Schwan's USA CUP Presented by PUMA • Tournament Edition

Nobody traveled farther to Schwan's USA CUP, presented by PUMA, than the Union Sportive (US) Monastir team. The team is from the North African country of Tunisia, and had to take a series of different rides to the tournament. They flew from the Tunis-Carthage airport to Rome, caught a flight from there to Chicago and then took a bus to Minnesota. "We left on the 15th and arrived on the evening of the 16th," said team leader Mahmoud Chaabane. "It took us about a day and a half."

Despite the distance, the team is finding a lot of similarities between Minnesota and their city, Monastir. "Even the names sound alike," Chaabane said. Both places have a lot of university towns and "in the summer, the climate is about the same," he said. The team's sponsor, Moncef Debbabi, adds that there's never snow in Tunisia, though.
Monastir sits on an archipelago jutting into the Mediterranean Sea, and its economy is focused on tourism. "But there's more to us than hotels," Chaabane is quick to note. Once part of the Roman Empire, and then called Ruspina, Monastir is home to historical highlights such as the Ribat, a fortified Muslim monastery built in the eighth century.

The Union Sportive Monastir traveled to Minnesota at the urging of the US Monastir president, Zouhair Chaouch. "He encouraged us to participate in the tournament, to exchange ideas and styles of play," Hergh said. With the financial help of Debbabi, who is a former handball player from US Monastir and now owner of a floating restaurant, the group planned a two-week trip. They will play in the tournament this week, and spend the next week getting to know Minnesota better.

Not New to USA CUP
This is not the first time US Monastir has played in the tournament. They brought a U15 boys team in 2007 and a U19 boys team in 1998. But it's the first trip to the United States for US Monastir player Seifeddine Tiba. "The trip was tiring, but fantastic," he said.

Tiba is excited to play in the tournament with his teammates from US Monastir, but also with four guest players from the Twin Cities. The boys practiced together in a friendly Sunday, and got together for a BBQ and pool party with the Minnesota families yesterday. "The Minnesota boys play very well," Tiba said. In their two USA CUP games, the team took away a 5-3 victory over Keliix Intra Tuesday and beat NESA 6-0 yesterday.

Besides soccer, US Monastir doesn't have any concrete plans for their visit. "A little shopping," Tiba said, "and hanging out with the Minnesota guys."

Monastir's Mobile Homestay
Though US Monastir is not homestaying, they will get the full Minnesota hospitality experience thanks to Terry Wolkerstorfer. Wolkerstorfer got involved in Schwan's USA CUP when his children started playing 15 years ago, and he's been a coach and a team manager in previous years.

Recently, he's taken on international teams as a sort of mobile homestay unit. "I work specifically with whatever international teams Colleen thinks need the most hosting," Wolkerstorfer said. "Typically, they are teams that are not homestaying."
Wolkerstorfer does everything from toting coolers full of water to the field to arranging tours for the teams. When US Monastir wanted to practice and there was no space at the National Sports Center, Wolkerstorfer arranged a field at a private school through a friend. "I took three carloads of them in my own car over to the field. And then I reversed that process and brought three carloads back," he said.

"An International Person"
Though he is not paid for his services, Wolkerstorfer is getting what he wants out of the arrangement, a chance to be a part of the cultural exchange of soccer. "I love the international aspect of USA CUP," he said. "Soccer is the world's game, the world's language."

A former foreign correspondent, international public relations representative and international journalism professor, Wolkerstorfer calls himself "an international person." "I've lived or worked or traveled in 150 countries," he said.

Since becoming involved in USA CUP, he has been able to make more connections abroad. His daughter played with the St. Paul Blackhawks, and Wolkerstorfer helped get them interested in international soccer. "When she was 15, my daughter's team hosted two teams from Akureyri, Iceland," he said. The teams went to play in Dana Cup the next year and stopped in Iceland. "It was wonderful. There were signs everywhere saying 'Welcome Blackhawks from St. Paul, USA."

Hosting US Monastir is going smoothly, Wolkerstorfer says, despite some language differences. "My French is currently not as good as it was 30 or 40 years ago," he said with a smile.

He's especially enjoyed watching the Minnesota guest players warm up to the Tunisia team. "They were nervous that they didn't speak the language. I said, 'Don't worry. You speak soccer; that's good enough.' There was a bond there immediately because they're all soccer kids."

Despite all he gives, Wolkerstorfer asserts he is the fortunate one. "I've never done this that I haven't learned far more than I've helped or taught." There are tangible benefits, too. "They've already invited us to come to Tunisia and Monastir."
Editor's Note: The official language of Tunisia is Arabic, but French is also widely spoken, as the country was once a French protectorate. The author has translated the French portions of the interview to English.
Team photo