Suspicions of corruption, death of migrant workers on its construction sites, questionable ecological balance sheet, winter edition... The World Cup in Qatar, which takes place from November 20 to December 18, is undoubtedly the most controversial football World Cup in history. .
Launched in November 2019, the FC Geopolitics Twitter account had one ambition: to talk about football through international politics.
And vice versa.
One year after the publication of "Football Club Geopolitics: 22 unusual stories to understand the world" - book released on the occasion of Euro-2021, Kevin Veyssiere, the author of the account, returns with 22 new stories centered on the rich history of the most prestigious of football competitions.
For France 24, he returns to three controversial editions, recalling that Fifa is not at his first attempt.
🚨 D-DAY 🥳
Very happy to announce today the release of Volume 2 of Football Club Geopolitics 🤗
📚 WORLD - 22 unusual stories about the Football World Cup
At @MaxMiloEditions and prefaced by @Romain_Molina
Available now⤵️
> https: //t.co/nwIELzSb5A pic.twitter.com/ItGCUrk6fl
— FC Geopolitics (@FCGeopolitics) September 27, 2022
Italy 1934: fascism triumphs
Context:
"This is the second World Cup in history, four years after the first edition in Uruguay. In view of the success, several European countries are lining up to organize it, in particular Benito Mussolini's Italy The fascist party sees it as a way to promote its regime and Italy internationally. Major means are implemented for the organization: it will be the first World Cup broadcast, many journalists are accredited, stadiums are built and Italy is emphasizing the reception of supporters… For its part, Fifa sees this Italian investment as a boon because it is then seeking to establish its competition on the international calendar.political instrumentalization of the World Cup by fascism."
A boycott?
"At that time, Europe was rather accommodating to far-right regimes. The fascist party has been in power since the 1920s, Hitler has just taken power in Germany. There is no dispute emerging. "
The competition:
"The competition is going very well for Italy. After an easy first game against the United States, they face Spain in the quarter-finals. It is from there that we start to see the hand of Mussolini and the fascist party. The match was a real butchery with many injuries on both sides and ended in a draw. At the time, no extra time or penalty shoot-outs, so the match was replayed the next day and Italy wins thanks to a more than lax refereeing in its favor.
In the semi-final, Italy faces Austria.
The coach of the latter knows that he does not play on equal terms.
When a journalist asks him "which Italian player he fears the most", he answers "the referee".
History proves him right because the referee helps the Italians to win the match.
The same referee will be renewed for the final and will have the right to a visit from the Duce before the final.
Faced with Czechoslovakia, Italy wins, despite denunciations of match fixing.
The referee will even be suspended afterwards.
It doesn't matter, Italy are world champions."
It doesn't matter Italy is world champion but it is fascism the big winner of the competition.
Mussolini will also give players a blow weighing 4 times heavier than the official reward:
the Coppa del Duce.
pic.twitter.com/G4GaYR9cl2
— FC Geopolitics (@FCGeopolitics) June 11, 2020
The balance sheet:
"This 1934 World Cup is Mussolini's competition. He is omnipresent there, rejecting the president of Fifa, Jules Rimet, in the shadows. It is the Italian leader who hands over the Cup, who is not the usual trophy but a "Coppa del Duce". It requires no less than six players to carry it. For fascist Italy, this competition is a consecration on all levels."
Argentina 1978: murders of opponents against match-fixing
Context
: "In 1976, a military dictatorship settled in Argentina under the command of General Videla. He wanted to legitimize his power and was going to use the World Cup, the 1978 edition of which was awarded to Argentina in 1966 He wants to reshape it in his image, silencing all possible disputes.
He knows that football is central in the country.
Argentina have been performing well for years.
She won several Copa America but no World Cup.
The country remains marked by the defeat in the final against the neighbor Uruguay during the first edition but also by the "drama of Malmö" of 1958, when the country is humiliated in the first round of the World Cup.
Videla is pushing for an Albiceleste win."
A boycott?
