Yahoo Sport 
EXCLUSIVE: RAMON VEGA - Wembley tribute to Paris tragedy shows football as a force for positive change
Yahoo's Sport Business Correspondent Ramon Vega discusses football's reaction to the horrific events this week and how the global game can be a positive force against hatred and fear.
The horrific events in Paris last week shocked and saddened the football world to its core.
The terrorists chose their targets because of the freedom and joy that these venues encapsulated- bars, cafes, a concert hall, a football stadium.
The loss of innocent life, of people who went out with their friends on a Friday evening and never came back, will never be forgotten and my thoughts are with their loved ones.
The defiance in the face of such callous barbarism was epitomised by the display of unity at Wembley this week when England and French supporters joined together to sing La Marseillaise under the stadium arch lit up in the colours of the tricolour.
It was an incredibly moving moment and made me extremely proud of the footballing world. Footballers and supporters often get negative press but the night at Wembley undermined many of those perceptions as everyone stood tall with great dignity and respect.
Of course, events like those in Paris put football into perspective - what is a game compared to lives being cut short so brutally?
I’m sure thoughts such as those would have been going through the minds of the players as they stood on the pitch for the anthems, especially given how one of them - Lassana Diarra- lost a cousin in the attacks.
It would have been very hard to focus on the game emotionally. You almost have to go into a zone where you try to detach your feelings on the pitch from those off it.
But that is easier said than done. Footballers are not robots and it is difficult to switch off emotions like a tap.
Football is often accused of being in its own self-contained bubble, oblivious to the world around it. One might say that is actually part of the point of the game- like cinema or music, it provides an opportunity to escape from day-today problems and be entertained.
It is, of course, more complex than that.
I am a strong believer in the power of football as a force for positive change around the globe. It has a unique ability to engage and unite different generations and nations.
It is also shaped and fashioned by the world we live in, a product of a wider social and cultural environment.
Sometimes, these external and internal elements intertwine more explicitly than at other times.
I remember playing just after the 9/11 terrorist atrocities and the impact that had on us. Knowing that I was going to go into the financial industry, the deaths of all of those working in that sector brought the tragedy home even more.
Indeed I have colleagues who lost friends and workmates in the attacks.
Over 14 years on, terror is again wreaking its deadly havoc on one of the world’s most exuberant cities. We cannot and must not give in.
This weekend the French anthem will again be played at Premier League grounds up and down the country.
It is the most eloquent, spirited and resounding answer to the terrorists and their message of hatred.
Ramon Vega is a versatile high-flying executive with a comprehensive track record of driving commercial success in finance, property and football with national, international and World Cup experience as captain of the Swiss National Team in 1994. Proven experience in managing $billion funds in the asset management industry as well as a turnaround specialist who combines financial and business acumen, Ramon has a flair for inspiring others to exceed their own expectations. Follow him on Twitter here @Ramon_Vega71 (http://frompitchtoboardroom.com)
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