September 13, 2025 • 10 mins
The tournament has always been political, but the US's antagonism toward its co-hosts stands out.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
At wil Cup twenty twenty six, US risks a diplomatic
own goal by Jonathan Wilson. Jonathan Wilson is a host
of Libera podcast and a columnist for The Guardian. His
new book The Power and the Glory, a New History
of the World Cup, was published in the UK on
September fourth and will be out in the U s
in October twenty twenty five, read by Rameshmetani. Jules Rimett
(00:26):
was born in eastern France in eighteen seventy three and
raised by his grandfather, a miller, his parents having left
the countryside to seek work in Paris. An assiduous student,
Rimet was inspired at an early age by Pope Leo
thirteenth eighteen ninety one in cyclical Rerum Novarum, which demanded
better conditions for the working classes. Later, as a qualified
(00:50):
lawyer and the third president of FIFA, soccer's global governing body,
Rimet took the view that sport could be a vehicle
for social good. He believed that football players should be paid,
otherwise how could they afford to train, and rejected the
Olympic insistence on amateurism, which he called the anti social
(01:10):
pretension of a privileged oligarchy. Thus, when Remitt planned football's
first World Cup in Uruguay in nineteen thirty, it was
to be a global competition for all. The day after
he arrived in monte Video, the Miller's grandson was invited
to an assado, a South American barbecue, with the President
of the Republic, Juan Campiste Wee. From its inception, the
(01:34):
World Cup has been a political event. This has often
manifested on the pitch, whether in victories for Italy in
nineteen thirty four, Brazil in nineteen seventy, or Argentina nineteen
seventy eight, all used as propaganda by dictatorships, or in
the fraught matches between political opponents England and Argentina in
(01:54):
nineteen eighty six or the US and Iran in nineteen
ninety eight. But most overt and consistent political use of
the World Cup has been by the host nations, all
twenty two of which have used the competition to project
a particular image of their nation that will be no
different at the twenty third World Cup, to be staged
(02:16):
in the US, Canada and Mexico. In summer twenty twenty six.
Uruguay first realized the power of football after winning gold
at the Olympic Games in Paris in nineteen twenty four,
in South American diplomatic circles. The newspaper Eldea reported at
the time, it is said that the performance of the
(02:36):
Uruguay team has done more for the fame of Uruguay
than thousands of dollars spent on propaganda. How better to
capitalize on that triumph and repeat four years later than
to host the first World Cup, which also happens to
coincide with the centenary of Uruguay's constitution a few years
after it achieved independence. Montevideo was then thriving, culturally vibrant capital.
(03:03):
The Centenario Stadium was commissioned and constructed with four double
tiered stands opening out like a flower to represent the
blooming of Uruguay, and a one hundred meter high tower
with nine stories to represent the nine stripes on the
national flag. The aim was to show off Uruguay's political ideology,
(03:23):
known as Batsissimo, which emphasized progressive, liberal values and social
and economic development. In fact, less than a year after
the final, the country was thrust into political and economic turmoil,
thanks largely to the Wall Street crash in nineteen thirty three,
Uruguay suffered its first coup and a young democracy was
(03:45):
swept aside. Mussolini in nineteen thirty four wanted Italy to
win the World Cup on home soil for the honor
and sporting prestige of the nation. But that wasn't all.
As the then president of the Italian Football Federation, Giorgio
Vaccaro put it, hosting was an opportunity to demonstrate the
(04:06):
organizational efficiency of Fascist sport in general and football in particular,
highlighting in times of so called crisis our infinite national resources.
The government subsidized travel for foreign fans and cut fares
for traveling between host cities. Radio match commentaries were broadcast
to twelve of the competing nations. An unprecedented range of
(04:30):
merchandise was created, all intended to show off Italian craftsmanship.
Futurist artist Filippo Marinetti was commissioned to design the official poster,
which featured a thrusting, muscular figure in Italy's kit. Even
match tickets were printed on high quality paper to encourage
fans to keep them as souvenirs, and everything, of course,
(04:53):
was emblazoned with their fascis. The bundle of rods that
had been a signifier of power in Italy from Roman times.
