0:00
This is now the craziest video I’ve ever made.
0:02
And it’s been 12 hours.
0:04
Argentina’s always that way.
0:07
What just happened Eli?
0:11
No, my word’s aren’t going to do it justice.
0:16
My name’s Eli Mengem and for the past few years
0:18
I’ve been traversing Europe, documenting the tales
0:21
of football clubs and their fanbases
0:23
who’ve been on the verge of winning something
0:24
for the first time in a long time...
0:30
From South West Germany
0:31
to the Basque country.
0:32
I’ve been on a mission to show how important it is
0:35
that the game has a variety of winners
0:37
so that we learn about new places,
0:40
and most importantly, new stories.
0:42
Then came the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
0:45
Where I knew the exact “Once In A Lifetime” story I had to tell.
0:49
So as the world’s media descended on Qatar
0:51
to be at the tournament.
0:52
COPA90 and I decided to fly 8000 miles in the opposite direction
0:56
to tell the ultimate story of a football fanbase
0:59
on the brink of ending a 36 year wait
1:01
for the biggest prize in sport.
1:03
But what we found we found was a story that transcended football.
1:06
A story that reached into the very soul of a nation
1:08
that laid itself bare over two fateful weeks.
1:11
A story that etched a struggle for identity in a search for glory
1:14
that began over two centuries ago.
1:16
A story about Lionel Messi.
1:19
And 45 million people yearning to reclaim their place in history.
1:25
This is the all angle, on the ground,
1:27
as it happened, ultimate account
1:29
of perhaps the greatest football story of our time.
1:53
Why’s this country called Argentina?
1:57
It comes from the Latin: <i>Argentum</i>
2:04
The assumption of the first Europeans who went over there
2:07
was that it would be this incredibly rich country.
2:10
As they found in Mexico.
2:11
As they found in Peru.
2:12
Because the Spanish conquistadors
2:14
they thought they were going to find a lot of silver here.
2:17
And you know Mexico and Peru had led to
2:19
<i>enormous</i> amounts of gold being shipped across the Atlantic.
2:21
It leads to incredible inflation in Europe.
2:23
In fact they named the river...
2:26
as the ‘River Plate’.
2:27
‘Plate’ is another word for silver.
2:30
ELI: ‘Plata?’
- Yeah.
2:33
ELI: Well did they find lots of ‘Plata’? What did they find?
2:38
The name itself is a myth.
2:41
Well the Indigenous people, we know why they’re not there.
2:43
Cause they were... it was a genocide.
2:44
I mean that’s the only word for it.
2:46
They were slaughtered.
2:47
Nothing here resembles silver.
2:49
It was the other way around.
2:50
Since it’s beginnings
2:52
Argentina’s been obsessed with unattainable fortunes.
2:54
We think we’re in the ‘Land Of Silver’
2:56
but we are in the land of...
3:01
Yeah, Argentina has this...
3:03
people often say: “The delusion of grandeur”.
3:06
I am not a sociologist.
3:08
I cannot explain where this is coming from.
3:12
I think there is a sense of entitlement
3:15
which is not warranted.
3:17
But for all its false promises,
3:19
there was one period where the country lived up to its
3:24
If you go back, nearly a century or so...
3:26
You want me to put a date?
3:29
It was, one of the wealthiest countries in the world.
3:33
<i>The Argentine.</i>
3:34
<i>Now known as one of the richest countries in the world.</i>
3:37
The international economic situation was
3:40
very favourable for Argentina.
3:41
It’s GDP was on a par with Australia
3:43
and many of the new world countries.
3:46
Argentina had all the comparative advantages to develop.
3:51
we have something to offer to the world.
3:52
You know, it’s got huge amounts of farmland.
3:54
With the new refrigeration technology
3:57
a century ago we’re talking about,
3:58
they were about to export beef to the European market,
4:00
the North American market.
4:02
Today the Argentine exports more cattle and hide
4:05
than any other country in the world.
4:07
It wasn't just beef, I would say it was also agriculture.
4:10
I mean basically we have incredibly fertile land.
4:12
Like all of the “Pampa Humeda”
4:14
which covers quite a lot of central Buenos Aires (state)
4:17
have perfect conditions for agriculture.
4:20
We were feeding the world, practically.
4:22
And that made Argentina...
