Why ISIS Declared War on Soccer
The Sport Keeps Winning Over Hearts and Minds Across the Muslim World, Bridging East and West
It’s not surprising that the crazed “Soldiers of the Caliphate” terrorists selected the France-Germany soccer match at the Stade de France as the central target in their assault on Paris. For starters, the match was a high-profile attraction bringing together 80,000 fans, including French President François Hollande, in a tight space. And, as American moviegoers across generations can tell you (see Black Sunday from 1977 or The Sum of All Fears from 2002), televised sports events present highly dramatic, desirable targets for terrorists.
Indeed, the Stade de France was the one …
