Sport Ends Here

     "Let us please maintain respect. It's been a most amazing and rare experience. We'll see each other again soon, because life doesn't end here."

    "...life doesn't end here."

    Sometimes, words present a cold, cryptic dose of irony.

    Sometimes, the irony of said words can send chills down the spine of those who hear or read them.

    Sometimes, that irony is beyond chilling. It can be a step further than cruel.

    The irony of mere words can be tragic.

    "...life doesn't end here."

    These were the words of Andrés Escobar.

    I was recently immersed in a show on Netflix, Goles en Contra, English translation The Final Score. I seldom find myself as engrossed into a show as I was with this particular program. But it is often the story beyond the game that proves to be the most enthralling. This is one of those instances.

    As we approach the business end of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, it is altogether fitting that we revisit, not only one of the World Cup's, but global sport's most tragic and despicable stories.

    I am simply a sports writer.

    I cannot begin to understand the complexities of things such as narco-politics, gang warfare or the high-stakes situations that a combination of the two has thrusted so many into.

    Often times, I find American politics to be so convoluted that I am unable to fully wrap my head around it all. With that being the case, one can imagine my struggles grasping the political intricacies of other nations.

    This can be said of my comprehension of the political situation that created a mountain of turmoil and upheaval in Colombia in the latter half of the 20th century.

    I am a sports writer. Happily, I am nothing more. But, like all of you, I am a human being.

    Try as we may to convince others, and ourselves, that we know everything, we do not.

    Violence is something that will forever be beyond my most simple of understanding.

    Even after watching the series on Netflix, my mind- enlightened as much as it could be by a top-tier education from the world's greatest institution, Ball State University- cannot understand the fate that Andres Escobar met.

    Or, perhaps more fittingly, the fate that met him.

    "...life doesn't end here." Those were some of the final words said publicly by Escobar.

    A national hero in the football-mad nation of Colombia, Escobar was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Unfortunately, he was in the wrong place at the wrong time once. Tragically, he was in the wrong place at the wrong time a second time.

    Inside one of America's most storied sporting theaters- the Rose Bowl- Escobar's life would change forever. Changing along with it would be the perception of the world's most famous sporting event and the social impact that it has.

    The line between sport and life would be reset.

    Los Cafeteros arrived stateside for the 1994 World Cup in high regard, but in justifiably low spirit.

    As violence led by cartels spiraled out of control, and subsequent crackdowns led to further chaos, the Colombian national team made the flight to the U.S. amidst a backdrop of fear and uncertainty. Violence and corruption back home had touched practically everyone, including the players and coaches who would represent Colombia in front of the eyes of the world.

    They hoped to give the world a positive impression of Colombia when most around the globe could not see the South American country in a favorable way.

    To win a World Cup hits a level of difficulty that cannot be put into even the most eloquent and articulate of words. It's another level doing it under the political and personal pressure of wondering 'Is my family safe? Am I safe?'

    The Colombians had to simply play soccer in the midst of all this. But the team appeared as though they could manage.

    They were a collection of star players who, at club level, represented teams that, in many cases, were owned and operated by cartel leaders. Such was the complex situation socially and politically in Colombia. In a cruel twist of fate, Andrés Escobar played professionally for Atletico Nacional in his homeland, a club run by the notorious drug kingpin, Pablo Escobar. It would be some of the acquaintances of Pablo Escobar who would confront Andrés in a way that would send shockwaves reverberating around the world.

    As absurd as it may sound, one of the FBI's most wanted criminals at the time actually operated a soccer club that in 1989 won the Copa Libertadores- the most prestigious club competition in South American soccer.

    Andrés Escobar and Pablo Escobar were not related. But even after the latter's death, the two would become permanently intertwined.

    When Colombia arrived at USA '94, expectations could hardly have been higher.

    They fielded a team filled with talented and experienced players. The core of the team was solidly in their prime of their careers, and they had spent several years playing in the same system alongside one another.

    That pivotal blend of talent, experience and timing made Colombia an attractive bet to win the World Cup. Even Pelé himself predicted they would win it all, even ahead of his native Brazil.

    But Colombia's prospects of winning the most coveted prize in all of sports were also enticing for some of the nation's most shady yet influential figures. Many prominent figures in Colombia's cartels placed hefty wagers on them to hoist the trophy aloft at the Rose Bowl.

    However, Pasadena would be the site of Colombia's most memorable World Cup moment for an entirely different and far more sinister reason.

    The dirty money of those who had ripped the country apart turned the beautiful game into a form of footballing Russian Roulette. With so much on the line for those of stature in the country, one false move- intentional or not- by coaches or players, could be fatal.

    Sadly, it was.

    Colombia's first game of the tournament raised the stakes to new heights and the tension to a fever pitch. A surprising loss to Romania left them in a desperate position within their group. The Romanians would turn out to be one of the competition's biggest surprise packages that year. But the power brokers in Colombia did not have a magic crystal ball, and they would not have known that. What they did have however, was lot a of money on the line.

