MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Chile soccer friendly gesture towards Bolivia

Pte. Morales playing soccer on the mountains

Though often at serious political odds, Chile and Bolivia appear to see eye-to-eye on at least one thing – football. In a move that surely put a smile on the face of football-mad Bolivian President Evo Morales, the Chilean Football Federation (ANFP) agreed this week to play its upcoming June 14 World Cup qualifier match against Bolivia in La Paz.

"We announce publicly that the upcoming World Cup qualifier game against Bolivia will take place in the city and at the time the Bolivian Football Federation chooses," ANFP stated in a press release. What makes the decision noteworthy is that under rules put in place last year by FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association), Chile could have opted against playing in the Bolivian capital, which at 11,942 ft (more than two miles high) poses a serious challenge to visiting teams not accustomed to the thin Andean air. FIFA reaffirmed its controversial posture last week, declaring that teams traveling to high altitude stadiums must have sufficient time to acclimatize: one week for games played above 2,750 meters, and two weeks for matches in cities such as La Paz that are over 3,000 meters high. Given that professional football clubs rarely allow their players more than a few days off to represent their respective countries in international matches, the FIFA rules effectively ban La Paz from hosting big games. That "ban" has not sat well with President Morales, who on Monday – together with Argentine superstar Diego Maradona – played in a high-altitude celebrity football match organized to protest the FIFA stance. The 47-year-old president participated in a similar publicity game last year when the rules first went into effect. "It's ridiculous that they want to take from Bolivia the opportunity to play at home. It's shameless, because there's no reason for it," Maradona told members of the press. FIFA says it is only trying to protect players, noting that professional football players occasionally suffer cardiac arrest during matches. A handful of players have collapsed and died in recent years. Presumably, the risk of such heart failure is increased at higher elevations. Chile could certainly have taken advantage of the FIFA rule to avoid a trip to La Paz. But given the timing of the match (European football leagues, where many of Chile's top stars play, are on vacation in June), Chile's ANFP realized it could in this case meet FIFA's two-week acclimatization requirement and thus give Bolivia an opportunity to host. "We support Bolivia's stance and we're looking also to see how we can meet FIFA's demands. However, this'll cost us, as we'll have to see (which players) will have to cancel," said ANFP Director Harold Mayne-Nicholls. The Santiago Times