A Football Match Which Started a War in Central America

Under such conditions, the players from Tegucigalpa did not, understandably, have their minds on the game, after El Salvador team lost the second match 3-0. “They had their minds on getting out alive. We’re awfully lucky that we lost – admitted the Honduras coach Mario Griffin

Yes, it’s almost true,  The ‘Football War’ was fought by Central American countries El Salvador and Honduras in 1969. In fact, it also went by the name of the ‘100 Hours’ War’, and in reality, there was a host of issues at the root of the troubles. Migration, trade and simmering land disputes on the border all conspired to spark social unrest between the two, but it wasn’t until the best-of-three World Cup qualifiers in 1969 that the tipping point was reached.

The first game marked a 1-0 win for Honduras – in Tegucigalpa witnessed disturbances but things deteriorated significantly come the second in San Salvador: visiting Honduran players, according to Ryszard Kapuściński’s 1978 book Wojna Futbolowa, endured a sleepless night before the game, with rotten eggs, dead rats and stinking rags all tossed through the broken windows of their hotel; Honduran fans were brutalised at the game, and the country’s flag and national anthem were also mocked. “Under such conditions, the players from Tegucigalpa did not, understandably, have their minds on the game,” admitted the Honduras coach Mario Griffin after his team lost the second match 3-0. “They had their minds on getting out alive. We’re awfully lucky that we lost.”

Tension continued to increase before the decisive third match in Mexico, with the press stoking the frenzy. And on June 27 – the day of the play-off – Honduras broke off diplomatic relations with their neighbour. El Salvador eventually triumphed 3-2 after extra-time, booking their place in the 1970 World Cup (where they would lose all three of their group games without scoring). By July 14, El Salvador had invaded Honduras

On a happier note, two years previously football stopped a war – albeit temporarily. The opposing sides in the Biafran war declared a two-day truce in September 1967so that they could watch Pele and his touring Santos team play in two exhibition matches.

This story is narrated by Abhinav Kaushal is a scholar from Instituto Cervantes – New Delhi and a frequent columnist on Spanish Culture and heritage.