Shunning la Selección Colombia

@wwaycorrigan

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Sports fans — as in those who faithfully support a team — and a balanced, unbiased stance rarely play well together.

Many of la Selección Colombia's supporters are insufferable. (Image from Facebook.)

'My team, good. The team we're playing against, bad.' That's generally how it goes. Facts get discarded or are at least explained away by some intricate, yet utterly ludicrous, verbal gymnastics.

Departing from the faithful

It is fanaticism after all. Displaying doubt or accepting criticism means one is not a true believer. Once one takes that leap of faith, the only way to stay suspended is to fully buy into the creed.

Of course, sport deals predominantly in the physical and the here and now, unlike religious faith, which is very much metaphysical and independent of time, until Judgement Day, that is.

What's more, facts, stats, and delivering something tangible and understandable in the moment play significant roles in sport.

Thus, being a 'see no evil, hear no evil' blind sports fanatic is more difficult to justify. Or at least it should be.

Many, though, enter into what I consider to be Faustian-esque fanaticism, particularly with football, or soccer if you prefer. It certainly has evil elements to it.

Insufferable Selección support

Now, while the uncritical mass support for the Colombian men's national football team, la Selección (or la Sele for short) as it's affectionately called, rarely results in acts of violence against non-believers, it does get rather nauseating all the same.

Rather than being something to be admired, it often comes across as immature. The media not only fans the flames of this football fawning but also engages in it itself.

OK, I've never been a, um, fan of the contrived impartiality some other national media outlets try to implement but refusing to see any faults or shortcomings in one's own team is a worse trait.

Such behaviour ensures many la Selección fanatics are both bad losers and bad winners. There's no sense of perspective.

For sure, this isn't exclusive to Colombia. I've unfortunately been in the presence of some Argentineans when their football team is playing and they're arguably more insufferable. And many of my fellow country folk can be the same, just not usually with soccer.

'I can more readily get behind Bogotá's Millonarios football club because I know not everyone in the vicinity will be backing my side.'

The thing with Colombia and most other South American countries is the intensity of fanaticism. I'd wager that about 95 per cent of Colombians enthusiastically support the national team and of that number, perhaps three out of every five are insufferable fanatics.

In the likes of Ireland, a range of sports vie for the nation's undivided attention, so there tends to be fewer insufferable fanatics of any one pursuit. In addition, in Ireland, cynicism and indifference are commonplace, particularly amongst the older generations.

Blind indifference

Thus, Colombia's all-behind-la-Selección approach is a little too much for me. OK, when the team advances in a competition the giddy excitement is understandable, but even in rather meaningless friendly games the enthusiasm is usually excessive. It's why I find it hard to support them.

Well, also at play is that I'm usually uncomfortable when I find myself siding with the majority. For example, I can more readily get behind Bogotá's Millonarios football club because I know not everyone in the vicinity will be backing my side.

It must also be noted that I can often be more critical of those who I want to see do well than those for whom I care little.

Plus, as I age, I question myself more as to why I waste my energy and time supporting individuals or teams who don't know or care about me, something I touched on in Bogged down in Bogotá.

The default mode for many foreigners who make Colombia their home is to mimic the masses and go all in for la Sele. I, too, have played that game. It's one of the quickest ways to win the favour of the locals, ephemeral and shallow as that will most likely be.

These days, however, I'm more comfortable declaring my indifference. This stance is made easier seeing how some of my more respected Colombian acquaintances are also quite indifferent to the team's fortunes.

Bet on Colombia

Now, I shouldn't need to refute here the idea that my indifference to la Selección means I dislike Colombia in general. Some more immature, myopic types will, however, draw that conclusion.

In Loving Colombia, Seventh heaven: Seven benefits of living in Colombia, and many other posts I've given various reasons why I like Colombia. My more than 12 years being based here also shows that I have much time for this country.

Also, I'm not completely immune to all the hype and carnival atmosphere that surrounds a Colombian football match, particularly the kind that comes when the team plays well and progresses in tournaments, as it is at Copa América 2024 as I write these lines. (And no, I'm not trying to jinx them.) One would have to live in solitude in some isolated outpost not to feel the fervour

It's just that I can't get that emotionally involved in the games without a blood connection or something to that effect. And nowadays I'm less inclined to feign fanaticism just to get along. I do, though, still like to watch the games in a public setting. Doing so with less intense, more learned Colombian supporters is a help. Such types do exist.