The Belgian referee John Langanus, who are taking charge of
the nineteen thirty final, judged the tournament a sporting fiasco
in which, beside the desire to win, all other sporting
considerations were non existent. But the Italians were delighted. The
(05:17):
spontaneous and heartfelt statements of our foreign colleagues. La Gazeta
de los Porto proclaimed are more than sufficient to show
Mussolini's Italy that was once little Italy, of all improvisations
and apologies, has organized the Festival of Football with style, flexibility, precision,
even the curtsy and the meticulousness that indicate an absolute
(05:40):
maturity and preparedness. Mussolini's hijacking of the tournament for his
own ends may have been extreme, but every host has
used the World Cup to broadcast themselves to the world.
Ten years after the sewers crisis humiliated the British government,
the nineteen sixty six edition unveiled the tournament's first time
mascot World Cup Willie, showing very clearly England's new preferred
(06:05):
self image. Here was the Imperial Lion defanct given a
Union flag t shirt, a beatles hecut and a cheeky
grin and used to sell all manner of tat from
soft toys to tea trays. This was the Briton of
the Who and Mary Quant of James Bond and Swinging London, irreverent,
(06:27):
cool and alert to commercial possibility. More recently, as the
cost of staging a World Cup has increased, the notion
that a host might make a financial profit has disappeared.
South Africa in twenty ten and Brazil in twenty fourteen
both suffered huge losses and saddled countries with white elephant
(06:47):
stadiums that have become debilitating drains on resources. The Estadio
Nacional Mane Garinja in Brasilia, for instance, refurbished at a
cost of nine hundred million dollars for the twenty fourteen Turner,
is now used as a bus depot to help cover costs.
Russia in twenty eighteen and Katar in twenty twenty two
(07:08):
both seemingly accepted the enormous bill, seeing soft power benefits
in hosting the tournament, despite having no realistic chance of
winning it. Although the term sport washing is often used,
it doesn't seem quite adequate. For Katar. In particular, the
World Cup was part of a broader investment in sport
designed to raise global awareness of the country and encourage
(07:32):
more international trade. The cost was significant three hundred billion
dollars and lasting reputational damage from widespread reports of human
rights abuses and migrant worker deaths during the construction of
infrastructure ahead of the tournament. Katar's leaders deemed the tournament
worth it, nonetheless, which brings us to twenty twenty six.
(07:55):
This summer's Club World Cup in the US, a dry
run for no next year's tournament, gave some indication of
how Donald Trump might approach the event. The President's bizarre
grand standing at July's trophy presentation was unlike anything since
nineteen thirty four, when Mussolini insisted on presenting his own trophy,
(08:16):
the Coppa de Luce, which was six times larger than
the official World Cup. Trump has already moved the December
draw for the World Cup from Las Vegas to the
Kennedy Center in Washington, d C, where he has appointed
himself as chair. Where this World Cup might be truly
different is in one host's attitude towards its co hosts
(08:39):
and the rest of the world. Only once before have
there been joint hosts. South Korea and Japan shared the
tournament in two thousand and two. They effectively ran parallel
but related events amid diplomatic frosternness, but there was never
the contempt Trump has shown to both Mexico and Canada.
(08:59):
Every pre pre host has also invited the world to
visit to see the greatness of their nation. In Russia
and Katar, possession of a match ticket guaranteed a temporary visa.
In contrast, the U S government right now seems actively
hostile too much of the rest of the world, including
countries whose national teams have either qualified or are likely
(09:21):
to do so. Iran, for instance, is one of the
twelve countries against whom Trump has imposed a travel ban.
The players, as elite sportspeople, are likely to be exempt
from the ban, but that may not apply to backroom staff,
and it seems almost certain that Iranian fans outside the
US will not be able to attend matches in person.
(09:43):
Ecuador also looks likely to qualify, but the waiting time
for a visa interview for the US is already longer
than the period between the final qualifier and the opening game.
And then there is the threat as seen at the
Club World Cup of Ice agents targeting matter and watch
alongs in their search for undocumented migrants. Of course, everyone
(10:05):
is welcome to come and see this wonderful event. US
Vice President J. D. Van said in June. We want
them to come, we want them to celebrate, we want
them to watch the games. But when the time is up,
we want them to go home. Otherwise they will have
to talk to Secretary of Homeland Security Christynome. Where Mussolini
offered subsidies for foreign fans, the Trump government is issuing
(10:29):
thinly veiled threats. The World Cup has drifted further and
further from Riemit's ideals, but it still brings the host
nation into sharper focus for all the world to see.
