Soccer in particular has even stopped wars, in the case of several notable World Cup truces.ĭuring the Olympics, ostensibly, all warring nations are implored to set down their weapons, and in fact many do.īut we’re not talking about the World Cup or the Olympics, are we? This is a sacred time, no matter what religion you purport to follow. Much has been said about the ability of sport to unite even the most bitter enemies. They set their rifles aside, took off their helmets, and played a game. Out of such salted earth grew something amazing, a true Christmas miracle: a friendly game of soccer between men who, not 24 hours earlier, had been trying to kill one another. Someone else marked out goals with whatever the soldiers had, and they began to make a pitch out of a field of death. Then, as if by some grand design, someone at each of these meetings brought out a soccer ball.
All is calm, all is bright.īy morning, the foreboding wasteland stretched between battle lines, the famed no man’s land, had become sacred ground, as both sides met in the middle to exchange whisky, jam, cigars, chocolates, and other small luxuries.Īll across the Western Front, the scene was repeated, over and over again. They struck up a chorus of Stille Nacht (Silent Night), and across the frozen battlefield, as Garth Brooks sang, the Scottish troops began to sing along.