"Unlike 1934, a first protest movement emerged, particularly from European countries. However, this boycott was not going to take. At the time, the watchword was to dissociate sport and politics. The French boycott movement was so desperate not to find an echo that he is organizing a punch action: an incredible attempt to kidnap the coach at the time, Michel Hidalgo, a few days before leaving for Argentina.Dominique Rocheteau, the Green Angel , will raise the question of denouncing the abuses of the dictatorship but will give up.
It was also long thought that Dutch star Jordan Cruyff had boycotted the World Cup but in reality he just wanted to stay in Europe.
He did not want to leave his family, victim of an attempted kidnapping.
The competition: "
This World Cup has a somewhat exceptional format. After a first group stage, two other groups of four teams are formed. The first of these two groups qualify for the final. Brazil thinks of validating its ticket because the Argentina need to win their last match against Peru by more than four goals to overtake them in the standings, eventually winning 6-0. on the elimination of Peruvian opponents by Argentina.
In the final, Argentina won their tournament against the Netherlands despite suspicions about the arbitration.
This victory goes down in the history of Argentine football."
The balance sheet: "
This World Cup is a success for Videla. In addition to the sporting victory, the abuses of his regime have never been brought to light and the international community has accepted the place of Argentina. However, he will not capitalize not on it. Videla's expansionist project, particularly in the South, and the failure of the Falklands war will hasten the fall of the regime."
>> To read also: Argentina - England 1986: Diego Maradona's masterpiece
Russia 2018: the peak of Putin's sporting soft-power
Context:
"Russia receives the organization of the World Cup in 2010 at the same time as Qatar is awarded that of 2022. This is an important decade for Russia's sports policy. It also organizes the Sochi Olympics The latter are not so much a success for Putin and the Russians. First, the choice of the seaside resort of Sochi is criticized. Then, these Games are entirely turned to the glory of Russia and Vladimir Putin with a marked instrumentalization of the Games.In addition, the annexation of Crimea prevents the Russians from capitalizing on the event.
For the 2018 World Cup, Vladimir Putin and Russia decide to change their method.
He wants to make it anti-Sochi.
Rather than a glorification of the regime, he wants to make it a demonstration of Russia's openness to the world and the beauty of Russian territories.
He sets up visas combining World Cup and tourism, he builds modern stadiums.
A boycott?
"There are criticisms of respect for human rights in Russia. The opposition is muzzled as the competition approaches, but no protests emerge before the World Cup. Only the United Kingdom is making a diplomatic boycott linked to the assassination of the former Russian spy Sergei Skripal on British territory. But the boycott is not total since the English selection is very present."
The competition:
"The Russia-Saudi Arabia opening match was a triumph. While Russia appeared to be a weak team before the competition, they inflicted a correction on Saudi Arabia (5-0). They went on to outperform, dismissing in the round of 16 the favorite Spanish, before losing on penalties against Croatia, future finalist.
The balance sheet:
"For Putin, the competition is a success. The supporters who made the trip keep a positive image of Russia. The 2018 World Cup represents the apogee of the strategy of soft-power through organized sport in the system of the "sportokatura” described by researcher Lukas Aubin. However, again, the country is not going to capitalize on it: with the outbreak of war in Ukraine, Russia becomes a pariah of international sport. One of the first symbolic sanctions and the withdrawal from the Champions League final, moved from Saint Petersburg to Paris."
The World Cup in Qatar beyond football:
>> Behind "carbon neutrality", the "greenwashing" World Cup
>> "It's a disposable workforce": the hell of migrant workers in Qatar
>> A controversial World Cup: Qatar's efforts to counter criticism
>> Qatar: shadow workers
>> Should we boycott the World Cup in Qatar? An Emirate under criticism
>> A bought World Cup? Since 2010, suspicions of corruption have weighed on Qatar
>> After Qatar, is a "greener" World Cup possible?
>> Mondial-2022: a political, economic or "hypocritical" boycott?
>> I have the right, I don't have the right... Guide for the good little supporter in Qatar
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