The discouraging sight of football wars  Ever since childhood I
have been a big football fan. I was 12 years old when Feyenoord
won the European Cup, the predecessor of the Champions League,
on May 6, 1970, my sister's birthday. Since then I have been a
passionate supporter of the team from Rotterdam. That was not
always easy, to put it mildly.  During the last four decades,
Feyenoord was outshone by archrivals Ajax and PSV Eindhoven.
Changing club allegiance, though, has never been an option. Once
a Feyenoord supporter, always a Feyenoord supporter. Ten years
ago, in May 2002, that unconditional backing was finally
rewarded when Feyenoord won the UEFA Cup, mainly because of the
leadership and free kicks of Pierre van Hooijdonk. After 2002, a
dark period of sportive and financial decay set in, culminating
in a humiliating 10th place in last year's Dutch league. This
season's second place was therefore a gift from heaven. After
the last away game, 30,000 diehard fans came to the Feyenoord
stadium to welcome th