By Abeer Anwar From Aswan to Alexandria, from Suez to Siwa, everywhere, life has ground to a standstill. Egypt has succumbed to a bad attack of the World Cups. The entire country is in the throes of football mania. Wherever you go, it's the same scene: in every available space, on every possible pedestal or stand, TVs loiter, shyly extending their flickering screens towards the crowds of people who gaze up at them, now rapt in silence, now ecstatic, now plunged in despair, but all of them, always, intent upon one and the same thing -- the match. Shop owners have pounced on the opportunity, splashing Bergkamp, Batty and Batistuta across their window displays. "It is a cheap way of advertising our products," says TV store owner Sherif Megahed. "We switch on the World Cup and suddenly people appear from nowhere." On one major thoroughfare, Samsung have erected a giant screen in front of which passers-by and local residents congregate. In smart showrooms, high-definition flat-screen surround-sound images of Salas turning Di Matteo lure away customers who have come to browse for a new video. Saudi Arabians shopping at the Ramses Hilton mall have been spotted abandoning their precious carrier bags in public places as they run to catch Sami Al-Jaber failing to jab one past Peter Schmeichel. Cafés all over the country have decided to set a minimum charge for those who want to drink while they watch. "We have taken advantage of the great number of men coming to cafés to watch the matches," said Sayed Abdel-Azim, 30, a café owner. "We have set a minimum fee, because it is an event that takes place only once every four years." But the punters don't seem to mind. Café patron Abdel-Azim Dawoud told the Weekly, "I love to watch the matches with my friends in the cafés instead of sitting alone at home. Here, we can cheer together and analyse the games. It's great to watch in a group." Egyptian fans have naturally pledged their allegiance to the three Arab and three African teams participating in the World Cup. "We support Tunisia, Morocco and Saudi Arabia, as well as Nigeria, Cameroon and South Africa," said Tarek Ahmed. "We feel we belong to them. Arab and African teams belong to the same continent. So we cheer for them, because of this sense of belonging." The regional director of the Omar Effendi chain of department stores, Ali El-Seidi, has confirmed that sales of television sets have risen dramatically over the past few weeks. The nation's cultural life has been forced to adapt to the exceptional conditions. According to Soheir El-Etribi, president of Egyptian TV, many stations have had to change their plans completely. "Channel 2 broadcasts most of the matches. If matches are played at the same time as the six or nine o'clock news, we shift the news to channel one instead of two. Foreign serials have been cancelled and some Egyptian soap operas postponed until the end of the event." The national theatre has likewise postponed all its planned dramatic productions until the football is over. Some actors will use the break to rehearse. Others, including comedians Ahmed Bedeir and Salah El-Sadani, have brought portable TV sets to keep them company in the theatre while they wait for curtain up. Cinema producers, for their part, are unwilling to take the risk of releasing new films during the competition for fear of a low turnout. As a result, cinemas have had to continue showing turkeys which they would normally have been dropped by now. The cassette market has also been hit by the soccer extravaganza. "We have delayed the debut of a number of albums until after the World Cup because teenagers are so attracted to the matches, they will not bother to buy new cassettes," producer Mohsen Gabr said. Medhat Saleh, Amr Diab and Angham are among the stars who have been obliged to wait until the last match has been played before making their next public appearances. Shortly before each match, the streets of Cairo begin to empty. It's a good time for shopping. "It is the best time for me. I can enjoy the empty streets. If you want to go shopping, go now," said Gihan Mahmoud. While traffic flows freely as long as the match is on, the streets are always jammed with cars just before the start of the 3.30 fixture. "I was taking the bus home, and the two men sitting behind me were praying that they would reach home in time for Nigeria versus Spain," one woman recounted. Noha Mohamed was astonished recently to find a place to park in one of the most crowded downtown areas, El-Gumhuriya Street. The reason? There was a match that afternoon. Noha is probably just one of the many Egyptians who wish that this World Cup could go on and on and on... (you may now proceed to the Sports page)