4:24
a remarkably wealthy country.
4:26
I mean, there's communications between
4:28
the British and US government saying:
4:30
Argentina really is the coming place and maybe we should
4:32
think of sort of nudging Canada aside and
4:35
putting Argentina in Canada’s place.
4:37
Because Argentina was a very attractive destination.
4:41
And so with such abundant wealth
4:43
came those in search of it.
4:56
It was a wonderful place to come
4:57
because you had the opportunity to prosper.
5:04
Relative to the size of the population we had
5:06
for a period of time, more immigrants than the Americans.
5:08
This influx was an exclusively European migration
5:11
where the new arrivals hailed from all over the continent
5:14
be it Spanish, French or even Russian.
5:16
But the most significant arrivals were the Italians.
5:30
And with migration of the early 1900’s predominately by boat
5:33
naturally the vast majority of Italian migrants
5:35
came from Italy’s port cities.
5:37
Many from the Northern Italian port city of Genoa
5:40
but the majority from the Southern port city of Naples.
5:42
You know what the nickname of Italians are here?
5:45
How do we call Italians?
5:56
Most of them came from the South (of Italy)
5:59
and we identify them with Naples.
6:00
I tend to agree with people that say
6:02
that Argentinians are Italian people
6:08
Buenos Aires itself is very linked to Italy
6:10
and particularly to Southern Italy
6:11
and particularly to Naples.
6:15
You see that in the accent.
6:18
You see that in the slang.
6:22
It’s got a sort of sing-song quality like Italian.
6:25
And that’s obviously the Italian influence.
6:27
You see that in the cuisine.
6:29
There’s a large Italian influence there.
6:33
They came and they conquered
6:35
the people’s palates.
6:37
And you know if you look at the architecture.
6:39
The Italian architecture legacy which is either
6:42
these very grand ornate buildings
6:44
and then you have the more modest, single story dwellings.
6:48
Which were called “PH’s”.
6:50
When you’re in Buenos Aires you can be in a really run down area
6:52
and suddenly you turn a corner
6:53
and there’s this incredibly beautiful square
6:55
that makes you feel like you’re in a remote town in Italy.
6:59
I think they really left their mark
7:03
But this influence wasn’t just confined to accent and architecture
7:06
especially in Argentina’s capital...
7:08
where a distinct ‘way of being’ was imported
7:11
directly from Italy’s south.
7:12
Buenos Aires is closer to Naples than to any other European city
7:17
ELI: What do you mean in?
7:20
The way we interact with each other.
7:24
I feel like this a country of extroverts.
7:28
They’re warm. They’re lovely, but they...
7:30
They’re really in your face.
7:33
So Argentinians are very expressive, it’s like:
7:41
They get quite hot headed.
7:44
They get quite passionate.
7:48
And they use their hands.
7:49
Name two players whoever played with Maradona!
8:00
That’s why it was a perfect fit for Maradona, Naples.
8:03
Because, they are like us.
8:21
Yeah, they’re passionate about everything they do.
8:27
They’re passionate about their politics
8:28
Oh the obsession with (ex president) Peron is extraordinary.
8:30
You mention JFK but the Argentinian obsession with Peron is
8:34
way more extreme than that.
8:35
They’re passionate about their literature.
8:37
There’s a big book scene here.
8:39
And they still consume a lot of paper printed material.
8:41
You will always find a bookstore.
8:43
For many, many years we’ve had like
8:45
more bookstores per capita
8:46
than anywhere else in the world.
8:48
Their passionate about their music.
8:49
Tango is a very good example of our passion for music.
8:54
Carlos Gardel who is the most famous tango singer
8:56
you’ll see portraits of him all around the city.
9:00
Yeah one of the things about Argentinian society, everything is...
9:05
Absolutely, absolutely.
9:07
It’s a country of extremes.
9:11
I don’t know if they like to over exaggerate
9:12
but everything is like grandiose and amazing.
9:14
And yeah, I suppose there is quite a bit of...
9:17
The best, the biggest, the longest.
9:19
Any superlative, they’ve got it.
9:21
Yes, sometimes we feel...
9:25
a little sense of superiority.
9:28
Yes, best steak in the world.
9:29
I couldn’t think of a better steak elsewhere
9:33
The thing with steak is like
9:35
our entry level is so high...
