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And so the very future of football, perhaps even humanity itself, rests on whether or not two people shake hands this weekend. Just a few short months since Sepp Blatter was roundly derided, condemned and urged to resign for suggesting racism could be solved in this way, it has now become imperative in some eyes for John Terry and Anton Ferdinand to do just that when Chelsea meet QPR this weekend.
Here is what David Bernstein had to say in the aftermath of Blatter’s eventual apology back in November:
A handshake at the end of the game does not draw a line under racial abuse during a match.
Presumably this applies to handshakes before, during or after a subsequent game as well. Now though, the FA are said to be keen to see some reconciliation when the two clubs meet in the FA Cup for a noon kick-off on Saturday.
The problem is one of motive, and self interest. The FA’s keenness to see a handshake stems from a desire to avoid further, lurid headlines regarding racism in football. After six months to forget, the dangers of fans of either club indulging themselves in a few hearty racist epithets is too much for them to bear.
Never mind that Ferdinand, who has a genuine grievance against Terry yet to be resolved one way or the other, may feel a reconciliation in public is not appropriate at the current time. There’s publicity to consider!
Perhaps the swiftly-eroding-authorities who “govern” English football might consider that the inclusion of the handshake, which may soon adopt social healing powers of a mythical nature, may not be enough to prevent fans being fans. If, instead, they focused their efforts on stamping out abuse in all its forms rather than just those which damage their brand, football crowds might be sweeter, happier places.
The existence of racist abuse is a cause of particular discomfort for football. Not only does it still take place in the stands, it has also been shown to take place on the pitch from time to time as well. Luis Suarez continues to serve his ban and John Terry’s case will soon be tried and a verdict reached as to his innocence or guilt.
A potted history of handshakes in English football
Of course, this isn’t the first time John Terry has been involved in a handshake row, though in the first case it was perhaps more fitting of a trial by Ok! magazine than by judge or jury. The media frenzy which consumed the days before his first match against Wayne Bridge after his alleged infidelity’s with Bridge’s ex-partner were not within such a serious context but show the lengths to which Britain’s media will sensationalise and attribute value to events which are actually utterly without meaning. Two footballers who don’t get on did not shake hands. Big deal.
Arsene Wenger too has been embroiled in a handshake row in the past with Clive “He’s two-bob he is” Allen. And Mark Hughes. And Tony Pulis is another who has refused to clasp Mark Hughes warmly by the metacarpus in the past.
So obsessed is English football, or perhaps more accurately the English football media, that we shall soon require a full directory of its handshake rows over the years. Frankly, what does any of it matter?
If Anton Ferdinand doesn’t feel that he wants to shake the hand of a man he believes to have racially abused him, so be it. And if the fans take that as a cue to up the vitriol, arrest them. Throw them out and ban them. Or, make the clubs play behind closed doors, a move which would certainly set the cat among the accountants. Because right now English football is making its condemnation of Blatter seem just a bit hypocritical to say the least.