated across the entire country.

The question of Ivoirian identity has has been used by polticians to divide the country by pitting ethnic group against ethnic group and "native" Ivoirians against the sons of immigrants who came to Cote d'Ivoire in the 60s and 70s. Facing this context, a sense of national identity has been elusive, as it has been throughout much of Africa. However, Cote d'Ivoire's national team, known as les Elephants, have been a "crucible of inter-ethnic contact and ... an irresistible symbol of unity and inclusion."

As the long-awaited World Cup begins, what are the prospects for soccer replicating this role and heliping Cote d'Ivoire get out of its current crisis?

Well, I first have to acknowlege that success will be incredibly difficult. Cote d'Ivoire is a good team, no doubt. It is filled with talented players playing with the world's best club teams. Yet, their team has not gelled as well as others. It also had a tough draw, as it is stuck in the "Group of Death" with Brazil and Portugal, two of the favorites to win, as well as perenially unlucky North Korea. Moreover, the injury of the Elephants captain, Drogba, in a friendly has cast a further shadow on their hopes. Thus, finishing in the top two of this group to progress to the next round would be a herculean achievement.

A recent allafrica.com article predicted that every single sub-saharan African team would make it to the second round - including South Africa - except for Cote d'Ivoire. Ouch.

However, the upside of this lot is that the bar is low. This is reflected in the pessimism I've encountered in every single person I've asked about the Elephants. I'm used to at least a patina of hope, yet I have found none. Yet, for this reason a draw - or dare I say a victory - against Brazil or Portugal would create incredible excitement. Getting out of group stage would be a miracle come true. Anything more would be transcendent.

What could this mean? Well I think success would have two huge impacts:

First, putting Cote D'Ivoire back in the international eye could provide an external push to move towards elections. This exposure would feature context stories that remind the world of Cote d'Ivoire's past success and the stumbling blocks to restoring this progress, creating pressure on the country's elites to break the stalemate.

Second, success would provide a brief opening for national unity, temporarily sidelining party/ethnic group interests. Increasing the salience a united Cote d'Ivoire would provide a focal point for civil society and party activists to pressure their leaders to think about the national interest and get elections moving.

The bar is low, the task is hard, but the beauty of the World Cup is that anything can happen.

Here's to the World Cup and it paving the way for a brighter future for Africa.

**Just came across this article in Foreign Policy talking about how soccer has been - and continues to be - divisive in the Middle East. I also like this line: "Soccer is one of the greatest, and most successful, acts of cultural imperialism the world has ever seen and provides the perfect mirror with which to view the region."