Underdog Greece will face Germany Friday night during a Euro Cup elimination match that will have the spectre of European politics hanging over it.

The match will be not only be about football in the eyes of many Greek fans, but about revenge for the austerity measures imposed upon the country by Germany.

Insulted, criticized and beaten down, Greeks see this match as a repudiation of the strife that their country has gone through in the last few years.

How is soccer like the Euro crisis? 

Greece faces Germany tonight in a Euro Cup elimination match that feels oh, so similar to the current euro economic crisis.

As GlobalPost’s Alex Besant wrote ahead of the game, the match “will have the spectre of European politics hanging over it.”

The match will be not only be about football in the eyes of many Greek fans, but about revenge for the austerity measures imposed upon the country by Germany. Insulted, criticized and beaten down, Greeks see this match as a repudiation of the strife that their country has gone through in the last few years.

Find @GlobalPost on Twitter for live-tweeting of the #soccercrisis.

Here, GlobalPost breaks down how soccer, called football by those across the pond, is like the euro crisis:

— Referees are corrupt.

— There is a strong sense of nationalism.

— Riots are always a possibility.

— There is a great deal of pain.

— There’s lots of repetition.

— Greece is the underdog.

— The outcome is uncertain.

— Americans don’t understand it.

What would you add to this list? Leave a comment below or send us your ideas on Twitter #soccercrisis.

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The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, more commonly referred to as Euro 2012, is the 14th European Championship for national football (or, dare we call it, soccer) teams.

The sporting event has gripped first-time host cities Poland and Ukraine — which each boast four venues and are hosting 16 countries’ teams — as fans and players alike show their love for the game.

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