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INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Family, Football, and a Little Chaos
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Pumpkin Dump Cake The Journal Practice That Cultivates Your Mind-Body Connection Reimagine a Retirement Routine That Works for You The Caribbean Woman With the World’s Rarest Blood Type
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4 The Match That Lit the Fuse: Inside the 100-Hour Soccer War The Soccer Match That Launched an Invasion
How a World Cup Qualifier Exploded Into a Real War On July 14, El Salvador used that World Cup qualification game to send troops across the border. Blackouts darkened
In the summer of 1969, what should’ve been a sweaty, rowdy World Cup qualifier turned into one of history’s strangest armed conflicts. El Salvador and Honduras, two Central American neighbors with a long history of simmering tension, found themselves lacing up not just for soccer but for war. The fuse? A three-game soccer series, drenched in passion, politics, and pent-up resentment. The first match in Honduras ended with riots. The second, in El Salvador, saw tensions combust into full-blown violence. The third, a tiebreaker in Mexico City, sent El Salvador to the World Cup and straight into a diplomatic meltdown. But let’s be clear: This wasn’t just about the games. Behind the brawls were deep-rooted land disputes, decades of migration, and resentment over Honduran land reforms that displaced many Salvadoran settlers. The soccer field was just the stage for long-simmering tensions.
both capitals as air strikes lit up the skies. For four days, just 100 hours, the conflict raged. The war ended almost as quickly as it began, thanks to pressure from the Organization of
American States, but the damage lingered. Nearly 3,000 people were killed or injured. It shredded diplomatic ties — and it took 11 years for a peace treaty to be signed. To this day, many Salvadorans regard the “Football War” as a moment of national pride, proof that even a tiny nation can pack a serious punch when pushed too far. So, next time someone tells you sports aren’t political, remind them that in 1969, a soccer ball started a war.
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