9:37
that we’re just spoilt.
9:39
The wine here is insanely good.
9:42
There are some wines that even surprise the French.
9:44
The widest Avenue in the world.
9:47
and the longest as well!
9:49
Many Argentines are proud to say that they feel that
9:51
we’ve perfected the Gelato.
9:54
It’s a very, very passionate place.
9:56
So how does an Argentinian commit s*icide?
9:59
He jumps from his ego.
10:01
I think we’ve got the best ice cream.
10:02
ELI: Better than the Italians?
10:06
Best ice cream is in Argentina.
10:10
You see in Argentina passion isn’t so much a hobby as a way of life.
10:13
Best summed up in one the country’s most iconic films.
10:34
And whilst everything and anything Argentinians care about
10:37
is met with heightened levels of passion and adoration,
10:40
there is <i>one</i> subject the country’s most passionate about.
10:51
You couldn’t have Argentina without football.
10:53
I think in a way it’s just become part of its...
10:58
Of its elemental being.
11:06
I mean football is...
11:28
But then let me ask you, why Argentina?
11:30
Why do you think Argentina got so hooked?
11:31
You’ve got other sports, but football is the be all and end all.
11:36
It’s like water here, it’s just omnipresent.
12:02
You see when you’ve got a population as passionate as Argentina
12:05
it only makes sense that they made
12:07
the most passionate and emotional game theirs.
12:09
There’s a relationship between Argentinian idiosyncrasy
12:15
and the nature of football as a sport.
12:17
There’s a characteristic of Argentina
12:20
that comes out through football.
12:21
Argentinian mentality and culture
12:25
and the dynamics of football.
12:27
It’s like a perfect match.
12:29
Think about it like this:
12:32
Football is a low scoring game.
12:35
So, you build up a lot of anxiety.
12:40
You build up a lot of momentum.
12:43
But when the actual moment arrives
12:53
I’m going to use this expression.
12:54
It’s like an orgasm.
12:59
There is something magical, something....
13:00
intrinsic about football.
13:04
It’s something that no other sports have.
13:39
But it’s not just the uniquely emotional
13:41
and passionate elements of football
13:43
that make this game so important to Argentina.
13:47
In 1913 there’s a series of lectures
13:48
at the Odeon theatre in Buenos Aires.
13:50
Given by Leopoldo Lugones who is the national poet.
13:53
The president goes, lots of very senior figures,
13:56
everyone goes to these lectures.
13:57
This is the national poet talking about national character.
14:00
And he concludes that the spirit of Argentina is best represented
14:08
The cowboy who made sure the huge herds of cattle were safe.
14:12
And from the huge herds of cattle you get the beef.
14:14
And from the beef you get the wealth.
14:15
So the Gaucho is massively important.
14:20
And also the Gaucho is a...
14:22
it’s a very romantic figure.
14:26
There’s a reason why cowboy films are popular.
14:29
Because the cowboy is glamorous.
14:31
<i>In all the world of romance and adventure.</i>
14:34
<i>There’s none to compare with the Gaucho.</i>
14:36
He’s battling the elements, he’s battling wild animals.
14:38
He’s got this great virtuosity.
14:39
And so you get Gaucho clubs set up.
14:42
And they all dress up.
14:43
They dress to what they think Gauchos look like.
14:45
They put on these big barbecues.
14:46
One of the reasons the Asado, the great barbecues are still
14:49
an absolute centre piece of Argentinian social life.
14:51
The Gaucho was romanticised in books.
14:53
It was romanticised in music.
14:55
And also because of the way they dressed, so...
14:57
The Gaucho for sure was super important.
15:00
And then the British wipe them out.
15:02
And the way they wipe them out is by introducing wire fencing.
15:05
If you have wire fencing you can do selective breeding.
15:07
And if you can do selective breeding
15:09
you get a higher meat yield
15:10
and you can make greater profits.
15:11
And this absolutely revolutionises Argentinian farming
15:14
and thus Argentinian society.
15:16
So economically, eventually the Gaucho and his influence
15:23
So you then have the question.
15:25
Where do you find the Gaucho...
15:28
in an urban environment?
15:31
So El Grafico, one of the world’s great sports magazines.
