About this episode

Jacob Shapiro discusses the intersection of soccer and geopolitics with guest Chris Branch, exploring various controversies and cultural aspects of the sport.

Jacob grabs Chris Branch, senior writer at The Athletic and author of The Pulse, to talk about the World Cup as geopolitics. They cover Trump's red-card intervention and the Balogun controversy, England-Argentina and the ghost of the Falklands, why sports and politics were never actually separate, and why China and India can barely qualify while Cape Verde runs wild. Plus: whether soccer ever truly takes hold in America, and why it might take a billionaire treating the sport like a Carnegie library to make it happen. -- Timestamps: (00:00) - Welcome and Guest Intro (01:41) - In-Person Catch-Up (02:40) - Meet Chris Branch (03:28) - Why This World Cup Hit Different (05:09) - Sports Writing Meets Politics (07:11) - Fan Culture and National Rivalries (10:24) - FIFA Corruption and New Fans (14:03) - Picking a Premier League Team (15:16) - Can Soccer Catch On in America (17:49) - Why MLS Struggles (21:55) - Pay-to-Play and US Development (29:22) - Women’s Soccer and Global Gaps (33:47) - Trump, FIFA, and the Balogun Saga (35:29) - Red Card Controversy (36:25) - Iran Match Bad Karma (37:37) - Play Anyway Debate (42:22) - Sports as Common Ground (44:37) - Stars Politics and Fandom…

People in this episode

Host: Jacob Shapiro

Guest: Chris Branch

Topics covered

• soccer
• geopolitics
• sports and politics
• World Cup
• MLS
• fan culture
• youth sports

Keywords

• China
• soccer
• World Cup
• Trump
• FIFA
• MLS
• youth development
• fan culture
• Balogun
• sports politics

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: The Athletic, FIFA

Books & works: The Pulse

Places: England, Argentina, Iran, Cape Verde, America, Falklands

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