    While the fans felt disappointment, the bettors felt a sense of outrage. A sense that they would project on those competing in the tournament.

    The pressure on the team began to crescendo to unimaginable levels. The players and coaches knew that. But with their money on the line, the cartels needed to know that they knew it.

    Messages began pouring into the Colombian camp.

    However, these messages did not carry with them a central theme of 'Vamos Colombia', but rather 'You must do this or the consequences will be severe.'

    Prior to the second match, the team's head coach began receiving death threats over his squad selection for the upcoming game.

    The good news for Colombia? Their next opponent was a squad comprised of amateur, free agent and low-level professional players. They were set to square off with a country that had no professional league system at the time and had very little football- or soccer- culture to speak of.

    The opponent: the host country, the United States of America.

    Further good news for the visitors, on paper they would stroll past the U.S.

    The bad news? Games are won on grass, not paper.

    "...life doesn't end here." But it certainly changes.

    For the first time, Andrés Escobar- Colombia's hero, Colombia's leader- was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

    The cross comes in from the left, Escobar tries to cut it out, extends his leg and inadvertently diverts the ball past his own goalkeeper and into the back of the net.

    An own goal.

    Goal.

    Goal.

    Goal.

    Calamity, followed by dramatic, tragic, cruel irony.

    "...life does not end here."

    Sadly, the clock had begun to tick.

    A stunning 2-1 defeat to the USA effectively ended Colombia's World Cup. Even after they defeated Switzerland in their third group stage match, results elsewhere meant that their tournament was officially over. Crucially, the bettors lost. They intended to make sure that their loss would be felt by Andrés.

    A tournament- the world's biggest and most meaningful- was over. But life- the world's most precious and delicate treasure- should not have been.

    He was advised to stay in the U.S., lay low and let the anger settle.

    But Andrés Escobar had a fiancée to return home to. A wedding to plan. A new life to start.

    Going back to Colombia felt like a necessity for him. But he would not get to experience the life that he was dreaming of and actively planning.

    Andrés was his nation's favorite son. Why would anyone turn on him over one mistake?

    Under that line of thought, Andres returned to his native country, and he harbored few, if any, fears about showing his face in public.

    This is proof that the innocence that exists inside good people can, at times, be blinding.

    Andrés accompanied friends on a night out in Medellín.

    While out, they were confronted by a group of men who displayed their anger and frustration towards Andres over his error in Pasadena.

    With no other way to de-escalate the situation, Andres left the establishment, only to discover that the men were still pursuing him.

    The argument would continue at Andrés' car. Before he could leave, Andrés was shot.

    Again and again. Six times in total.

    According to accounts from witnesses, following each shot, was a cry of 'goal' from Escobar's assassins, leaving no illusions as to what their motive was.

    Andrés Escobar was only 27 years old.

    I tend to write these entries not to report, but to share. Most frequently, the intention is to share my own perspective.

    My perspective here is simple: sport must be separated from life, no matter how difficult that may be. Games end, but lives should not end as a direct consequence to the way the game or the season or the tournament did.

    Making this all the more sad, while Escobar's case is amongst the most extreme that we know of, the circumstances surrounding it are certainly not as rare as we would like to believe.

    In the 2012 NFC Championship Game, San Francisco 49ers Punt Returner Kyle Williams lost two crucial fumbles.

    Tommie Smith and John Carlos protested for their most basic civil rights while standing on the medal podium at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City.

    LeBron James simply changed teams.

    These incidents are similar in how innocuous each of them were. Another similarity is that each ended with the athletes mentioned above having their lives threatened.

    Their stories are far from isolated. It is still disturbingly frequent how often athletes and coaches are threatened over a game. Even nearly three decades on from the murder of Andrés Escobar, Colombia itself has not fully been able to escape these same issues.

    In the 2018 World Cup, an early handball inside the box led to Colombia's Carlos Sanchez being shown a red card in their opening match against Japan. The Japanese would win the match, leaving Sanchez as the target of much ire from people back home. Given the context, most could probably imagine the rhetoric that was used in the messages that were hurled his way.

    Growing up, I had as difficult of a time as any accepting the old adage of 'It's just a game.' To a certain extent, I still struggle coming to terms with that fact. But, ultimately, that is a fact.

    Sport was always intended to be beautiful. It was meant to be simple, elegant, expressive and an equalizer for people around the world.

    If we cannot find a way to differentiate between a game and life itself, that beauty- the essence of sport itself- is in danger of being stripped away.

    After spending so much time apart during this trying decade, we are back in stadiums, arenas, restaurants, bars, concert halls, etc.

    Hopefully a new example can be set for the next generation of fans and athletes alike. An example that demonstrates how to enjoy sports peacefully, the way that it was always intended to be.

"...life does not end here."

Maybe, hopefully, a new chapter begins here.