The most famous football match of the Icelandic history of sports took place in Copenhagen in 1967 between Denmark and Iceland. The Danish team promptly seized total control on the football field, scoring one goal after the other. The Icelandic team leader, however, did not change the structure of his team; instead continued to have his players in offensive mode. The score at mid-game was 6 to 0 and the situation moved from bad to nightmarish. When the position was 9 to 1 goals, Iceland managed to score its second goal. This changed nothing, however, and the game ended with 14 goals versus 2. The biggest scandal in the Icelandic football history was a fact!
Viewing this game it is easy to realize that the Icelandic players soon lost all hope. The defense was neither here nor there and the players hung their heads in defeat. Any will of fighting disappeared from the team! The Danes were encouraged by a screaming audience of thousands and needless to say the Danish players got stronger as the game progressed. The spectators yelled “twenty-to-two”, i.e. 20 goals versus 2, to humiliate and break the Icelandic team. The Danish players shone with self-esteem while the Icelandic team lost any confidence they may have had. This game clearly illustrated the importance of hope and optimism in sports and in life. If you lose hope, the battle is lost!
The Greek mythology emphasizes the importance of hope. Prometheus stole the fire from the gods. Zeus took revenge by sending Pandora to Earth to Prometheus' brother. She brought a box with her which she was strictly forbidden to open. Pandora did not abide by the instructions and lifted off the lid, letting out all kinds of misery, epidemics, death, capricious weather, and the most unbelievable plagues that spread throughout the world. She hurriedly replaced the lid, leaving only hope behind. Other problems escaped out of the box, causing difficulties and harm for mankind. The message of this story is that hope is necessary for us all in order to survive all kinds of problems we are faced with. We need to have goals that make our life worth living.
The most famous football match of the Icelandic history. Image source: 9gag.com
Hope is essential in the struggle against disease. If a patient has lost all faith in his or her treatment and believes that recovery is not around the corner and never will be, the struggle becomes more difficult.
Hope contains a promise of hard times not lasting forever; instead they are but a temporary situation. All religions emphasize the value and importance of hope. Even death is not final! Religion promises life and salvation after death - at a time when everything is to be finished.
Hope is therefore of utmost importance to human life and existence.
The above must be reflected upon in these Covid times. Many people have lost hope and no longer believe that a normal situation with unlimited freedom of travel and gathering will ever return. Covid-19 is one of these epidemics that came out of Pandora's Box. It is of great importance that we do not lose the hope that remained behind in the box. □