Waiting for the God to sit on the team’s bench

But in this topsy-turvy World Cup, choc-a-bloc with upsets that have sent the likes of holders France, Argentina, Portugal and Italy packing, one thing is certain — players, fans and coaches will not stop banking on ’’outside help’’. Whether it’s simply wearing the same underpants for each match or burying an animal in the centre circle at midnight before a big game, soccer nuts the world over will do anything to influence a result.

In Africa, the craziest practices — on the face of it — take place. The use of witch doctors is so widespread that the Confederation of African Football (CAF), the region’s ruling soccer body, was forced to ban them for this year’s African Nations Cup.

African soccer magazine reported before the World Cup that there “was a common thread of spiritual practices — animals sacrificed and their parts buried, midnight rituals, powders and smelly lotions that embraces every part of sub-Saharan Africa and spans every variation of football success’’. Tellingly, though, none of the nations who use such practices qualified for the World Cup and, instead, countries like South Africa and quarter-finalists Senegal have deliberately eschewed all voodoo assistance on their path to the finals. As guffawing South African striker Benni McCarthy told a reporter who asked, in all sincerity, if the team practised voodoo: ’’Don’t worry. South Africa don’t have anything to do with that.

‘‘We practise fair play and I think we do the same as any European country does. We don’t do no voodoo stuff.’’

Not everyone in South Korea and Japan, though, was so determined to separate religion and superstitious beliefs from what actually happens on the pitch.

The deputy head of the Saudi Arabian Football Federation, Prince Nawaf bin Faisal bin Fahd bin Abdul-Aziz, fervently hoped his players could promote Islam with success at the World Cup.

In the event, they lost 8-0 to Germany in their first game, failed to score a goal in three matches and went out in the first round.

The Latin American countries are particularly superstitious — most goalkeepers from the main powers in the game such as Brazil and Argentina kiss the posts before matches and even referees cross themselves prior to kick-off.

(Reuters)