15:34
At it’s peak it was selling, I think, over 100,000 copies
15:36
across South America
15:39
El Grafico was born in 1919
15:41
and it ran until January 2018 so...
15:48
It was this revered magazine product,
15:53
Whatever you want to call it, but it was very special.
15:56
Many people learned to read with El Grafico
15:59
It’s not a football magazine
16:01
as in a glossy thing with a couple of interviews.
16:02
It really goes into detail.
16:04
Maradona first met Pele in a production
16:06
specifically for El Grafico.
16:08
Muhammad Ali came to Argentina
16:09
invited by El Grafico.
16:11
It was like football’s Rolling Stone Magazine.
16:15
They say that spirit of the Gaucho.
16:18
That combination of toughness
16:21
cunning, cleverness, virtuosity and glamour...
16:24
Where do you find that?
16:27
And they say you find that in the ‘Pibe’.
16:29
The Pibe is the urchin child of the streets.
16:34
He learns the game on the potreros, on the vacant lots of the city.
16:37
The ‘Potrero’ is more than a football pitch.
16:40
It’s the imagination of a football pitch in an...
16:44
unthinkable terrain.
16:46
They’re on very uneven surfaces
16:48
so you have to have this technical virtuosity to control the ball.
16:50
That could be full of holes,
16:55
They are often very crowded
16:56
too many people playing in too small a space.
17:00
It’s also no referee.
17:02
At the schools, you have a teacher with a whistle
17:04
to stop things if it gets out of hand.
17:07
You have to be able to look after yourself.
17:08
You have to have that cunning, that street wiseness.
17:10
This is the place in which many talents...
17:15
So this is 1928, Borocoto is the Editor of El Grafico.
17:18
<i>A Pibe with a dirty face.</i>
17:20
<i>A mane of hair rebelling against the comb,</i>
17:22
<i>with intelligent, roving, trickster and persuasive eyes</i>
17:25
<i>and a sparkling gaze that seems to hint a picturesque laugh</i>
17:27
<i>that does not quite manage to fall in his mouth.</i>
17:29
<i>His trousers are a few roughly sewn patches.</i>
17:32
<i>His vest with Argentinian stripes.</i>
17:33
<i>With a very low neck and with very many holes eaten out</i>
17:36
<i>by the invisible mice of use.</i>
17:37
<i>Barefoot or with shoes, his holes in the toes</i>
17:40
<i>suggest they’ve been made through too much shooting.</i>
17:42
<i>His stance must be characteristic as if he is dribbling with a rag ball.</i>
17:46
<i>If this monument is raised one day,</i>
17:47
<i>there will be many of us who take off our hat to it</i>
17:50
<i>as we do in church.</i>
17:53
And what he’s given you there, if you take that extract,
17:56
and you don’t give people any context and say who is that?
17:59
It’s Diego Maradona.
18:00
It’s obviously Diego Maradona.
18:02
49 years before Maradona makes his international debut.
18:04
32 years before Maradona’s born.
18:07
He predicts the coming of Maradona.
18:13
And that’s why when Maradona arrives
18:15
immediately he’s celebrated because people have recognised...
18:21
This is the saviour we were promised.
18:23
You knew in your head he would save you.
18:28
And that’s why he becomes ‘El Pibe D’oro’.
18:46
Maradona’s importance to Argentina is greater than
18:48
the significance of any one sporting figure
18:50
to any other nation.
18:51
I mean Maradona exists
18:52
on a totally different plane in Argentina
18:55
A man who adorns nearly every corner
18:58
of the country’s neighbourhoods.
18:59
A man responsible for a significant percentage
19:01
of the male population being called Diego.
19:05
A man who inspired a religion
19:06
boasting tens of thousands of members
19:09
all around the country.
19:20
Maradona was larger than life...
19:25
But for anyone left who still doesn’t know,
19:26
Diego Armando Maradona was the man who in 1986
19:30
led an un-fancied Argentinian side
19:32
to their second ever World Cup trophy.
19:34
No one saw that he was going to put
19:38
such an individual performance
19:40
that a team that just a few days before the World Cup
19:43
was performing <i>very</i> poorly
19:46
and no one had hopes about it…
19:48
will transform it into a winning team.
19:50
It’s a single moment, it’s a single World Cup
19:53
where, like, one player has grabbed the tournament
19:55
by the scruff of the neck
19:58
That’s only happened once in the history of the game.