At wil Cup twenty twenty six, US risks a diplomatic
own goal by Jonathan Wilson. Jonathan Wilson is a host
of Libera podcast and a columnist for The Guardian. His
new book The Power and the Glory, a New History
of the World Cup, was published in the UK on
September fourth and will be out in the U s
in October twenty twenty five, read by Rameshmetani. Jules Rimett
(00:26):
was born in eastern France in eighteen seventy three and
raised by his grandfather, a miller, his parents having left
the countryside to seek work in Paris. An assiduous student,
Rimet was inspired at an early age by Pope Leo
thirteenth eighteen ninety one in cyclical Rerum Novarum, which demanded
better conditions for the working classes. Later, as a qualified
(00:50):
lawyer and the third president of FIFA, soccer's global governing body,
Rimet took the view that sport could be a vehicle
for social good. He believed that football players should be paid,
otherwise how could they afford to train, and rejected the
Olympic insistence on amateurism, which he called the anti social
(01:10):
pretension of a privileged oligarchy. Thus, when Remitt planned football's
first World Cup in Uruguay in nineteen thirty, it was
to be a global competition for all. The day after
he arrived in monte Video, the Miller's grandson was invited
to an assado, a South American barbecue, with the President
of the Republic, Juan Campiste Wee. From its inception, the
(01:34):
World Cup has been a political event. This has often
manifested on the pitch, whether in victories for Italy in
nineteen thirty four, Brazil in nineteen seventy, or Argentina nineteen
seventy eight, all used as propaganda by dictatorships, or in
the fraught matches between political opponents England and Argentina in
(01:54):
nineteen eighty six or the US and Iran in nineteen
ninety eight. But most overt and consistent political use of
the World Cup has been by the host nations, all
twenty two of which have used the competition to project
a particular image of their nation that will be no
different at the twenty third World Cup, to be staged
(02:16):
in the US, Canada and Mexico. In summer twenty twenty six.
Uruguay first realized the power of football after winning gold
at the Olympic Games in Paris in nineteen twenty four,
in South American diplomatic circles. The newspaper Eldea reported at
the time, it is said that the performance of the
(02:36):
Uruguay team has done more for the fame of Uruguay
than thousands of dollars spent on propaganda. How better to
capitalize on that triumph and repeat four years later than
to host the first World Cup, which also happens to
coincide with the centenary of Uruguay's constitution a few years
after it achieved independence. Montevideo was then thriving, culturally vibrant capital.
(03:03):
The Centenario Stadium was commissioned and constructed with four double
tiered stands opening out like a flower to represent the
blooming of Uruguay, and a one hundred meter high tower
with nine stories to represent the nine stripes on the
national flag. The aim was to show off Uruguay's political ideology,
(03:23):
known as Batsissimo, which emphasized progressive, liberal values and social
and economic development. In fact, less than a year after
the final, the country was thrust into political and economic turmoil,
thanks largely to the Wall Street crash in nineteen thirty three,
Uruguay suffered its first coup and a young democracy was
(03:45):
swept aside. Mussolini in nineteen thirty four wanted Italy to
win the World Cup on home soil for the honor
and sporting prestige of the nation. But that wasn't all.
As the then president of the Italian Football Federation, Giorgio
Vaccaro put it, hosting was an opportunity to demonstrate the
(04:06):
organizational efficiency of Fascist sport in general and football in particular,
highlighting in times of so called crisis our infinite national resources.
The government subsidized travel for foreign fans and cut fares
for traveling between host cities. Radio match commentaries were broadcast
to twelve of the competing nations. An unprecedented range of
(04:30):
merchandise was created, all intended to show off Italian craftsmanship.
Futurist artist Filippo Marinetti was commissioned to design the official poster,
which featured a thrusting, muscular figure in Italy's kit. Even
match tickets were printed on high quality paper to encourage
fans to keep them as souvenirs, and everything, of course,
(04:53):
was emblazoned with their fascis. The bundle of rods that
had been a signifier of power in Italy from Roman times.
