Nowhere is that rich character more evident
than in the absolute passion shown by The
Republic of San Marino. As a small nation, despite a lack of
resources and having to perform in a ‘David and Goliath’ scenario each time
they enter an international competition, they still endure. They have a special
place and a value, more importantly they remind us just why the game started in
the first place.
We are fascinated by this
small republic’s character and attitudes, for they have endured to give this
small country a unique place in European and World History.
This fascination has led us
to look more closely at the Sammarinese passion for football and we will be
following their dream.
A century ago and just
about anywhere in the world, football was a boy’s delight and their dream to
play. It embodied the heart and soul of small town or a city’s pivotal sporting
and social event, was given loyalty, played with courage and provided lifelong
highs and lows and such sweet memories.
The heroes were not well paid and often on the losing side, but small as
well as large teams continued to persevere and with the will and determination
of the people they could do so.
Let us remind ourselves
that the passion to play football and wear the badge of a local or national team,
no matter how small and how steep the climb to achieve even the smallest
success, is fundamentally what soccer was always about and the essence of why
it became such a representative sport for people locally and nationally in the
first place. It is heart and soul,
history in the making at every level of the game and that is footballs
legacy... There are no losers.
