Once the Euro 2012 quarterfinal between Greece and Germany had been set an article was posted on UEFA’s website with the cruelly ironic headline, “Greece Hope to Profit from German Lessons”. As if the European community- especially those in the respective nations- needed to be reminded of Greece’s economic crisis and Germany’s austerity measures to pull them from the depths of the Eurozone, UEFA uses a loaded word like Profit in describing the matchup of Friday’s quarterfinal in Gdansk, Poland. Still, like the ‘Miracle on Ice’ where the United States’ hockey team defeated the Soviet Union in the 1980 Winter Olympics, international sporting events often manage to bring two nations into competition at the most opportune moment in their histories. Germany is healthy politically, economically, and certainly in their football. Greece is barely afloat in politics, failing in economics, and come into the matchup as underdogs with an injured goalkeeper (Kostas Chalkias) and a suspended captain (Giorgos Karagounis).
While the political parallels are certainly apparent to anyone, members of both squads have been downplaying the circumstances and focusing on the match itself. Greek striker Giorgos Samaras blasted international media when asked about the politics surrounding the game. “It’s a bad thing for you to start to make stories and compare football and sports with politics,” said Samaras. “It’s just a game. We’re going to play and enjoy it because we love it, nothing else.” German Head Coach Joachim Loew struck a similar chord when he said, “(Chancellor) Angela Merkel and us, we have a good relationship and an agreement that she does not advise me on the lineups and I do not advise her on political statements.”
Merkel has become incredibly unpopular in Greece due to her tough austerity principles. Elections were held in Greece on Sunday and voters chose conservative leader Antonis Samaras, much to the relief of other European nations. The new government seeks to renegotiate the €130 billion ($164.79 billion) bailout loan received by the Greeks.
Undeterred by their injuries on the field and their position as underdogs, Greece came away with a huge 1-0 victory, eliminating Group A favorites Russia and advancing to the knockout round along with group winners Czech Republic who eliminated co-hosts Poland with a 1-0 win.
Despite the lack of political motive in the camps, the Greek squad knows what it means for Greeks at home and around the world. “We wanted to give everybody back home something to cheer, to celebrate,” said Greek midfielder Kostas Kastouranis, one of three remaining members of the 2004 European Championship squad. “Everybody in Greece — even our families, our friends, our brothers, our cousins, everyone — is having a really hard time. The most important thing is that all of us on the team never put ourselves above the team. We represent our country. So we know what we have to do.” Midfielder Giannis Maniatis said of the victory, “The most important thing for us is to give some happiness to the Greek people. That’s all, to make them celebrate in the street, given everything that is going on.”
These statements bring up memories of the Japanese Women’s National Team, who shockingly won the Women’s World Cup last summer only weeks after the devastating earthquake that destroyed most of the country and resulted in over 15,000 casualties. Those women captured the passion of a nation and this Greek squad is in a position to do the same.
It is no secret that football, especially national teams in an international tournament, arouses pride and passion that is not qualifiable. Franz Josef Wagner of top-selling German newspaper, Bild wrote, “The Greek team is rubbish compared to world-class stars. The Greek players are shelf warmers whose time is up. But this team has got something which they didn’t learn from training. Their country is in a state of emergency. They have to help their country. Their country is fighting a losing battle. A losing battle is a place for heroes. The Greeks played so their country could rise from the ashes and smile again.”
This week we can debate the importance of a European Championship quarterfinal under such circumstances; however, there is a match to be played, and at the end of it that’s all it will have been. The winner earns a spot in the semifinals and the loser will head home. But, for 90 minutes on Friday Greece and Germany will be on a literal level playing field and nothing else will matter.
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