“Tensions finally boiled over into full-scale war on July 14 when Salvadorian troops crossed the border into Honduran territory.”

EUROPEAN SOCCER fans often let their enthusiasm for the game get the better of them. But the trophy-winning example of sports mania run amok may very well be the 1969 conflict between El Salvador and Honduras known as the Football or Soccer War. Of course, there was more to the conflict than just a simple sports rivalry.

Set against the backdrop of long-standing territorial disputes between the two Central American nations, tensions finally reached the boiling point amid a series of hotly contested World Cup qualifying matches in July of 1969. The resulting war lasted four days and would take more than a decade to be finally resolved.

The roots of the conflict go back to the beginning of the 20^th Century. For years, peasants from the much tinier but more densely populated El Salvador had been migrating into Honduras to settle. Land reforms aimed at handing over migrant Salvadorian homesteads to Honduran nationals caused much resentment between the two countries throughout the1960s.

The bad blood only worsened during the soccer series, which would see just one of the two countries advance to the World Cup in 1970. From the start, the matches were marred by violence and hooliganism.

The first game, held in the Honduran capital Tegucigalpa on June 8, 1969, saw the home team defeat El Salvador 1 to 0. Fans from both sides fought in the stands and the brawls quickly spilled out onto in the streets. Things turned deadly when a distraught 18-year-old Salvadorian girl shot herself following the upset. El Salvador’s president fanned the flames of unrest by declaring the girl a martyr and ordering state television to broadcast her funeral.

During the emotionally charged second game in the series, this one held in San Salvador on June 15, more fights erupted in the stands between locals rooting for the home team and fans bussed in from Honduras. El Salvador took the match 3 to 0.

A third meeting, held on June 26 in Mexico City, saw Honduras defeated yet again — this time 3 to 2 in overtime. Riding high on the win, the government of El Salvador dissolved diplomatic ties with its neighbour, citing the ‘genocidal’ land reforms going on in Honduras and demanding compensations for displaced Salvadorians.

Within hours, sporadic clashes were reported between troops on the border of the two nations.

Tensions finally boiled over into full-scale war when Salvadorian troops crossed the border into Honduran territory on July 14.

The attackers used the two main roads between the countries to move troops. Honduran border police opened fire on the attackers, but were quickly brushed aside. By the end of the first day of fighting, the Salvadorian army had pushed five miles into Honduras. Within four days the invaders were threatening the capital, which is less than 60 miles from the border.

The action was not limited to the ground. As soon as hostilities began, both countries launched air strikes on targets in each others’ territory. Military authorities ordered blackouts in both capitals.

Both air forces relied on antiquated piston engine fighters, while the Salvadorians hastily converted C-47 passenger planes into bombers.

The war is perhaps best known as the last time planes like the F4U Corsair and P-51 Mustang saw action. El Salvador even hired veteran American combat pilots to fly missions in the vintage war birds.

Following diplomatic intervention by the Organization of American States, fighting was suspended on July 18, although Salvadorian troops didn’t withdraw from Honduras until late August. A formal peace treaty wasn’t signed for another 11 years.

Approximately 100 Honduran soldiers were killed in the 100-hour war, with as many as 2,000 wounded, both military and civilian. Salvadorian casualties were roughly half that.

Like Honduras, the conflict was El Salvador’s first war. It continues to be a source of pride for many in that country.

(Originally published on May 8, 2012)

SOURCES
http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/battleswars1900s/p/footballwar.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Football_War
http://sites.duke.edu/wcwp/research-projects/the-soccer-war/
http://www.espnfc.com/story/933162/rewind-to-1969-the-football-war