Occasionally, controversies arise that remind us of the link between sport and politics. It was once common for leading figures in the sporting world to declare that sport was, effectively, a politics-free zone. Sport was cast as the perpetual innocent party, liable to be corrupted by any connection with politics. However, it has become increasingly clear that these assertions are fundamentally wrong and there are numerous examples where sport and politics mix only too well. This free course examines how sport and politics exist, support and challenge one another through the contextual backdrop of the football World Cup.