One way I could force myself to be a more enthusiastic fan is by betting money on the team. Become a fool and a fan in the one go, so to put it.

Although, I think it's best to stick to my intelligent indifference for now.
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Ley seca — Bogotá's deprived spit back

This blog tends to look out for the underprivileged. So when the have nots strike a blow against the haves, especially in a place riven with inequality such as Colombia, it's usually something to support. It's not often that happens here, of course.

'I predict a riot.' Millonarios fans. (Photo from deportes.terra.com.co/futbol/.)

However, Bogotá's unwashed masses have come up with a cunning plan to fight back against their wealthier superiors. In fact, it's rather ingenious considering the power to use this weapon isn't directly at their disposal. 

What they've mastered is akin to confronting a serial killer face to face and getting him to turn the gun on himself. Wonderful.

You see, some of my more hard-pressed Bogotá brethren have discovered a way to deprive the rest of us of the chance to occasionally, in a legal way, let our hair down.

This is how it works: Come up with a reason to have either a celebration or a protest, take to the streets en masse, let things become a little boisterous, violent even (attack public transport vehicles, vandalise buildings and suchlike), and then wait for the authorities to play their part. 

That latter step is the key one. For once the city authorities act, and act they will, the standard response – what they see as a panacea it seems – is to introduce ley seca, that is alcohol prohibition.

With that, all law-abiding citizens (there are some, I have been told) must make alternative plans, had they previously been thinking of socialising with a tipple or two in a bar or club. 

Meanwhile, those whose actions managed to get ley seca kicked into gear toddle back to their lightly policed barrios to enjoy a few beers practically as normal.

It's not a case of everybody being punished for the crimes of a few; it's a case of the wrong people being punished while the perpetrators' lives are barely impinged.

Like many things in Colombia, the law in theory operates very different in practice. As regards ley seca, it's one of those rare occasions when something here works against the more affluent sectors of society. 

In the wealthier parts, breaches are unlikely as licensed premises fear sanctions. Moreover, in more exuberant locations it's not easy to operate clandestinely, as opposed to a small tienda bar with only one entrance/exit, where the owner very often lives in the same building.

Also, in a country where there is a healthy underground market for a wide range of drugs and many of those involved in it come from working-class neighbourhoods, adding alcohol to the list isn't a major inconvenience for those in the know.

The idea behind this alcohol prohibition is to aid in maintaining public order when the powers that be feel some people may lose the run of themselves. 

It's introduced on a national scale for elections, while local authorities also have the power to enact it when and where they see fit. It's in the latter instance that we've had it most recently in Bogotá.

'Celebrating in peace.'

There are a number of reasons why city officials felt it was warranted. After Colombia's opening World Cup game, the victory over Greece, celebrations for some people got a little bit out of hand – besides the fact there was an election ley seca in place a few hours after the game. 

Nine deaths were attributed to the over-zealous football revelling. Of course, at least nine people die in this city most weekends for various reasons, but we tend not to hear about them.

Then, a day before Colombia's second match, fans of Bogotá's Millonarios football club took to the streets to celebrate its 68th birthday – hey, when you're going through a tough time on the field of play, you have to find something to cheer about. That these celebrations got out of control is putting it mildly.

Thus, it was to the tried-but-not-very-well-trusted ley seca that city mayor Gustavo Petro turned to, allowing Bogotanos to, 'celebrate in peace', or so the slogan went. 

Did it work? Well, it depends on who you ask and what part of the city you're referring to. 

You kind of get the feeling that authorities are happy with themselves for being proactive (just don't tell them they're being reactive) and taking effective measures. Meanwhile for a nice chunk of the population the drinking continues, just in a slightly different manner.

Of course, we're not condoning breaking the law, nor the thuggery and vandalism that a small number of citizens engage in, all in the name of celebrating. But, to reiterate, ley seca misses its intended target.

Properly, rigourously enforcing current permanent legislation is one approach in the short term.

Longer term, education is the answer.