Time out
The whistle has blown indefinitely on the country's sporting life. Ahmed Morsy reports
ore than two weeks into the unrest in Egypt, sport is still suspended, including football, the nation's No 1 recreational activity and outlet.
The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) has postponed league games across all four of its professional divisions, as well as junior tournaments.
As is the normal divisions on the field between players of Ahli and Zamalek, the two biggest football clubs in Egypt, the teams are currently and uniquely politically split in pro and anti-government camps.
Some have participated in the ongoing demonstrations wanting President Mubarak to leave office now while the pro-Mubarak supporters are appearing on TV and radio to calm the nation down in the name of stability.
Zamalek football coach Hossam Hassan is a pro- Mubarak man who has been urging people to go back to their work. "President Mubarak responded immediately to the demands by protesters by forming a new government as well as showing readiness to amend articles 76 and 77 of the Egyptian constitution" which concern limiting the terms of the president, the politically astute Hassan told Al-Ahram Weekly.
"We need to give the new government the opportunity to address the country's problems and the unsatisfactory conditions of the Egyptian people," he added.
Hassan said Tahrir Square will remain where it is should the new government fail to meet the demands of the youth. The veteran footballer had earlier urged people demonstrating in Tahrir Square to join the pro- Mubarak protest in Mustafa Mahmoud in Mohendisine held on 2 February.
Egypt's goalkeeper Essam El-Hadari also declared his sympathy for Mubarak who, according to him, "had worked for Egypt through war and peace."
"There are hidden forces deliberately meddling in Egypt... I'm very concerned about the thugs and street gangs roaming the streets," El-Hadari told the Algerian newspaper Al-Hadaaf, expressing his disapproval over the current situation in Egypt, terming it an "act of sabotage."
Not surprisingly, the biggest Mubarak fan in sports has been Egypt's football coach Hassan Shehata who said he would support Mubarak "until the end of his current mandate," stressing he had gone out to demonstrations to support Mubarak "for the sake of Egypt's security and stability."
"Millions of people in Egypt want Mubarak to stay for years to come, especially as he has prevented wars and tension," Shehata told Alarabiya.net.
Shehata's remarks were met with scathing attacks from sports critics who accused him of seeking to protect his interests associated with the current regime. Shehata has warm ties not only with Mubarak but with the president's sons Gamal and Alaa who had often attended national team matches.
Meantime, the anti-government club of players includes former Ahli manager Hadi Khashaba and ex- Egypt goalkeeper Nader El-Sayed who have been protesting in Tahrir Square.
"The nation demands the fall of the regime" is one of the chants of the protesters in Tahrir Square, who can add to their voice El-Sayed. On Sunday night, El-Sayed was carried on the shoulders of a demonstration of thousands.
"Being in Tahrir Square doesn't mean that I'm against the people supporting President Mubarak. We should all be doing what's best for our country," El-Sayed told Al-Ahram Weekly.
"We seek stability but with dignity and honour. So, I take into consideration the lower class who can hardly find food. I'm here not as a sports figure but as an Egyptian citizen.
"I respect President Mubarak since he is the symbol of Egypt inside and out but we suffer from corruption. Whether he knows about the corruption or not, it is still a problem. There are promises for change and development but people in such a situation need immediate action and decisions," El-Sayed added.
President Mubarak has said he will step down but only when his term ends in September, arguing that to leave now would plunge Egypt into chaos.
"Egypt should be a country of institutions so why do we depend on individuals?" El-Sayed said. "That's another dilemma.
"People should not insult or underestimate demonstrators in Tahrir Square since there are many who sacrificed their life, work and homes as well as families in search of their freedom, dignity and humanity."
Elsewhere, Egypt's football captain Ahmed Hassan claimed that the players on the national team represent Egypt and nothing else.
"The national team players are playing on behalf of Egypt and not individuals," Hassan told BBC.
Egyptian sports critic Alaa Sadik said the national team should understand that they play for the country and not for Mubarak and the ruling National Democratic Party. Sadik was among the protesters demanding the departure of Mubarak.
Hassan said he regretted such statements which he added have been made at the wrong time.
"This is a time which requires that all Egyptians act as one," Hassan said referring to the criticism which some of the players had after participating in demonstrations for Mubarak.
On the impact of the current climate on the national football team as it prepares for a crucial qualifier against South Africa for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations in March in Cape Town, Hassan said: "The recent events have affected everything in Egypt, not just football."
TV sports host Medhat Shalabi said that sports channels had been badly affected by the suspension of the Egyptian league.
"There are hundreds of workers in satellite channels and sports programmes who may not find work during this period in light of the tense political situation," Shalabi said.
However, Shalabi said he was optimistic about an impending end of the demonstrations in Egypt and the return to normalcy after which the league and Egyptian Cup games can resume.
Ahli marketing manager Adli El-Kaei said the scrapping of the rest of the current season would be a tremendous loss for the clubs, including advertising sponsorship contracts signed between the clubs and corporate sponsors, which in such a crisis, will be terminated.
"The clubs will also lose financial returns from the sale of match tickets as well as the loss of revenue from matches being broadcast on satellite TV," El-Kaei added.
In more scheduling changes, US football officials said last week that the friendly with the US which had been scheduled to be played in Cairo on 9 February had been cancelled following the political unrest in Egypt. The match between the US and the reigning Africa Cup of Nations champions had been announced on 13 December and would have been the first ever by a US side in Egypt.
"Due to the current situation, all parties agreed it was best to cancel the match," US Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati said.
The EFA decided to extend the winter transfer season which should have ended on 31 January because most of the teams could not sign deals with new players.
Despite the ongoing demonstrations, political turmoil and a curfew, Zamalek continue to train with an eye on the Egyptian domestic league and another on the African Champions League.
Zamalek's Champions League second leg clash in round 64 against Ulinzi Stars has been postponed to the weekend of 24-26 February due to the ongoing protests. Zamalek chairman Galal Ibrahim said the second leg will be played in Sudan or Libya due to the current situation in Egypt.
The match was originally scheduled for Cairo on 13 February but the Confederation of African Football (CAF) wrote to the Kenya Premier League champions informing them of the decision to push the match back by a couple of weeks.
Ulinzi lost the first leg clash played in Nairobi on 29 January, losing 4-0 to Egyptian giants Zamalek.
Ahli team trainer Mohamed Youssef led the footballers in training starting from 9 February. The Portuguese coaching staff left Egypt after the clashes erupted but say they will return once things cool down.
"The current events obliged me to leave," Ahli coach Manuel Jose told the Portuguese newspaper Record. Jose had taken the reigns of Ahli in December.
Social life within Ahli club is frozen. All its sports activities are suspended. A curfew has forced most of the clubs to train only in the morning.
"Life has taken a break in Ahli," a media source in the club told the Weekly.
"Activities, travelling, camps, buying sporting outfits, all are up in the air," the source, who preferred to remain anonymous, added.
"I can't estimate the losses. All I can say is that all our revenues have been halted. We are obliged to pay the salaries of employees, players and coaches and that will not be an easy task for us.
"Our contracts with sponsorship and advertising companies are still in place but if the current situation continues, things are going to get worse," he added.
"The resumption of the league depends on the official position as to whether to play in such turmoil."
All football games need permission from the Ministry of Interior to secure the events.
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