When people play football, they want to win because it feels good to get rewarded for all the hard work during training. Everyone wants to win and it’s good to be competitive. However, not everyone knows how to win so they get frustrated when their plans fail. Then, they try to find alternative plans but unfortunately there was never a plan B. So, in a desperate attempt, they do whatever they can do to win the game.
In football, there are a number of rules that must be followed by every player. However, since these rules are being judged by a referee, sometimes he/she can’t see everything clearly and end up making the wrong decision in deciding if a rule has been broken or not.
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As a player, you rely on the referee other than the rules, so what happens if the referee is not always aware of what’s happening during the game? You might think of trying to take advantage of this situation by doing something wrong to win the game, like injuring an opponent by making a harsh tackle. This is a bad plan.
Why? Because, as a footballer, you need to keep playing to improve aspects of your game such as skill, stamina, experience, etc. So, if you get hurt while trying to make a harsh tackle, you won’t be able to play the next game. As a result, you’ll end up missing the chance to get better. So, which option will you chose: win today and miss tomorrow’s game, or lose today and improve tomorrow?
Then you might say “ok, I will not choose the bad plan but other players will, and I feel unsafe.” This is where the concept of reciprocity kicks in. If you open the door for someone every day, one day this person might open the door for you because she/he has seen your generous action. You don’t lead them by saying “please open the door for people. "Instead,
you lead by example.
So, if you keep playing fair football to win the game, you’ll have the empathy of others. Then, your opponents will realize that they also need to keep playing football to reach their potential skill. As a result, everyone will focus on trying to reach their potential and win in a safe way, instead of trying to win one game while making stupid decisions.
Author: Zaya Mardika
Editor: Charalambos Elias
