THE JUJU EDGE

WIDESPREAD BELIEF IN MAGIC PERVADES SOCCER

Tendai Makaripe and Lazarus Sauti

Does juju/black magic have any influence on the world’s most beautiful game?

That question is hard to answer, but remains topical among soccer supporters from across the globe.  

Some will remember the story of Kwame Arhin and Alain Gouamene a few years ago.

Kwame Arhin was a staunch supporter of Ghana’s Kumasi Asante Kotoko Football Club.

His favourite team had a date with Asec Abidjan (Cote d’Ivoire), a team for which Alain Gouamene was a goalkeeper.

Arhin alleges that three days after he destroyed amulets and good luck charms belonging to the goalie, he became crippled!

Such allegations abound in the high-stakes world of professional football, where passions run high and much money stands to be made.

Many of use grew up hearing stories of how juju could make the opposition team players see the ball as a steaming train or an attacking serpent.

The claims run far and wide and are virtually impossible to prove or disapprove.

And while the allegations of use of magic are more colourful in Africa and Latin America, that does not mean there is no element of belief in these things elsewhere.

European soccer players and fans are known to follow certain pre- and post-match routines that they believe bring them “lucky”.

Some have been known to wear only a particular pair of underwear or a piece of jewellery that they ardently believe would bring the “good fortune”.

But can juju influence the outcome of matches?

Former Zimbabwe national team midfielder Gift Kamuriwo acknowledged the widespread belief in juju in soccer.

“I was playing for a local team at one point and we were made to go into a river before the game, wash ourselves and we were told not to use drying towels,” he said.

Sangomas have been called into visiting into visiting team’s dressing to spray concoctions that are believed would cause poor performance, while goalkeepers have been known to run muti on their gloves to make them more effective.

Players that refuse to partake in the rituals have faced the wrath of coaches and teammates.

There was an interesting case a few years back when Papa Bouba Diop, the Senegal midfield maestro, reportedly splashed chicken blood on the goalposts at Craven Cottage, where his team of the time Fulham was based.

Media reports said the team manager had no problem with this, pointing out that it gave the players a psychological boost, then that was good for the club.

And perhaps that is where the real issue lies: it could be psychological.

Players who believe they are destined to win might perform better than usual – or they could become complacent and then lose.

But somehow, even when they lose they still cling to their belief in juju.

Alois Bunjira, who played for Caps United in Zimbabwe and Wits University in South Africa, spoke of some downright ridiculous things that players and coaches can believe in.

He wrote on his blog, “When I moved to South Africa, I realised how much people believe in juju. Before every game at my first club, we used to sit around a burning cow dung-like substance and inhale the smoke.

‘After that, we would be soaked with some dirty liquid-juju using a broom. Our jerseys always looked dirty and smelly.”

He added: “Players from another club I won’t name told me of their experiences with juju. The players confided that once before a match, they went to a river in the middle of the night.

“They were made to take off their clothes. One by one they would lie in a coffin and shout “WIN!” twice. Each shout would be followed by a gunshot. Don’t laugh”.

It is not hard to laugh at that!

Bunjira said another player told him how a sangoma used to collect every player’s urine in a bucket. This was taken away somewhere for the night to get it “treated”.

The next day the urine, now slightly thick, would be brought in the changing room and everyone was required to smear some on their boots.

He also mentioned that a friend of his from Liberia was blamed for a drawn match because he had expressed disgust at a ritual meant to ensure victory.

Here’s a little about that ritual.

The players went to the stadium the night before the match and slaughtered a goat in the centre circle. They collected the blood, mixed it with some muti, applied a little to every player’s knees and the rest of the mixture was scattered all over the field.

Surely, that was extreme, but that shows the extent to which some people would go just to win a game.

Former Nigerian skipper Taribo West hogged the limelight after he confessed that he spent the greater part of his fortune servicing marabouts to make himself invincible to strikers both at club and national level.

“I spent up to (five million naira) on juju and in Senegal, I spent money every month to make rituals. This is aside from what you give to the ritualists directly, and for their personal use.

“I went to Guinea and did some. I did some in Nigeria. The type of juju I was doing was, basically, to make me remain a solid rock in the defence,"  

Zimbabwe’s Gift Kamuriwo is skeptical that juju influences the outcome of matches.

“It is all in the players’ head, I do not believe it works in soccer. Football is all about talent and commitment to your club or country, anything else outside these will not guarantee success.”

An expert in Indigenous Knowledge Systems in Harare, who requested anonymity, said that indigenous knowledge should not compromise professionalism but instead enhance it.

“Soccer is a professional game which requires strict adherence to professional ethos. Even though indigenous knowledge is a fact, it should not be used to undermine professionalism but positively enhance it.

“For example, its use in physical fitness, diet, health and team work pays dividends”

In essence, belief in juju can bring down professionalism, as those who put their faith in rituals work less on the field.

It can also cause rifts.

Former Ghana football coach Goran Stevanovic revealed that some of his players used voodoo against each other, thus “causing deep divisions in the squad.”

The Serbian coach made the claim in a leaked report on the Black Stars, in which he blamed such practices for the lack of cohesion at the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations where Ghana surprisingly bowed out at the semi-final stage against eventual winners Zambia.

He said, "We all need to help in changing some players' mentality about using 'black power' to destroy themselves."

It's well known that players use voodoo to protect themselves and to bring luck. But it's a new turn using it against teammates to help them shine personally.

According to FIFA Fair Play Code, winning is without value if victory has been achieved unfairly or dishonestly.

 

Playing fair requires courage and character. It is also more satisfying. Fair play always has its reward, even when the game is lost.

 

And if juju did work, surely some of these African teams would have won the FIFA world cup by now!