The Belgian referee John Langanus, who are taking charge of
the nineteen thirty final, judged the tournament a sporting fiasco
in which, beside the desire to win, all other sporting
considerations were non existent. But the Italians were delighted. The
(05:17):
spontaneous and heartfelt statements of our foreign colleagues. La Gazeta
de los Porto proclaimed are more than sufficient to show
Mussolini's Italy that was once little Italy, of all improvisations
and apologies, has organized the Festival of Football with style, flexibility, precision,
even the curtsy and the meticulousness that indicate an absolute
(05:40):
maturity and preparedness. Mussolini's hijacking of the tournament for his
own ends may have been extreme, but every host has
used the World Cup to broadcast themselves to the world.
Ten years after the sewers crisis humiliated the British government,
the nineteen sixty six edition unveiled the tournament's first time
mascot World Cup Willie, showing very clearly England's new preferred
(06:05):
self image. Here was the Imperial Lion defanct given a
Union flag t shirt, a beatles hecut and a cheeky
grin and used to sell all manner of tat from
soft toys to tea trays. This was the Briton of
the Who and Mary Quant of James Bond and Swinging London, irreverent,
(06:27):
cool and alert to commercial possibility. More recently, as the
cost of staging a World Cup has increased, the notion
that a host might make a financial profit has disappeared.
South Africa in twenty ten and Brazil in twenty fourteen
both suffered huge losses and saddled countries with white elephant
(06:47):
stadiums that have become debilitating drains on resources. The Estadio
Nacional Mane Garinja in Brasilia, for instance, refurbished at a
cost of nine hundred million dollars for the twenty fourteen Turner,
is now used as a bus depot to help cover costs.
Russia in twenty eighteen and Katar in twenty twenty two
(07:08):
both seemingly accepted the enormous bill, seeing soft power benefits
in hosting the tournament, despite having no realistic chance of
winning it. Although the term sport washing is often used,
it doesn't seem quite adequate. For Katar. In particular, the
World Cup was part of a broader investment in sport
designed to raise global awareness of the country and encourage
(07:32):
more international trade. The cost was significant three hundred billion
dollars and lasting reputational damage from widespread reports of human
rights abuses and migrant worker deaths during the construction of
infrastructure ahead of the tournament. Katar's leaders deemed the tournament
worth it, nonetheless, which brings us to twenty twenty six.
(07:55):
This summer's Club World Cup in the US, a dry
run for no next year's tournament, gave some indication of
how Donald Trump might approach the event. The President's bizarre
grand standing at July's trophy presentation was unlike anything since
nineteen thirty four, when Mussolini insisted on presenting his own trophy,
(08:16):
the Coppa de Luce, which was six times larger than
the official World Cup. Trump has already moved the December
draw for the World Cup from Las Vegas to the
Kennedy Center in Washington, d C, where he has appointed
himself as chair. Where this World Cup might be truly
different is in one host's attitude towards its co hosts
(08:39):
and the rest of the world. Only once before have
there been joint hosts. South Korea and Japan shared the
tournament in two thousand and two. They effectively ran parallel
but related events amid diplomatic frosternness, but there was never
the contempt Trump has shown to both Mexico and Canada.
(08:59):
Every pre pre host has also invited the world to
visit to see the greatness of their nation. In Russia
and Katar, possession of a match ticket guaranteed a temporary visa.
In contrast, the U S government right now seems actively
hostile too much of the rest of the world, including
countries whose national teams have either qualified or are likely
(09:21):
to do so. Iran, for instance, is one of the
twelve countries against whom Trump has imposed a travel ban.
The players, as elite sportspeople, are likely to be exempt
from the ban, but that may not apply to backroom staff,
and it seems almost certain that Iranian fans outside the
US will not be able to attend matches in person.
(09:43):
Ecuador also looks likely to qualify, but the waiting time
for a visa interview for the US is already longer
than the period between the final qualifier and the opening game.
And then there is the threat as seen at the
Club World Cup of Ice agents targeting matter and watch
alongs in their search for undocumented migrants. Of course, everyone
(10:05):
is welcome to come and see this wonderful event. US
Vice President J. D. Van said in June. We want
them to come, we want them to celebrate, we want
them to watch the games. But when the time is up,
we want them to go home. Otherwise they will have
to talk to Secretary of Homeland Security Christynome. Where Mussolini
offered subsidies for foreign fans, the Trump government is issuing
(10:29):
thinly veiled threats. The World Cup has drifted further and
further from Riemit's ideals, but it still brings the host
nation into sharper focus for all the world to see.
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