TODAY'S question: Is having Iraq and North Korea in the final round of the Asian World Cup qualifiers a good advert for Asian soccer? The immediate answer is almost certainly, no. Especially with Iran, Saudi Arabia and South Korea also competing.
The reaction from the United States, hosts of the World Cup proper, was predictably forthright during the week that FIFA finalised plans for the hosting of the tournament in Qatar from October 15-28. (Japan make up the final six, two of whom will travel to the US.) The fiery Mike Lopresti of USA Today newspaper saw the outcome as: ''Six countries, most of whom have been mad at one another and possibly always will be.'' Iraq, dubbed ''Team Saddam'' by Lopresti, qualified on goal difference after losing their final match in Chengdu against hosts China.
Iraqi press reports say nine people were killed and more than 120 injured as soccer fans in the country lived it up.
Ominously, the army newspaper Al-Qadissiya was by then preparing an editorial telling the national team: ''Your mission is part of the confrontation between Iraq and the Forces of Evil as embodied by the United States and their allies.'' The strong government and military grip on Iraqi soccer dates back to the earliest days when the country's first knockout championship was won by the delightfully named Royal Bodyguard team in 1950.
Iraq are no strangers to playing in heated political circumstances. In 1976, their Police team refused to play in the final of the Asian Club Championships against Maccabi Tel Aviv of Israel.
But as easy as it is to dismiss Iraq as political opportunists in the 1994 World Cup campaign, the team does truly have a credible track record.