20:02
That was the magic of Maradona.
20:04
All of which led to nationwide scenes and emotions
20:07
the country had never experienced.
20:09
It’s the greatest day in Argentinian football history
20:12
nothing is even close.
20:23
You look at the celebrations after the final and
20:27
It’s extraordinary. It’s millions of people on the street.
20:30
These mass celebrations.
20:36
People were like moving cars.
20:39
They were so happy that they were moving cars, literally.
20:41
And for as far as you can see it’s people.
20:43
Blue and white shirts everywhere.
20:45
I think winning that World Cup was almost as big as
20:49
getting democracy back in ‘83.
20:52
And whilst yes Argentina had won one other World Cup in 1978.
20:56
That was won during a time the country were under
20:58
a despised military dictatorship.
21:00
It was a fantastic victory the 1978 World Cup
21:03
but there was always a dark cloud.
21:06
Because of the military rulers of the time.
21:09
And so over time it was that 1986 win
21:11
that became a unique symbol of Argentine utopia.
21:14
That thing that surrounds that World Cup.
21:18
It will never be, it cannot be....
21:21
And whilst Argentinians fondly remember
21:23
every moment of that tournament.
21:28
There’s one particular game from Mexico 86
21:31
that’s remembered most fondly.
21:41
Now there are many reasons why
21:42
<i>this</i> match means so much to Argentina.
21:44
Firstly off the pitch.
21:54
On a day, May 4th, 1982.
21:56
That brought the reality of war into Britain’s dispute with Argentina
22:00
over the Falkland Islands.
22:07
Then there’s that game’s meaning on the pitch.
22:10
Where Maradona scored both of Argentina’s goals.
22:12
The first being one of the game’s most controversial.
22:27
And then, there was his second goal.
22:31
ELI: What was... what was the second goal?
22:37
ELI: I’m winding you up... I’m trying to get...
22:40
ELI: I know about it... It’s the best goal of all time, I know.
22:43
Only four minutes after the Hand of God,
22:45
Maradona collected the ball in his own half.
22:47
Beat five England players.
22:48
Rounded the keeper and scored what FIFA officially titled:
22:51
<i>The Goal Of The Century.</i>
22:53
When Maradona scores those two goals against England.
22:55
in the 1986 World Cup Quarter finals...
22:57
That is the Gaucho spirit, projected through football.
23:00
Because they represent the two sides of the Argentinian character.
23:03
The cunning of the first goal.
23:06
And the virtuosity of the second.
23:10
That’s why it means so much.
23:11
But as beautiful as that second goal was...
23:13
it’s actually the first, more controversial goal
23:16
that Argentinians hold dearest.
23:18
Best explaining their unique love of Maradona and the game.
23:30
And if there’s one term you need to know
23:32
to understand the spirit of Argentine football,
23:35
How do you say it again?
23:39
So if Brazilians live their football in Joga Bonito terms...
23:42
We have something different.
23:44
Something very different.
23:51
Cunning would be a very...
23:55
‘nice’ way to describe Viveza Criolla.
23:58
Being smart enough to find a way through stuff
24:02
but also a little bit
24:03
doing something a little bit illegal.
24:05
Cause it means both cleverness, streetwise-ness
24:19
Do you struggle with it?
24:21
Because you love beautiful football?
24:23
I mean I do love beautiful football
24:25
but I also like winning, you know?
24:27
It means just sort of being smarter than...
24:31
I can tell you this.
24:34
We have an immense satisfaction in this country
24:37
that he scored that goal with his hand.
24:38
I don’t think that distinction is obvious
24:40
to people from Argentinian culture.
24:42
It was a shock for me to realise that:
24:46
Outside Argentina that was perceived as a terrible thing.
24:51
Argentinians, they also don’t seemed particularly ashamed by that?
24:55
They kind of take it in their stride.
24:58
Well, because this notion of Viveza Criolla
25:01
they do not see a distinction between
25:05
tricking somebody by moving your feet really quickly
25:08
or doing a feint with your body
25:13
That of course is a reference to arguably
25:15
the one act of Viveza Criolla
25:16
more infamous than the Hand of God.
25:18
Masterminded in 1990 by the professor of Viveza Criolla
25:23
Manager of Argentina’s 1986 World Cup winning side.
