We all knew that eventually, money and corporate interest would mutate the game at the top level into something approaching RollerballIn my children’s novel Future Friend, which I began writing in January 2020, the future is imagined as a dystopian universe where the presence of mutant viruses infecting the air mean that no one goes out. When it was published, in the midst of lockdown, I was therefore congratulated by some for my previously unacknowledged psychic powers. A not so noticed feature of the Future Friend world, however, is that football is still played there: but only in one stadium, above the clouds, and only the super-rich can go and watch games there. So, given Sunday’s Super League news, I...
There has been criticism, but don’t expect fans to mobilise in huge numbers against their own clubs, not like in EnglandPoor Roberto Carlos. It was his first and hopefully his last day in the job, and he had to deal with that. At the end of every game, former Real Madrid striker Emilio Butragueño faces the cameras. Impeccably polite, instantly likeable, part of Butragueño’s role as director of institutional affairs is to gently, expertly navigate match-day interviews; essentially to say not very much but do it nicely. Although there is the occasional leading question and sometimes a message to deliver, an idea to implant, it’s rarely a big deal.This time though it was the biggest deal of all, maybe ever...
The clubs behind the proposed tournament must find competitive sport offensive, all the way from the grassroots game to the World CupPerhaps once all this has shaken out, once the imminent threat of a breakaway European super league has been resolved one way or the other, football will find the time for a little reflection.How we reached this point. How the game’s elite clubs managed to engineer a scenario in which a hostile takeover came to feel inevitable, even irresistible. How the world’s most popular sport managed to hand over so much of its power and wealth and influence to people who despise it. Related: Premier League condemns European super league after English clubs sign up Related: ‘Pure greed’: Gary...
Norwegian clubs and players have taken a stand for migrant workers, but who is prepared to follow them? While we should expect no better from the ghouls at Fifa, it remains an enduring ignominy that over a decade after their decision to grant World Cup 2022 to Qatar, apparently widespread global indifference means the tournament remains fully on course to take place in the new-build stadiums of the Arab state. So much so that a qualification process some thought might never happen began this week.Thousands of migrant workers have died in Qatar since Sepp Blatter gifted them their Fifa-approved golden ticket. The state’s own official figures for deaths specifically related to construction for World Cup stadiums are small – three...
The biggest compliment you can pay the veteran Milan striker is that sometimes he is almost as good as he says he isZlatan Ibrahimovic believes you should stick to what you’re good at, which is presumably why he’s been talking about himself again. The Milan striker is probably unique among elite modern footballers in that despite his considerable body of work on the pitch, the most memorable episodes of his career have emanated largely from his own mouth. Perhaps the warmest compliment you can pay Ibrahimovic as a footballer is that there are times when he is genuinely almost as good as he says he is. Related: 'I will never shut up': LeBron James responds to Ibrahimovic criticism Related: Zlatan's...