For Haiti, the Coup de Monde’s real fallout may go beyond footie fever

RASHMEE ROSHAN LALL June 10, 2014

coupe-du-monde-20141The Haitian government apparently paid $ 2m for World Cup broadcasting rights. But consider the real fallout of the Coup de Monde – much beyond football fever. On Friday, the Haitian Football Federation and Ministry of Youth and Sports reportedly announced an interregional tournament called “Toup pou yo”. It will run from July 20 to mid-August in 20 cities and will mark the 40th anniversary of Haiti’s participation in the World Cup.

That was Germany, 1974. An extraordinary World Cup by all accounts. Wikipedia describes it as follows: 98 countries took part in the qualifying tournament, some of football’s most successful nations did not qualify, including 1966 champions England, France, Mexico, Hungary and Spain.

Haiti was a first-time qualifier. Some of the others were East Germany, Australia and Zaire, the first sub-Saharan African team to reach the World Cup finals.

(Tomorrow: Coup de Monde fever, the affliction that happily doesn’t sicken Haiti)

Jack Kerouac

“Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life”
– Jack Kerouac