JOURNAL 5 (reflection on a particular topic)

In many countries, the football issue always comes to the fore, no matter how serious other agenda topics are, and our country is one of these. Moreover, I believe that football is exaggerated in Turkey. There are three simple explanations about why especially football as a sport is overrated in Turkey. First of all, the lack of investments for other kinds of sports can be shown as a reason. Necessary facilities which the other sports require are not provided sufficiently. However, since football is a sport that everyone can play with the existence of just one ball, it is wide spread among the children all around the country. In other words, the attainability of football is the most distinct reason why football draws everyone’s attention in Turkey. Secondly, for the poor, football is a way out from being poor because they believe that their children could become great players and make a lot of money as a result of becoming a football star. Parents try to send their children to football schools although this dream can be realized by only very few of them. As Cem Karaca says, “Hope is the food of the poor” and football is one of the greatest hopes for them. Lastly, football is a way to overcome their stressful lives for everyone. In other words, anyone watching football and swearing at team which he/she supports would be excused, and so football becomes a commonly used way to relax for many fans. To sum up, when these are considered, it is feasible for football to be overvalued in Turkey and this situation will continue to exist inevitably.