For those of us who like football, it's very difficult to enjoy the World Cup, with all this display of banal nationalism and cheap geopolitics. You might tell me, as the elders used to say, and as Aesop said before, that the fox, when it can't reach something, says it's sour. And indeed, I wish Catalonia could participate in this circus, and it irritates me that FIFA instigates a fever of patriotism — as it does every four years — which, in our case, is the expression of a substituted identity. When faced with a World Cup, everyone chooses a jersey, and if the Catalan one isn't available, they put on another, be it the Spanish one (because it's where Catalans play, by decree), the Moroccan one, or the Argentine one, which is the one for many newcomers. In Catalonia, everyone has the right to exercise, except Catalans.Spain is a fragile nation and knows that sport softens the cracks. Since now, in addition, there are many Catalans in the Spanish team, a Muslim and a black person, Spanish nationalism progress has prepared a speech tailored to them, evading the fact that the purported plurality of the red is based on an imposition. Obviously, they have the complicity of the Catalan players, who adapt to the situation because they do not want to be under suspicion. Lamine Yamal speaks Catalan, if necessary, when he wears the Barça jersey, but he gives it up at the World Cup so that there are no doubts about his loyalties, which may be those of the heart but also those dictated by common sense and the pressure of his environment: look, Lamine, they already look at you strangely because you are half Moroccan and Muslim, let's not make it more complicated with demonstrations of Catalanism.
Another Catalan, defender Pau Cubarsí, was caught speaking Catalan with Eric Garcia, they asked him about the matter and his frozen smile, the panic in his eyes, told it all. “Perhaps with Eric I do speak Catalan because it flows more easily for me, but with everyone else I speak Spanish perfectly...”. He would have served the cause better if he had said that linguistic diversity in the squad is a reflection of a plural Spain, but the fear of being singled out weighed more. Do you think I'm exaggerating? Ask the girl who was fired from Attico, a coworking and coliving company, for using Catalan and “generating discomfort” among colleagues and clients. Ask Teresa Comellas too, who was distinguished for having the highest grade in the university entrance exams in the Balearic Islands. When thanking them for the recognition, she advocated for public education in Catalan, and the barrage of insults she received on social media surpasses any limit of indecency. These two girls have the ovaries to stand firm while celebrities and elite athletes always choose the most comfortable option. Whom do we prefer to idolize?This Spanish selection with a Barça majority and ethnic touches has become the alibi for the progress Catalans who since the police brutality of 2017 felt uncomfortable because they know, like it or not, that for once their side was the oppressor. That's why football in Spain is now a state policy, as it was in Argentina in 1978 (allowing for differences). This is a battle that – incomprehensibly – the Catalanist parties have renounced fighting. Meanwhile, Felipe VI spends the day at the World Cup claiming every goal, Rosalía and Alèxia Putellas pose in the VIP box, sure that their patriotism will pay off. And those of us who want to remember that all this stems from an act of violence, from the denial of a basic right, from an identity built on the denial of another, have to settle for playing the spoilsport, convinced, however, that even if the ball goes in, as in 2010, the dinosaur will still be here.
