ABSTRACT
This chapter explores, studies and analyses the impact of civil war on the Syrian men’s national football team. To this end, the author interviewed 12 current and former players, coaches and administrators, who at some point or the other were part of the national football team and participated in some of its most important matches. This chapter attempts to untangle how the Assad regime used the men’s team to polish Assad’s image at home and abroad as part of his ‘Authoritarian Upgrading’. It further explains how Assad made the team’s success his own.
