Bosnia-Herzegovina’s World Cup Qualifying Win Unites Region in Celebration · Global Voices
Fans celebrated the historic win on the streets of Sarajevo throughout the night. Image courtesy of Bosnia-Herzegovina national team's “Zmajevi” Facebook fan page, used with permission.
Some 12 hours after Bosnia-Herzegovina secured its direct qualification to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, Bosnians are still celebrating this historic moment. Social networks are flooded with comments of joy from Bosnians and support from other nations.
Last night and today, October 16, 2013, no one can tell by looking at social networks and regional news sites that Bosnia still has a very troubled political life, or that the EU is threatening the small Balkan country with sanctions. The only topic on people's minds and timelines is that of Bosnia-Herzegovina's 1-0 win over Lithuania in the World Cup qualifiers. Even the official Twitter account of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia-Herzegovina dropped all other matters last night to announce the team's win:
<PERSON> fires Bosnia-Herzegovina to @FifaWorldCup in #Brazil2014 http://t.co/Z3PECyYkYf #BiH
— OSCE Mission to BiH (@OSCEBiH) October 15, 2013
All across Bosnia-Herzegovina, fans are emotional about their countries historical placement in the largest sporting event in the world. Twitter user <PERSON>_ from Sarajevo says:
Moj tata plače, života mi. #BosnaiHercegovina #Brazil #BiH #Bosnia #Football
— Morning star (@samrich_) October 15, 2013
My dad is crying, [I swear] on my life. #BosnaiHercegovina #Brazil #BiH #Bosnia #Football
— Morning star (@samrich_) October 15, 2013
This win came, almost “miraculously” as some on social networks put it, on the Kurban Bayrami religious holiday widely celebrated in Bosnia-Herzegovina, also known throughout the Muslim world as the feast of sacrifice. Some social media users gave the traditional Bayrami holiday greeting used to commemorate the end of Bayram and Hajj “Bayram Sherif Mubarek Olsun” (“May the holy Bayram be blessed”) a World Cup twist, and no one seemed to take offense. 910
On the contrary, tweets like this one from <PERSON> from Montenegro were greeted with humor and good spirits:
<PERSON> ! :))) Sve čestitke #BiH ! #fudbal
— <PERSON> (@Nikola_MNE) October 15, 2013
<PERSON> ! :))) Many congratulations #BiH ! #fudbal
— <PERSON> (@Nikola_MNE) October 15, 2013
The match seems to have brought the entire troubled region together, as Serbian, Croatian and Montenegrin fans congratulated Bosnia-Herzegovina and celebrated the win with them online. After last night's 2-0 loss to Scotland, Croatia still has a slim chance of qualifying in the playoffs. Serbia, however, lost any chance of making it through to the World Cup several months ago after possibly one of the worst qualifying campaigns in its sporting history. But Serbia beat Macedonia 5-1 on October 15, 2013, thus sinking any dreams Macedonians may have had of reaching Brazil next summer. Fans from all three countries, amid their own losses, joined in celebrating Bosnia-Herzegovina's unique win. <PERSON> from Montenegro joined in by saying:
Dok gubim glas na stadionu Pod Goricom za #CrnaGora, javljaju mi da je #BiH otisla u Brazil. Navijacu za njih. Bravo Bosno!
— <PERSON> (@NowitzkiCt) October 15, 2013
While I'm losing my voice at Podgorica stadium for #CrnaGora [#Montenegro], I'm getting word that #BiH is off to Brazil. I'll root for them. Bravo Bosnia!
— <PERSON> (@NowitzkiCt) October 15, 2013
Bosnia-Herzegovina's national football team now faces the likes of England, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and other top teams in Brazil next year and has an unlikely chance of getting very far in the competition. 910