Northern Ireland: More Of A Nation Than Catalonia?

This September, the Northern Ireland national football team will embark upon its latest attempt to qualify for the World Cup. At the same time as the Northern Irish play Luxembourg, the Spanish team will face Georgia, with as many as ten Catalans in the squad. Catalonia itself will not participate in the qualifying tournament. This is due to the curious situation that Northern Ireland, a constituent part of the United Kingdom, is allowed to compete, while Catalonia finds itself barred from entry. UEFA have ruled that Catalonia, despite having nation status, is not allowed to field a team in international competitions because states are only allowed to produce one team, and Spain already competes. This rule does not apply to Northern Ireland or any of the other nations that form the United Kingdom, in recognition of the role these nations played in the birth of football. It also does not apply to the Faroe Islands, highlighting some muddled thinking at UEFA. Northern Ireland is a contested territory and there are many people who do not believe it should have a national team at all. Support for the Northern Irish team is drawn largely from the Unionist community, while those who believe that Northern Ireland should be united with the south tend to support the Republic of Ireland. Nevertheless, the team continues to represent Northern Ireland on the same level as it would if it were that of a sovereign state. Participation in international football tournaments is of considerable benefit to those in Northern Ireland who wish it to remain separate to the Republic of Ireland. The football team acts as a powerful symbol of Northern Ireland's separation from the south. It is also one of the few independent representatives of a nation that, despite its devolved assembly, is still a part of the British state. Just as the Generalitat shares power with the Spanish state, the N.I. Assembly operates alongside the British parliament. The Northern Irish experience is that the national football team provides the territory with a level of visibility that it cannot achieve through any other political or cultural institution. A Catalan national team would give a similar visibility to Catalonia as a separate entity to Spain. It could act as a focal point for supporters of additional autonomy and independence, and the opportunity for Catalonia to participate with sovereign states would provide a boost for their claims. This would especially be the case if Catalonia were successful in its own right. The performances of Spain and FC Barcelona with so many Catalan players in their ranks suggest this would be a real possibility. There is no doubt that support for an independent Catalan national team is as strong, if not stronger, than that for the continued existence of a Northern Irish team. There is also no doubt that a Catalan team would be significantly better than the Northern Irish team; players such as Puyol, Xavi, and Fabregas are world class performers. Nevertheless, the Catalan team is currently forced to play unofficial friendlies and wait its turn on the international stage; a much greater potential force than Northern Ireland, unable to prove itself yet.