Muslims Score: A Football Tourney

Aside from the protesters, the television crews, the female spectators in hijabs, the media boycott by the teams and the midday prayers on the sidelines, the inaugural Muslim football tournament in Irvine on Sunday was like any other gridiron contest played by weekend warriors.

Wide receivers dived to make spectacular catches, exasperated coaches questioned the eyesight of officials, and the lively crowd ate pizza and downed soft drinks between cheers.

“It’s just American boys playing American football,” said Nora Kurdi, a 19-year-old from Irvine who came to cheer on her brother.

The event was organized to bring together young Muslims from across Southern California. Fourteen teams entered the flag football tournament, with an estimated 150 players from Los Angeles to San Diego.

But even before kickoff, the contest had evolved into an international incident of sorts. It started last month with news stories about some of the original team names, including Soldiers of Allah, Moujahedeen and Intifada. The monikers have been associated in recent years with bloodshed and terrorism. Team logos featured masked men, some with daggers or swords.

The football players and their supporters said Arabic terms such as moujahedeen (holy warrior) and intifada (uprising) have honorable meanings, despite being corrupted by extremists. They also said the names were picked for their macho connotations, not their political bent.

But some interfaith leaders saw the selection of names as ill-advised or, worse, reflecting a mind-set among American-born Muslims that pays tribute to terrorists. In a post-Sept. 11 era when some schools have benched the team name Crusader, Jewish leaders asked the football players to show similar sensitivity.

Because of the controversy, organizers had instructed players not to talk to reporters during the tournament.

By kickoff time Sunday, two of the teams had switched names as a goodwill gesture. The Intifada squad kept its name.

“Why change it?” said Yassir Fazaga, imam of the Orange County Islamic Foundation in Mission Viejo and honorary coach of the team.

“The concept of intifada is beautiful and can be found in the civil rights movement, the Revolutionary War of 1776 and in South Africa.”

About half a dozen protesters, most from the Jewish Defense League, spent the morning at the corner of Heritage Park’s busiest intersection, holding up signs (“No Intifada on American Soil”) to show passing motorists. Barry Spatz, a 52-year-old Santa Ana psychologist, said he’s not usually a demonstrator but felt moved to protest the name of the Intifada squad.

“We really know that it’s a little more than just an uprising,” said Spatz, who doesn’t attend a synagogue. “It’s also about killing the Jews and getting Israel off the map.”

On the football fields, though, the scene was idyllic. Immigrant parents shouted themselves hoarse, though some knew little about the rules of U.S. football.

Players, their uniforms stained by grass and dirt, rested for their next game under trees. And toddlers, barely able to wrap their arms around a football, made dashes for imaginary end zones.

Three times during the daylong tournament, players put down the ball, knelt shoulder to shoulder and prayed in the direction of Mecca.

“This has been the best day,” said Hisham Askandarani, a 16-year-old from Garden Grove who played for the Liberators. “Everything came together, including the weather.”