GLESENKIRCHEN, Germany - Around 1900, the English way of life was the embodiment of modernism for the rest of Europe. The social changes enabled citizens at the bottom of the ladder to become gentlemen - the highest level one could reach outside of inheritance.

One of the pillars of this lifestyle, British sports, was based on fair play, and caught on throughout the continent. Sociologist Detlev Claussen claims that while conservatives opposed such development and supported athletic and gymnastic movements - team, elitist and non-competitive sports - the Jews happily accepted the British way.

As such, the Jews were an engine for spreading sports throughout Europe. Much of the popularity of not only soccer, but also volleyball, table tennis and basketball, was due to the involvement of Jews as organizers, managers, coaches and athletes. Since Max Nordau coined the phrase "muscle Jew" at the 1898 Zionist Congress, the idea spread among not only Zionists, but also - contrary to typical stereotypes today - Europe's Diaspora Jewry.

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Not just soccer

Social status w as not among the top priorities of European Jews in 1945 to say the least. Welfare organizations gathered the surviving refugees primarily on the cursed ground of Germany, as Jewish refugee newspapers called it. The American army established displaced person (DP) camps in southern Germany. The camps' management, beyond internal autonomy, and aid distribution, was conducted by the United Nations and UNRRA, (United Nations Relief & Rehabilitation Administration). Between 1,000-5,000 Jews were in the average camp, and camps in northern Germany were populated both by Jews and non-Jews.

The two major camps were Bergen-Belsen in the North and Landsberg in Bavaria. In Landsberg - "where the Holocaust was born," as historian Abraham Peck wrote, where Hitler wrote "Mein Kampf" while in jail, and where the Nazi summer youth camp turned into a concentration camp for Jews opposing the ruling party - the first DP camp was established.

The number of displaced persons grew in 1946-7 from 40,000 to 250,000. Some 150,000 Polish Jews were expelled from Russia, but were not allowed to return to their former homes, so they were transfered to Germany. Not one displaced individual thought of staying in the country. To all of them, it was clear that the camps were a preparatory stage for their future lives either in Israel or in countries across the ocean.

Pre-kibbutzim were set up, as were yeshivot, Talmud Torah sessions, theaters, professional schools and other institutions. But even before the establishment of political organizations, sports clubs were created. Just one month after the establishment of Landsberg, the Sports Organization for Former Polish Prisoners in the Camp demanded soccer balls and uniforms.

The sports club of the Ihud party bloc was set up in March 1946. The major sports branches in which Jews were involved - soccer, boxing, volleyball and table tennis - filled up the days at the camps once work, training and other duties were completed.

Beyond physical fitness, persistence and discipline, sports became the cornerstone of the Holocaust survivors' new life and a basic need for those in the DP camps. "Write that we're alive and kicking and organized. Describe us so the world knows what we're doing within our Jewish community," they told reporters.

Now let's sing Hatikva

The refugees were able to unload much of their burdens through soccer. From the outset, friendlies between camps took place. In March 1946, buses packed with fans came to Bamburg Stadium to watch Ihud Landsberg play Makabi Bamberg. After thanking UNRRA and singing Hatikva (which had yet to become Israel's national anthem) and the Star Spangled Banner, the players commenced play in front of 3,000 people. Landsberg won 9-0.

Months later, the area under American control was divided into two leagues - south and north - each with 12 teams and a secondary league. On November 28, 1946, the Fuerth Windsheim area champions took on the Hof area champions - Hakoah Hof - to move up to the senior league. "After a strong battle, Hakoah Hof, with its sound technical and disciplined play, won 3-1," a newspaper reported.

The Yiddish papers, which were published in the camps, basically did not list league tables, but described the teams' successes and failures. One table of the 1947-8 southern league, however, was published and preserved: Landsberg won the championship ahead of, among others, Feldafing, Laupheim, Fernwald, and Munich.

The bi-weekly Jidisze Sport Cajtung , which published 5,000 copies, reported not only about developments and successes, but also disasters: On the way back from an away game, an army truck transporting people from the Eiring/Bad Reichenhall DP camp overturned, killing eight to 10 passengers.

In the Frankfurt region, a league was also set up, but due to the strength of Bar Kochba (later called Hakochav) Eschwege, there was no contest. Eschwege went on a road trip and easily beat Hagibor Bergen Belsen, Stern Bergen Belsen, Maccabi Lampertheim, and Hagibor Heidenheim. Among the 1,800 people at the camp, the team had its disposal 100 soccer players.

Tempers flying

Games against local German teams were never a consideration. The possibility of playing against former SS men was terrifying, and the anti-Semitism and distance of the Germans did not help. An attempt to hold a game between Jewish and non-Jewish displaced people from Poland ended in an altercation involving knives after a victory by the Jews.

The one exception was midfielder Julius Sosser, who lived in a small village with 30 other displaced people, and played for Kadima Schwabach, the nearby camp, as well as for 1913 TSV Georgensgmund. To this day, village elders speak of his accomplishments. Other instances are not documented, but a disciplinary committee law forbidding players to miss a camp practice session due to a German league game attests to their prevalence.

Soccer matches turned into major events for camp members as well as a source of identity. Fanatic fans, together with pent-up aggressiveness and anger of players, often made their way to the field. Maccabi Windsheim, for example, complained about the play of Makabi Bamberg in the 1947 tournament, after one of its defenders was knocked unconscious and had to be taken to a hospital. Insults and blows against referees happened frequently, and a slap against an opposing player led to a two-month suspension.

In 1947, 120 teams played in Jewish leagues in Germany. There were also competitions held in athletics, table tennis, basketball and handball. On New Year's Day, 120 boxers participated in a tournament before 10,000 fans. Some 97 German clubs were part of the World Maccabi Union, with Hakoah and Bar Kochba in the American sector, and other clubs in the British sector and Berlin. Add to that Hapoel, Hashomer Hatzair, Elitzur and local clubs, and the number reached 169. There were even youth and reserves clubs.

In 1948, the camps were emptied out. The establishment of Israel and opening up of the United States' borders to Holocaust refugees were a dream come true for the displaced individuals. Few remained, and the last camp in Foehrenwald was finally closed in 1957. Those who were in DP camps began their new lives in a place in which they thought they were desired. Even in the land of their choice, their lives were not easy, but they had learned something during their days in the camps.

"One day, a group of Polish children arrived at our school," Prof. Haim Kaufman of the Wingate Institute said. "We laughed at them. They were dressed in whitish suspenders and ties. We organized a soccer game - the strong Sabras against the weak Poles. They tore us apart."