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How the Worst Values of Sports Are Taking Over America

Robert Lipsyte Tom Dispatch
Say one thing about the world of sports: in some fashion, it invariably reflects developments in the larger world. It hardly matters whether the subject is war or inequality. Take a knee for a moment and think about that or, of Donald Trump....

books

FIFA and Soccer’s Culture of Corruption

Simon Kuper The New York Review of Books
In 2015, FIFA, the governing body of world soccer, was brought down by allegations of industrial-scale bribes, kickbacks, money laundering, racketeering and tax evasion. Its corruption extended from the decision to send the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar to cases of embezzlement worldwide. The author even interviews its bent former president Sepp Blatter.

Celtic Soccer Solidarity with Palestine - Match the Fine For Palestine: The Higher You Build Your Barriers, the Taller We Become

Abby Zimet; Wilson Dizard Common Dreams and Mondoweiss
The defiant display of Palestinian flags in Glasgow last week by Scottish fans of the Celtic soccer team raised over $200,000 in donations online, all marked for two Palestinian charitable groups. Activist fans of Scotland's Celtics soccer team - the working-class, historically progressive community already facing punishment for flying Palestinian flags at a recent game against Israel to protest the Occupation - have launched the fundraiser.

Friday Nite Videos -- July 10, 2015

Portside
Jon Batiste & Stay Human -- St. James Infirmary. Megan Rapinoe: 'Being Yourself Is Most Important.' Retrumplican Party. Rep. Jenny Horne on the Confederate Flag. Movie: What Happened, Miss Simone?

The World of Soccer Must Be Rebuilt From the Ground Up

David Goldblatt The Guardian
Criminal investigations are welcome, but they must result in democratic reform at both Fifa and regional and national football associations. It is time for the politics of Fifa to be extended beyond the eternal insiders of the dysfunctional football family, the royal houses of the Gulf, and the stooges of authoritarian regimes and commercial interests that pass for representatives of the world’s football nations.
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