World Cup vs Europe: Why Do You Get Excited for Football but not for Our Shared Future?

I’ve never understood the passion for football. I must be a bad Italian. However, this is not just an Italian passion. Yesterday Ghana played against Uruguay. I’m sure there are Ghanaians in London but everybody watched the game.

I was having diner when someone scored a goal. People stood up right in the middle of the restaurant and started celebrating. Yes, there are many gays in town but that was before the changing room break.

On the contrary very few people get excited engaging with politics, even less if Europe is involved. Could you explain to me why?

Football is like Gay Pride for me. I don’t understand why everybody gets so excited. Actually I can’t understand why people celebrate. We always live on the verge of catastrophe and still fellow human beings starve, linger in ignorance and don’t stop killing each other. What do you have to celebrate?

I would understand a celebration to fight against. For instance I was in the front line in the first gay demonstration in Kampala where there were angry priests and armed police on the other side. I was marching to affirm the right of everybody to freedom. I would have done in Moldova and would do it do again in every Pride or football match which means something beyond just ‘having fun’.

Therefore, I guess i’m always so excited about my work with civil society and Europe. Darren called me a politician with a little p and no constituency. At least I still have my passion.

Benny – my Pinocchio’s like wise cricket – reprimanded me: “You are too enthusiastic about Europe. The general mood is pretty doomed and media don’t stop Euro-bashing: Greek crisis, euro crisis, European split etc etc etc.”

He might be right but it’s clear to me that the future runs beyond national borders.

Have you read Charlemagne – The Economist’s column on Europe – this week? The smart editor – I was at the same party with him and Baroness Ashton last week – compares people like me to activists in faith-based organisations: Europe is a faith. I would call it a vision. It’s necessary for the development of national democracies to tackle the global challenges we face.

You won’t believe me but even amongst the Tories this is not a rare view, a party member confessed to me yesterday.

Europe might be a faith but just for an elite. It’s more like a sect whose headquarters are in Brussels and a branch in every European capital. Brussels looks like the Vatican or Lourdes. Everybody goes there to get a place in heaven or for a miracle.

Europe is a cult shared by politicians from across Europe. Normally old white men who preach prudence and stability but not behave along the claimed principles. The recent scandal of over 100 European official earning more than the British Prime Minister is the last of a long list.

On Thursday I was at LSE for a seminar on Europe 2.0 run by Prof. Calypso Nikolaidis one of the selected wise people gathered under the Felipe Gozales chairmanship to draw Europe 2030, a vision for the future. It was funny to realize that behind a pretty predictable and prudent paper a lively and creative discussion took place. Unfortunately you can’t find a trace of that debate in the paper.

It seems that Europe is a source of inspiration but the guys in charge are afraid of loosing control if such creativity is left spreading across. They don’t want a real debate in which citizens can engage.

Perhaps I’m wrong but I will keep trying to animate such a debate and unmask the parasites. I will make Europe more exciting than the world cup… and turn that p in to a big one!