25:27
The truth is, nobody knows...
25:28
but it is very strongly rumoured
25:29
and not denied at all by Bilardo
25:32
that they spiked Brazil’s water bottles.
25:34
Put some kind of sedative in the water.
25:38
And Branco drank from it.
25:40
The Brazilian player?
25:42
And he was woozy throughout the rest of the game.
25:46
Don’t drink out of that one!
25:47
Bilardo as a player famously would take pins on the pitch
25:49
to stab players he was marking.
25:51
He’d stick a needle in his sock
25:53
and take it out at the corner kick
25:55
and just stab opposing players with it.
25:57
And that was nothing.
26:00
Bilardo was a qualified gynaecologist
26:02
and he had contacts from the world of gynaecology and from them
26:06
he would find out things about players girlfriends and wives
26:09
and he’d use that to wind them up on the pitch.
26:11
The great Argentinian centre back.
26:13
He was sent off for punching Bilardo in the face
26:16
supposedly because Bilardo started talking to him about
26:19
a problem that Perfumo’s wife was having.
26:21
Bilardo, Maradona and their Viveza Criolla spirit
26:23
took Argentina to <i>another</i> World Cup final four years later
26:26
before Argentina won two Copa Americas in a row.
26:29
They win the Copa America in ‘91 & ’93.
26:31
And then suddenly, 94...
26:34
they stop the getting results.
26:35
But by this point Argentina had tasted such success
26:38
on the international stage
26:39
that expectations at every tournament
26:41
were now raised to unrealistic levels.
26:43
I think the yearning for success from Argentina
26:46
I think it’s very hard to...
26:54
The 1986 World Cup immediately became
26:58
the bar that everything was
27:00
to be compared with that moment.
27:02
I mean we always have to win the World Cup.
27:04
That’s how I grew up.
27:07
Because the first one I saw we won it
27:09
and I thought it was the normal thing.
27:10
The normal state of affairs.
27:15
We won the World Cup.
27:16
We have to win it all the time.
27:17
And whilst from then on they weren’t still winning tournaments...
27:19
with a round of 16 appearance at World Cup ‘94,
27:22
a quarter final appearance in World Cup ‘98,
27:24
and two quarter final appearances at the Copa America.
27:26
it was hardly a disastrous era.
27:29
But for such a passionate nation who see the game
27:31
and particularly this tournament as part of their identity
27:34
well, rationality doesn’t play a role in expectations.
27:47
And so despite boasting many of the 90’s greatest footballers
27:50
each and every one floundered under the weight
27:52
of the memory of Maradona’s achievements.
27:54
However it’s not just football where Argentina’s weighed down
27:58
Argentines do live in the past.
28:02
And they’re pessimists about the future.
28:04
And they’re pessimists about the present.
28:07
But, they’re like...
28:09
very proud about the past.
28:11
There’s this real nostalgia for the 1920’s
28:14
which makes sense because that’s
28:16
when Argentina really mattered.
28:17
It’s a country that’s slow to modernise.
28:19
It’s a profoundly nostalgic culture.
28:21
It’s always harking back.
28:22
There’s a lot written about and researched about
28:26
what you can tell about a society through its national song.
28:28
And the Tango of course is this very passionate dance
28:32
but it’s also a very nostalgic dance.
28:44
It’s sort of infused with this sense of...
28:46
things were better in the past and this is all doomed.
29:01
The lyrics are about unrequited love, about...
29:04
dreams not materialising,
29:17
And that tells a lot about Argentine society as well.
29:34
You look at the architecture.
29:35
The architecture of Buenos Aires, all the good stuff
29:37
was done in the beginning of the 20th century or late 19th century.
29:40
The way the waiters dress.
29:42
They wear the white shirts, the black bowties, black aprons.
29:44
It’s harking back to how waiters were dressed in the 1920s.
29:47
But you look at some of the buses.
29:49
It’s artistry that belongs to the 50’s.
29:52
You know walking round the city you’ll see it,
29:53
from old fashioned stores to bars.
29:55
Anywhere in Argentina you’re going to get this,
29:57
but they’re like little snapshots and postcards to the past.
30:00
I mean, we’re doing this interview in a bar
30:02
that basically hasn’t changed it’s decor since the 1960’s so...
30:05
You’re already in a time warp.
