In African Soccerscapes, Peter Alegi gives a summary of the history of football in Africa over the last 150 years. Football has played a very important role in the development of many African countries. Football helped usher in imperialism, and yet it was used as a means to reject European control. Through the introduction of football, Alegi shows how Africans fought for independence and control of football, and he shows how capitalism affected the African game. Although many great things have come from football, Alegi shows some of the negative things that have been caused by the game. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay At the beginning of the book, Alegi shows how football was introduced to the African continent. Thanks to port cities, railways and missionary schools, football was able to spread like wildfire across the continent. In port cities, European sailors often played football when they were not working. These sports were introduced due to European imperial expansion. They saw football as a way to civilize African people. They wanted to teach Africans the virtues of Christianity, capitalism and Western civilization. This is called the “white man’s burden.” Sport was already part of African culture. They held dances and fights which were used for many different purposes. However, European countries considered these acts as uncivilized acts. These sports have become the “soil in which the seeds of sport will then be planted”. Football began to spread. Fans often enjoyed going to watch the matches being played. Railways also played a role in the spread of football. These railways were built for the army and for the transportation of goods. When a town was built on the railroad, football was often introduced. In a few years, everyone would be playing football in this region. It was often introduced by the military as a form of discipline. Finally, the creation of missionary schools spread football. Sport was used as moral training. “Muscular Christianity” wanted to produce disciplined, healthy and moral citizens. The aim of these schools was to produce good Christian citizens. Football was used to achieve this. It was used to help boys control their anger and play with honor and fairness. However, the game quickly took off. Many Africans began playing and a new “African” football emerged. Football has become a new identity in many neighborhoods. New teams have started in local neighborhoods. In the 1930s, club football began and many great players were recruited into the teams. Many mining companies and government agencies have started hiring top football players. They were offered a job just so they could play football for this company. The implementation of football actually did more than help civilize Africans. This backfired on the Europeans. Africans knew how to use football as a means of resisting the control of colonizers and social inequalities. For example, when a team was forced to change its name because it was associated with local resistance, they simply reversed the letters to form a new word. Football has also become more African. A new form of gaming has begun. Africans have “Africanized”the game. Magic was used. Wizards and healers were hired to cast spells on the teams and the opposition. African fans also launched rituals during matches. Drums and dancing became an integral part of the ceremony. It has also become a traditional African ritual. Africans also began to take ownership of the game. They created new African styles of play, including dribbling and sophisticated moves. It is obvious that football was introduced to Africa thanks to imperialism. However, thanks to this new sport, Africans were able to use it as a means of protest against the colonizers. They were also able to make football their own sport. Football has become “Africanized”. Africans were also able to use football as a means to fight for their independence. Nnamdi Azikiwe was a Nigerian, educated man. Zik saw football as an opportunity to contribute to independence. Zik took the Lagos ZAC football club across Nigeria during the war years. The ZAC football club would play against local clubs. Once the game was over, Zik would give a speech. He claimed he was raising money for the war. However, he actually showed that the British were hypocrites. It showed that they were fighting a war for countries to become independent, but still controlled the colonies. He was able to use football to show that Africans deserved their independence and that Britain was wrong to retain control of the colonies. Like Zik, the FLN used football as a means to fight for independence. They said they wanted to deprive France of key players, raise international awareness of the Algerian struggle for independence and that support from Algerians was essential. The FLN was part of the Algerian national team. This team has gone to many countries to play football. At this time, the FLN hoped that people would see the struggle for independence and harm France by denying them key players. By singing a team song, having a national flag and having jerseys with their logo, people saw a free Algeria. Finally, black people in South Africa fought to have white South African football teams kicked out of FIFA. They found it unfair that racist laws could prevent them from playing on white teams. They fought on until the FIFA board excluded South African teams from participating. Once independence was finally achieved, football was used as a way to bring nations together. With the addition of new stadiums and teams, countries hoped to bring their nations together. When they were together in a stadium, they were the same. There was no race or ethnicity. They were just supporters of their country and their team. Starting in the 1930s, many players began to leave their local teams and travel to Europe to play football. Many have succeeded, while others have never managed to achieve success. At that time it was great for individual players. Many were able to win large sums of money. However, this hurt the players who weren't as good as well as their countries. Small club teams in Europe used Africans as a cheap way to make money. They often bought them for a cheap amount of money and resold them for huge profits. Player migration has also hurt local African teams. Many players would stay in Europe. They would not return to their country, even during the World Cup. This has weakened local football in Africa. Instead of the good ones,.