The FIFA Ban on High Altitude Games Angers South Americans

The Washington DC area has a large population of South Americans, and like most South Americans, they are passionate about their soccer. So when the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA--for Federation Internationale de Football Assocacion) issued a ban on stadiums over 2500 meters (7750 feet) in altitude from hosting international matches, the fans got upset.

Complaints about the disadvantages of high altitudes aren't new. Even Sandoval said he needed time to acclimate to the change when he traveled from low-lying Cochabamba to La Paz when he played professionally. But the very charm of soccer lies in the ability to play it anywhere at a cheap cost.

"Soccer is for everyone," Talavera said. "Its richness is that it is played in heat, in cold, up high, down low."

There is fear, too, that the Bolivian economy would be affected if the ban were allowed to continue. There is a risk that tourists or investors might be discouraged from exploring a city left out of one of the continent's most important recreational activities.

"It's condemning a country to keep levels of marginality," said Oswaldo Cuevas Gaete, general consul of Bolivia. "It stigmatizes a country as unfit for life -- because soccer is life. . . . This goes beyond soccer."

I have to agree with the Bolivians and Peruvians in this case. It is highly unlikely that these nations will host a World Cup, but they could end up hosting smaller tournaments, such as the U-20 or U-17 tournaments and to ban them because they happen to be high altitude nations seems unfair. Other nations have high altitude stadiums, Mexico City for example is about a mile high and has enormously polluted air. It is the polluted air that makes games difficult, teams can practice at altitudes in many cases to over come the disadvantages of higher altitude playing in tournaments. Single game efforts are little more troublesome, but that is part of the game, play anywhere, anytime.