30:07
Well, you tend to idealise the past, you know?
30:13
Memory, is a tricky thing.
30:17
In a nation, or in a country
30:22
at least ‘materially speaking’
30:25
That national tendency to glorify the past...
30:28
it becomes magnified.
30:31
And theres a reason it’s so magnified in Argentina
30:33
as it’s power and prestige of the 20th century
30:36
is anything but in the 21st century.
30:39
We are very far from the glory years of the beginning of last century
30:47
Beyond 55 per cent poverty in Argentina.
30:50
Argentina is now more synonymous
30:52
with economic crises and crashes than
30:55
a prosperous new world country.
30:57
It’s gotten to the point where a lot people are deciding that
31:00
the only thing they can do is just
31:12
The Argentine nation could have been
31:14
much more than it is, than it’s become
31:15
there’s all the questions about...
31:17
What happened? Where did it go wrong?
31:19
political institutions,
31:22
the culture of the people.
31:23
There’s lots of reasons.
31:24
It’s partly the repercussions of the Wall Street crash in 1929.
31:27
The reasons range from, political instability.
31:30
And of course, post 1930 the history of Argentina
31:33
has been coup after coup after coup after coup.
31:34
Sociological reasons.
31:40
From political projects
31:42
The majority of the rest of the wealthy world signs up to GATT
31:45
the General Agreement on Tariffs and trades
31:47
which facilitated international trade
31:50
and Argentina remain aloof from that.
31:56
ELI: Tell me your answer.
31:59
What changed is this...
32:02
The model that we had for development.
32:04
For economic development.
32:06
We actually had a name for it:
32:26
It stopped being useful.
32:28
Because the international situation changed.
32:30
It became about industrialisation.
32:32
It was no longer about exporting commodities.
32:34
The relative prices of what we had to offer went down.
32:37
And our main market, disappeared.
32:41
So all those things combined...
32:42
That was the problem.
32:44
And if you want to read a couple of books about it
32:46
I can recommend it to you.
32:48
And so where does an extremely proud and passionate nation
32:51
who was once a dominant global force
32:53
look to to find a similar sense of importance in the world?
32:56
The World Game of course.
32:58
I think Argentina is unique in the way it celebrates football
33:00
and particularly the World Cup because the World Cup is...
33:02
It’s how Argentina expresses itself
33:14
So the thing with the World Cup for Argentines is
33:17
it’s not just about football, just being the best at football.
33:19
It’s about being the best...
33:21
<i>at something.</i>
33:24
That is how they show their worth
33:26
or how they validate themselves
33:28
particularly to a European audience.
33:29
So while we may not dominate anymore, you know
33:32
on several fields, especially the industry.
33:35
We can actually say that football is the one thing
33:37
where we can still be the <i>very, very, very</i> best.
33:40
There is reality, an objective reality.
33:44
And then there is perception.
33:46
Every nation perceives itself in some way...
33:50
We perceive as ourselves as really, really good, and
33:54
the only time reality and perception match
34:00
is when we play football.
34:01
And then came the 2002 World Cup in Japan/South Korea
34:05
which played out just as the country fell to a new low.
34:12
Huge numbers of people
34:13
lost huge amounts of money.
34:14
The country was ravaged.
34:16
The economy is just devastated because they can’t pay their debt.
34:19
Mired in a 93 billion dollar debt to the IMF
34:22
demonstrations, riots and general chaos
34:24
sent the country into near societal collapse.
34:26
The only glimmer of light being...
34:29
Their best national team in decades
34:31
who under coach Marcelo Bielsa
34:32
went to the tournament filled with optimism.
34:35
But in 2002, they qualify brilliantly under Bielsa.
34:39
in such a great form.
34:40
In qualifying, they destroy everybody.
34:43
A lot of unbeaten games...
34:44
You know they’re favourites, they’re definitely favourites.
34:46
And then for the first time in forty years.
34:49
Argentina crashed out at the group stage.
34:50
Argentina’s best World Cup hope in decades fell at the first hurdle.
34:54
And so that mythological Argentine Utopia of ‘86
34:58
felt further away than ever.
34:59
And with it’s economy, government and streets in tatters...
35:03
it really felt like it was never coming back.
35:06
However, little did they know...
35:09
another Pibe had emerged.
