El Salvador vs Honduras: What was the Soccer War and why was it called that?

“Football is the most important of the least important things”, a phrase in which Jorge Valdano perfectly explains the value of this sport in everyday life, however, on many occasions, the passion and interests that overflow go beyond 22 footballers and a ball inside the green rectangle, since it has even been subjected to serious situations, just as in which countries like El Salvador and Honduras were protagonists in the so-called ‘Soccer War’.

Both Central American countries will face each other again this Sunday in El Cuscatlán, in completely different circumstances from those experienced just over 50 years ago, in which both teams saw each other in the World Cup Qualifying towards Mexico 70, amid strong political tension, which triggered an armed conflict between the two nations.

It was in 1969, when the confrontations between 'La Selecta' and 'H', in the qualifying for the World Cup that would take place the following year, it was the perfect excuse for both countries to rise up in arms, after the expulsion of 300,000 Salvadorans from Honduran territory due to political and social tension between the two Central American countries.

On June 8 and 15, Hondurans and Cuscatlecos saw each other in duels in which each side achieved a victory at home, which is why they had to face each other in a playoff match that took place on June 27, 1969 at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City, where after the triumph, which gave the Salvadoran team the first classification to a World Cup, for the first time in its history, fans of both countries faced blows, news that reached Central America and that further strained the situation between Honduras and El Salvador.

By July 14 and under the pretext of the murder of Salvadorans in Honduran territory, The army of the Cuscatleco country decided to intervene in Honduras, starting a war that lasted for the next 4 days and that caused the death of between 4,000 and 6,000 civilians, in one of the shortest war conflicts in recent history.

The Organization of American States ordered a ceasefire and on July 18, the so-called ‘War of the 100 hours’ or ‘Soccer war’ was officially concluded., a term coined by the Polish journalist, Ryszard Kapuscinski, who also recounted the hostilities that took place during the confrontations between Hondurans and Salvadorans, to get a place in the first World Cup organized by Mexico.

El Salvador and Honduras meet again

Already with the dark past between both nations behind, the teams of El Salvador and Honduras meet again this Sunday, within a final phase of the World Cup qualifying round, something that has not happened since 2009, when they faced each other for the last time in the Final Hexagonal towards South Africa 2010 and where the Catracha team was left with the victory by the slightest difference in El Cuscatlán.

El Salvador and Honduras have a record of 11 matches in the World Cup Qualifying, with a favorable balance for Honduras, which has 7 victories, one draw and just 3 defeats against La Selecta, prior to this Sunday's duel, corresponding to the second date of the Concacaf Octagonal Final, in the ‘Colossus of Monserrat’.