Mexicans Turn to Voodoo to Help Team Beat the US
AP, January 27, 2009
A Mexican sports daily is pinning its hopes of beating the United States in a World Cup qualifying match on voodoo–with help from a U.S-based electronics chain. An advertisement in the sports daily Record on Tuesday invited fans to clip coupons and redeem them at their local Radio Shack store for a voodoo-doll likeness of a U.S. player. The hope was that a little black magic might help Mexico break a decade of futility on the road versus its northern neighbor.
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An illustration showed a pair of scissors slicing off the leg of a doll in a U.S. jersey that was bruised, crying out in pain, leaking stuffing, and stuck with pushpins.
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Daniel Paz, marketing manager for the newspaper, told The Associated Press the promotion was a lighthearted attempt to make next month’s rivalry game more enjoyable for fans.
“It’s a toy,” Paz said. “There’s no intention of being anything serious.”
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Record said it has created 10,000 dolls and plans to expand the promotion to include effigies representing the other CONCACAF finalists: Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador and Trinidad and Tobago.
