Donald Trump's World Cup?
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In this episode, we're talking about the people's sport, football, and its fascinating relationship with anti-fascism and the political power of sport ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
Host Nick Dearden speaks with Chris Lee, author of The Defiant: A History of Football Against Fascism, Daniel Noroña from Amnesty International US, and Shaista Aziz, co-founder of The Three Hijabis.
Throughout history, authoritarian regimes have used international sporting events to whitewash their reputations. The World Cup is usually framed as a celebration of unity and global joy around love for the sport, but this year’s events in Trump’s America are likely to become sites of repression and human rights abuses – despite Trump being given the first ever FIFA ‘Peace Prize’ earlier this year.
In This Episode
- Why football has become such a battleground over identity, nationalism, and resistance
- The People’s Olympiad – the anti-fascist alternative to the 1936 Berlin Olympics
- The human rights crisis in the United States under the Trump administration, the heightening of authoritarian practices, and erosion of the rule of law
- How Trump is deputising federal and local law enforcement to build a deportation machine
- The movement in England following the 2022 Euros to ban racism in football
- What genuine change looks like, and when it it just “sportswashing”
The power of fans to change not only the game, but politics
Chris Lee
Blog: Outside Write
Book: The Defiant: A History of Football Against Fascism
Instagram
Amnesty International
Report: Humanity Must Win: Defending Rights, Tackling Repression at the 2026 FIFA World Cup
The Three Hijabis
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Music(cc): Intro R&B instrumental loop, Mcgrogo (Freesound.org)