Dutchmen in the Kongdom of Bhutan Emirates

The Other World Cup Final Forget Germany vs. Brazil the real drama might lie with who’s worse, Montserrat or Bhutan By William Underhill NEWSWEEK WEB EXCLUSIVE June 26 — One is a small land-locked Himalayan kingdom. The other is a volcanic island in the Caribbean. One has archery as its national sport; the other has cricket. ONE IS EMPHATICALLY Buddhist; the other is Christian. Indeed, almost all that Bhutan and Montserrat share is a lackluster record on the soccer field: the two countries are at the bottom of FIFA’s world rankings, in 202nd and 203rd place, respectively. But the teams won’t miss out completely on World Cup glory. When the finalists meet in Japan on June 30, so too will the national sides of the “Thunder Dragon Kingdom” and “the Emerald Isle of the Caribbean” for their own FIFA-backed contest. The big difference: “The Other Final,” to be hosted by the Bhutanese, will decide who deserves the accolade of worst—not best—in the world. That either country can field a team at all represents a triumph of determination over geography. Montserrat, measuring barely half the size of Washington, D.C., can claim some footballing tradition thanks to a long history of British rule. But in the mid 1990s more than half the population fled a series of devastating volcanic eruptions on the island, leaving a population of a little more than 4,000. Among the facilities destroyed was the single sports ground, which was covered with volcanic ash, forcing the football team to train on neighboring Antigua, 26 miles away. The island has only just completed a new ground using money provided by FIFA. With the team already in Bhutan for pre-match training, excitement is already running high. “There is no question that this is extremely important for us, especially at a time like this,” Montserrat Chief Minister John Osborne told NEWSWEEK. “It is a good advertisement for the country and can only help us.” But can they win? Osborne is cautious. “We are just a new team, and I don’t know how good the other side are. But whatever happens, the match means we will be a lot better for the next time.” For their part, the deeply conservative Bhutanese have passed centuries in near total seclusion from the outside world. The country was only admitted to international competition by FIFA two years ago and has still to win a match. Small wonder. The population of 600,000 is scattered over high mountains with almost no terrain suitable for soccer. Still the game has made some headway since the authorities—breaking their previous ban on television—set up giant screens and permitted the installation of satellite dishes to allow citizens to watch the 1998 World Cup finals. Three years ago, the country’s first ever domestically made feature film, a low-budget hit titled “The Cup,” featured a 13-year-old novice monk so enthralled by the tournament that he sneaks out of the monastery to watch games shown on cable TV in the village shop. Its publicity slogan was “Buddhism is their religion. Soccer is their philosophy.” Certainly, there’s no shortage of enthusiasm. “We have stamina, technique, will and, moreover, altitude and home ground on our side,” defender Ugyen Wangchuk, a Bhutanese defender told the country’s official newspaper. For good measure, the team can also count on newly-recruited coach Arie Schans from Holland. The match is the initiative of a Dutch communications agency, Kesselskramer, which put the idea to FIFA and the two national associations. In the spirit of the occasion, any profits will be shared by the two countries. “This is not about who wins or loses but the celebration of two countries which despite obstacles share a love of the beautiful game,” according to the organizers. Try telling that to Germany and Brazil.
Bhutan won 4-0