Category: Memes

As a transnational organizing body with tremendous influence on governments and development initiatives, FIFA has been called a “neoliberal Trojan Horse.” This graphic, from the TPP Media March, calls attention to the connections between the world spectacle of the World Cup and the transnational free-trade agreements being pushed all over the world, at great cost…

As Argentina heads into the semifinal, we give props to the great former Argentinian team captain, Javier Zanetti. Always a friend of the people, Zanetti famously demonstrated his support for the Zapatistas in Mexico, and organized his teammates at Inter Milan to send money and goods to autonomous communities in Chiapas. In response, EZLN leader…

Ann Coulter fears soccer – as she should. Soccer has deep roots in American radical communities. Long rejected for being un-American by Coulter and other denizens of the right, futbol has been embraced by those of us who seek social justice, for its working-class roots and internationalism. One highlight in the history of radical American…

Without immigrants, there are no Les Bleus – and some of the brightest stars in French football, including Karim Benzema, playing today for France, are products of Algeria’s fraught relationship with their former colonizers. For example, People’s Game featured guest Laurent Dubois writes on the politics of singing (or not singing) La Marseillaise for France’s…

Known as one of the greatest footballers of all time, Dutch icon Johan Cruyff brought philosophy and politics onto the field. In his career at traditionally left-wing Dutch club Ajax, and as part of the legendary Dutch national team in the 1970s, Cruyff was instrumental in developing the style of play known as “Total Football,”…

Futbol can be such a source of joy, as we applaud Chile’s valiant performance against Brazil today; but we must also remember it in relation to the tremendous suffering endured by the Chilean people. Words from Victor Jara’s last poem, “Estadio Chile,” written from the open-air prison of the Estadio Chile, before he and thousands…

Much respect to #CHI’s superb play on the field, almost eliminating Brazil today; we pay tribute to the legacy of the Unidad Popular’s dream of a better kind of sport in a socialist society. Salvador Allende himself was a former footballer who played for Chilean club Everton Viña del Mar, named after the English club…

Just as soccer has multiple, contested meanings, so does the idea of the nation. Former footballer Frantz Fanon understood this well. Fanon played football in school, and organized matches as part of his work at Blida-Joinville Psychiatric Hospital, following his psychoanalytic approach that connected patients’ rehabilitation to the rhythms of everyday life. The importance, as…

As Nigeria faces off against Argentina today, we pay tribute to Justin Fashanu, Nigerian-English striker and the first openly gay professional footballer. Born in inner-city London to immigrant parents, he enjoyed a successful career in English club soccer, being the first black player to command a transfer fee of 1 million pounds. Fashanu came out…

As Ivory Coast kicks off against Greece, we cheer on Didier Drogba, the footballer who ended a war. After qualifying for the 2006 World Cup, Drogba and his teammates appealed to their fellow citizens to lay down their guns after 5 years of civil war. A ceasefire was soon called, and Drogba became a hero…