About this episode
The episode explores the origins of the World Cup and its evolution into a multibillion-dollar event.
World Cup tickets are going for as high as $45,000. Not in most of our budgets. How did things get so out of hand when the tournament's founder intended to bridge class divides? Today on the show, the origins of the World Cup, from World War I to Mussolini’s fascist Italy, and how it grew into the multibillion-dollar spectacle the world is gearing up to watch. Guests: Jonathan Wilson, columnist at The Guardian and author of The Power and the Glory: A New History of the World Cup Simon Kuper, columnist at the Financial Times and author of World Cup Fever Support shows like Throughline with NPR+. Sign up today at plus.npr.org See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy
People in this episode
Host: NPR
Guests: Jonathan Wilson, Simon Kuper
Topics covered
- World Cup
- history
- class divides
- fascism
- sports culture
- global events
Keywords
- World Cup
- history
- Mussolini
- fascism
- sports
- global events
- class divides
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: The Guardian, Financial Times
Places: Italy
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