About this episode

The episode explores the intersection of soccer, labor struggles, and significant historical strikes involving immigrant women and Black hospital workers.

As Spain and Argentina meet in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, Labor History Today looks beyond the action on the pitch to explore soccer's deep roots in working-class communities and labor struggles. British labor journalist and trade unionist Simon Sapper traces the history of "the people's game," from its origins in factory towns and mining communities to today's battles over billionaire ownership, rising ticket prices, and the commercialization of the world's most popular sport. Then we revisit one of the most important—and least remembered—labor struggles of the Progressive Era. While the 1912 "Bread and Roses" strike in Lawrence, Massachusetts is well known, a similar uprising unfolded just months later in Little Falls, New York. In an interview from our friends at the Green and Red Podcast, historian James Cheney, author of Women, Immigrants, and the Working-Class Battle in Little Falls, New York, 1912–1913, tells the story of the immigrant women textile workers who launched a spontaneous strike that drew support from the Industrial Workers of the World and became a landmark in labor history. Finally, on Labor History in 2:00, we remember the 1969 Charleston Hospital…

People in this episode

Guests: Simon Sapper, James Cheney

Topics covered

• labor history
• soccer
• working-class communities
• labor struggles
• women's rights
• civil rights
• union rights

Keywords

• soccer
• labor struggles
• working-class
• textile workers
• hospital workers
• Bread and Roses
• Charleston strike
• 2026 FIFA World Cup

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Industrial Workers of the World

Places: Lawrence, Massachusetts, Little Falls, New York, Argentina, Spain

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