The 2018 World Cup comes to an end tonight with two European countries, Croatia and France facing off in the final in Russia.It’s interesting but perhaps unsurprising that most of Africa seems to be backing the French team to snatch victory; but the Croatians can’t be taken for granted.
Kenneth Agutamba
It is impossible to ignore the World Cup. I didn’t follow the qualifying games that yielded the 32 national teams that participated in the Russian contest yet since June 14, my normal schedule has been altered, by increasing the number of minutes spent watching sports-television.
And it’s not just me. The World Cup has altered the daily programming of prime-time TV-shows including one of my favorites, Diane Mpyisi’s The Square which airs every Wednesday night on RBA. The show didn’t run this week as attention was being paid to the Croatia Vs England game.
"I think our viewers would be unhappy if we subjected them into a situation where they have to choose between watching the show or a World Cup semi-final,” Diane told me Tuesday evening, at the end of an event we both attended.
But as we paused our respective routines to follow soccer’s biggest tournament, we couldn’t help but also observe several fascinating tendencies including what one could call ‘Africa’s talent-drain’ based on the number of players of African origin playing for European teams.
You might have come across, on your multi-social media platforms a picture that has been making rounds this week, of the French National Team in 1986 juxtaposed with that of the current team.
While that of 1986 was fully composed of white-skin players, the current team, based on the picture, has eight black-skin players dominating an eleven-man squad. This perhaps explains why most of Africa is drawn closer to supporting the French teamagainst the all-white Croatian side.
There is a joke that emerged after all the African national teams had been knocked out of the World Cup and it was noted that perhaps ‘France is the only African team remaining in the race.’
It might be a joke but it is within the serious global context of African immigrants to Europe and its consequences on both continents, in the long-run. For Africa, the consequences are plain; as a continent with the world’s youngest and fastest growing population.
Talent drain is a top penalty that Africa is paying as clearly seen from the black shining stars at the World Cup in Russia. A good example is RomeluLukaku, with Congolese blood running in his tough muscles shone for Belgium, nearly winning them a place in the final.
In the 19-year old ace KylianMbappe, one of the youngest players at this World Cup is the blood of a Cameroonian father and Algerian mother running in his young muscles propelling France to the finals and perhaps the trophy itself, depending on what happens tonight.
The story of the 22-year old Malian migrant MamoudouGassama who scaled four floors of a building to save the life of a dangling toddler in France and prompted the President to grant him citizenship and a job in the country’s fire-brigade service, is another story fresh on our minds.
Talent drain can be placed in the same frame as brain drain as Africa loses hundreds of its educated and skilled labour to developed countries where they hope to earn and live better lives.
For Europe, where these talented and brainy youngsters end-up, immigration is shaping the new political discourse, feeding new nationalistic political philosophies and toppling governments whose policies on immigration are regarded unfavorable to nationals.
A good example is UK’s Brexit fiasco which is wrecking Theresa May’s shaky government. In Germany, Angela Markel’s open-embrace policy for migrants is beginning to lose favour with voters and Europe is facing a divisive ideological problem since the end of the cold war.
What makes it worse is that, there is no United States of America for the allies to rely on for guidance and leadership. President Donald Trump’s politics are more inward looking, and playing global prefect is not a top priority for his administration.
President Trump’s own campaign which was heavy on anti-immigration rhetoric is one of the reasons for his victory that most, outside America hadn’t seen coming. In his view, Trump sees Europe as ‘losing its heritage by allowing in millions of migrants.’
Yet in international communication, one could call it ‘cultural assimilation’ a process where a minority group or culture comes to resemble those of a dominant group. Just look at Africans who end up in Europe; they immediately discard their ways and adopt their hosts’ cultures.
But there is also a perspective we need to explore; of European and Asian migrants to Africa who have also ended up being assimilated to the ways of our continent; the only difference is that, while we like to call them ‘investors’ they like to call us ‘migrants’ and ‘refugees.’
Anyway, we watch the final tonight, many in Africa will be looking at those black boys on the French team and wishing they had stayed home to steer their countries to international victories. But, it’s not their fault, at all. Maybe, we can all do something about it; halt Africa’s talent-drain.
Email: kenagutamba@gmail.com
The views expressed in this article are of the author.