Big names, big hearts

By Andy Roxburgh

We live in a world obsessed by celebrity. Film stars, soap idols, and football personalities have become the new royalty, crowned by the omnipresent, image-enhancing media. The passport to that nebulous place called stardom is a "big name". The trouble is that some so-called icons and legends are simply famous for being famous - no talent, wasted talent, or one-day wonders who trade on their reputations for ever after.

Big hearts
Football, like society, encompasses all types: the good, the bad, the ugly, and the truly gifted. Some of those in this latter category - the game's VIPs - including Ronaldinho, Andriy Shevchenko, Zinedine Zidane, David Beckham, Thierry Henry, Deco and Raúl González, came to FC Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium, on a bitterly cold February evening, to participate in the FIFA/UEFA Football For Hope match. Big names with big hearts, paying their respects to the deceased and offering their talent to help those affected by the tsunami disaster in Asia.

Sense of humility
A sense of humility was almost tangible in the Camp Nou dressing rooms before the game. Rivalries were forgotten for an event which had greater significance than merely playing a game of football. Others, under strict orders from their clubs, could only take part for 45 minutes, but they still gave their best in front of a 41,000 crowd and the millions watching on television.

Enduring values
The collective sadness surrounding the disaster (Johann Vogel of PSV Eindhoven and Switzerland lost a relative in the tsunami and it was particularly poignant for him to play in the match) and the sobriety of the pre-match minute of silence were in direct contrast to the joyful spirit of the game itself. It is one of football's enduring values that even in times of hardship, despair and loss, the game can bring people together to raise their spirits and to offer some relief, however short-lived, from the traumas of the real world.

Players are people
Football players are not just performers, they are also people. And it's important to recognise the difference between the performer and the person. You can admire the player but dislike the personality. No such negativity surrounded the players who came to Barcelona. Henry of Arsenal FC is a class act on and off the pitch - even though he played in a Premiership match the night before, he travelled to Spain and made a cameo appearance in the second half. Beckham, his wife about to give birth to their third child, could easily have sent his apologies, but there he was to make his contribution.

Football's reputation
From time to time, football is exposed to negative publicity because the hollow celebrities, the egocentric, and those with cynical, ulterior motives let the game down. It was therefore refreshing to see so many big-name stars - 40 top players plus the coaching staff: Carlos Alberto Parreira, Frank Rijkaard, Marcello Lippi and Arsène Wenger - rally to Asia's call for help. Without doubt, the vast majority of professional footballers are hardworking, team-orientated, genuine people. When the famous amongst them are true stars, like Ronaldinho and Shevchenko, and give their names and their talent to a worthy cause, as they did in Barcelona, the reputation of football is enhanced. We need the big personalities - gifted players who display character, commitment, and a social conscience - because they make the difference in a sporting business that is both serious and fun.

This is an abridged version of an article by UEFA technical director Andy Roxburgh which appears in the latest edition of the official UEFA publication, The Technician