Session 5: Notable politically infused World Cup matches
Introduction
‘It’s very clear that politics should stay out of football and football should stay out of politics’ – FIFA President Gianni Infantino in 2018 (Hyde, 2019)
Several matches within World Cup history offer clear examples of where sport and politics collide despite what FIFA President Gianni Infantino says. Paradoxically, his words are from a press conference in Iran, following the nation’s diplomatic rift with Saudi Arabia. This session will pull together themes from throughout the course to show how the World Cup often reflects some of the current and historical political issues at play during matches.
Through the session you will be drawing on what was explored in Session 1 about how sport can be political to help explain current and historical issues, often viewed as national rivalries during individual matches. You will see through the session how different rivalries in World Cup matches illustrate how they are often politically infused. It helps illustrate how sport and the World Cup is political and provides a neat end to the course.
Admittedly, the match examples that have been selected are a ‘convenience sample’: they are ones about which there has been considerable popular and academic debate. Before you delve into the selected matches, explore the short list in the next section and what made them political.