Soapbox: Tri-coloured Valentine By Essam Abdel-Moneim Today, the world celebrates Valentine's Day, an event that ends up coating many things in red and shaping them as hearts. This year, the colour of festivities is bringing joy to everyone in Egypt, and not just to fans of Ahli, the popular club known for its bright red shirts. Fans of Zamalek and Ismaili are also likely to send and receive little red hearts at one point or another. On Valentine's Day, no one minds red. People grow colour- tolerant for that day. Egypt had a double celebration this year, love and football. Its victory in the recent Africa Cup of Nations sent fans dancing in the streets in a cold night till dawn. Since 2006, when Egypt hosted the cup, and won, the championship seems to have caught the public imagination, just like Valentine's Day did over the past decade or so. Something about football brings us together as a nation. As I watched people of every age and background take to the streets following our win over Cameroon, waving the country's tri- coloured flag, I had an epiphany. Valentine's always comes in red. This year it came in red, white and black. Football finally brought us all together. Everyone took part in the celebrations: men and women, rich and poor, old and young. For a moment, we all had something in common, something to hold on to. For a day and a night, the flag was more than a national symbol. It became a symbol of joy and pride. We all became believers in a common cause. You may say that we all turned patriotic even. How do we keep this momentum going? I am not sure, but I have a feeling that this is not going to be the last time. May we always have a Valentine's Day reason to celebrate; may we always have a tri-coloured valentine! This week's Soapbox speaker is Al-Ahram deputy chief editor and former head of the Egyptian Football Association.
