A chance to shine
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela all played international friendlies over the last few days, and some of them will be in action again this week.
The phrase 'international friendly' suggests that people from different nations come together to compete and to forge respect and understanding through football.
Pablo Aimar in action for Argentina
International football can claim to provide respite for some from the death and destruction that have stopped the planet in its tracks over recent weeks.
The World Cup brings normal conversation to a standstill in more than 200 countries.
But there are no pictures of fragments of people lying in the road.
Instead, there is the flowering of human potential, both individual and collective - and nothing more serious than refereeing mistakes and the odd off-the-ball incident.
Football is the true universal language, open to those of all sizes and races, a means by which culture can speak unto culture.
The game is, of course, a long way from being perfect. Many of its problems reflect the world in which it exists.
There is, for example, the greed and the arrogance of the developed nations, and corrupt leadership in many of the less developed nations.
But the soul of the game will never belong to the shareholders of the rich European clubs, or the South American director steering transfer fee money into a tax haven bank account.
Football offers those born on the wrong side of the tracks the chance to shine
The soul of football belongs to the kid on the outskirts of Buenos Aires who throws down an old jumper to make a goalpost.
It was by drawing on talent from that kind of background that Argentina won three of the last four World Youth Cups.
Indeed, were it not for the war they would currently be defending their title in the United Arab Emirates.
José Pekerman is the coach who took them to so many titles.
He makes a fascinating distinction between moulding young players in First and Third World backgrounds.
He makes it clear the size does not matter.
"I give priority to finding kids with skill," he said. "So we can quickly get them in contact with nutritionists. That's not a problem they have in Europe, because the state provides these things.
"Over there the kid will always be first an athlete and then a footballer. For us it's the other way round."
The jinking runs of the lightweight Pablo Aimar or the electric bursts of the stocky Javier Saviola are proof in action of Pekerman's philosophy.
They can make giant defenders collide into each other like circus clowns.
Football offers those born on the wrong side of the tracks the chance to shine.
It gives them a rare opportunity to compete on equal terms with their richer cousins.
It seems to be that once this war is over we will need football more than ever.
We will need as many international friendlies as we can get.