Iraq ousted from World Cup qualifying, and they live to tell about it!

soccernet-akamai.espn.go.com...

DUBAI, June 22 (Reuters) - Qatar pulled off a stunning late victory to beat Iraq 1-0 on Sunday, shattering the Asian Champions' dream of reaching the 2010 World Cup finals.

Amazing, Iraq loses a very important soccer game, and every single player is still alive! It wasn't always like this.....

www.iraqfoundation.org...

After drawing or losing games, players were punished. A missed penalty or other poor play entailed a ritual head shaving at the Stadium of the People, or being spat on by Uday's bodyguards.

A series of poor passes, carefully counted, could result in a player's being forced to stand before the president's son in the dressing room, hands at his side, while he was punched or slapped in the face an equal number of times.

But those were the lesser miseries. Some players endured long periods in a military prison, beaten on their backs with electric cables until blood flowed. Other punishments included ''matches'' kicking concrete balls around the prison yard in 130-degree heat, and 12-hour sessions of push-ups, sprints and other fitness drills, wearing heavy military fatigues and boots.