Colourful, innovative fans in Kerala gear up for fiesta
Fever pitch
Visitors to some juice shops at Kottakkal in Malappuram district have been surprised by a few ‘new arrivals’. Not only do glasses sport the flags of England, Brazil, France and Holland, even juices assume shades of team jerseys with the help of cream, butter, mixing agents and fruits!
The World Cup soccer fever that has gripped every village and town of north Kerala has to be seen to be believed. An aerial survey of the entire coastal stretch of Kerala might even suggest that the biggest followers of the World Cup may be here.
Colourful flex boards of the different teams, graffiti of the match schedule and Kaka, Rooney and Messi smiling from billboards are quite the norm. The flags of all 32 countries fly in some villages, and make-believe matches between Argentina and Brazil, or even Ivory Coast and Ghana, have already been played out by their avid fans on the sandy beaches here.
It would be hard worldwide to match the enthusiasm of the Nainamvalappu Football Fans Association (NFFA) in Kozhikode. FIFA and UEFA have recognised the passion of the association and have been regularly sending NFFA soccer memorabilia. At the association office, one can even find a miniature ‘golden’ replica of the FIFA World Cup, apart from original posters of the tournament and numerous other memorabilia sent by FIFA.
Youth strutting around wearing the colours of their favoruite teams and sporting the looks of their stars is quite the norm here. As expected, Argentina and Brazil command the most fans, though one could see Ivory Coast fans managing to get a billboard for their team sponsored by the Youth Congress! “We all have our independent politics, but not when it comes to football, which unites all of us,’’ points out NFFA general secretary Mujibur Rehman.
While there may only be one Lionel Messi in Diego Maradona’s team, there are quite a few in Nainamvalappu who go by the name ‘Messi’. “He is the biggest attraction of this cup. If Brazil have a Kaka, one Messi is enough for 100 Kakas,’’ says 50-year-old Karim of Kothi, who runs a marriage hall. Several regular football fans of the area employed in the Gulf are coinciding their return home on holiday with the World Cup.
NFFA has made arrangements to beam the World Cup matches live on a big screen with the help of sponsors. As the teams vie for the original cup, the fans will also be on tenterhooks. Fans of the winning team are to be offered a replica of the World Cup at a public function, moments after the finals in South Africa!
