A team that offered hope... then, four months later, Hamas attacked Israel
Sep 17, 05:23 AM
It was, says Ido Rakovsky, like reporting on "science fiction", rather than sport.
Israel, whose senior team have qualified for the World Cup just once, had beaten global powerhouses Brazil in the quarter-finals of the under-20 version of the tournament.
At the final whistle, the commentator covering the match for Israeli television vowed "you will tell of this night to your children, and they will tell it to your grandchildren".
Five days later, the team's semi-final against Uruguay was the most-watched thing of the evening on Israeli television, drawing a 23% viewing share.
Politicians clamoured to congratulate the team.
"That summer, everybody was watching under-20 football, everybody knew the players," says Rakovsky, who was covering the team for Israeli media outlet Haaretz.
"Everybody in Israel fell in love with these kids."
It wasn't just their deeds on the pitch that felt otherworldly, though.
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