Soccer is a sport for the people but it doesn’t give any benefits to the people. Thirty-two countries leave everything on the field and have one goal in mind: to lift the 18 karat gold trophy and give glory to their country. No matter how close or far your team gets to becoming champions, there’s immeasurable pride in being able to yell out, “GOAL” as your country’s flag waves over the field before a global audience. FIFA’s annual tournament compels people to spend hundreds to thousands of dollars to watch these games live, whether they’re travelling across the world or viewing at their local pub. Needless to say, this money does not funnel back into the communities that support FIFA or the sport. And while the nationalism can be intoxicating, it rarely amounts to more than a distraction for the masses.

Soccer is inherently political. In the first game of the 2018 World Cup, the Russian president sat next to the Saudi Arabian president while their teams competed on the field below. Both countries have been involved in heated and controversial conflicts over Syria. The final found French President Emmanuel Macron seated next to Vladimir Putin and Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, the Croatian President. Not only have relations between Russia and Croatia chilled after the FIFA 2018 host met a Ukrainian uprising with brutal military force, but Macron’s and Putin’s strained relationship jovially transformed to talks about trade after France won the coveted futbol title.

 

This chumminess is not a mistake. Billions of dollars run through governments, corporations, and private investors as this event unfolds. FIFA funneled over $400 million dollars into local committees for the Brazil 2014 World Cup – their highest expense that year. Brazil spent almost $4 billion just renovating stadiums for the tournament which, despite providing massive profits in contracts and bribes for construction and chemical company Odebrecht, contributed to the country’s overall deficit after the World Cup was over. FIFA made almost $5 billion in profit that year, mainly from TV rights, but also from marketing rights, ticketing, hospitality rights, and licensing.  

Despite Brazil’s financial woes leading to massive uprisings, countries still compete for the privilege of hosting FIFA’s main event. This is why we saw advertisements for Qatar Airways plastered all over World Cup broadcasts this year. The 2022 World Cup will be hosted by the Middle Eastern country with a questionable human rights record and virtually no soccer history. After Qatar won FIFA’s “fair, objective, and transparent” bidding process, a global uproar ensued. Aside from the fact that homophobia, anti-semitism, and terrorist violence are all sanctioned by the state, Qatar’s practices in building infrastructure for the tournament have proven deplorable. Migrant workers live and work in deadly conditions after their work visas are deliberately retained and their wages withheld. This is modern day slavery. Claims that the biggest event in sports will bring jobs and economic prosperity through construction and tourism are simply false.

Who really benefits? Industry titans with the funds to bribe FIFA’s bidding committee later exploit workers, communities, and the land itself for profit. It’s a frighteningly clear example of how the capitalist class manipulates government funds. Russia’s FIFA committee requested an additional $325 million dollars toward World Cup expenses without any explanation. In a document the Russian government said the money was mainly for construction projects, but they didn’t provide any specific details. In Brazil, soccer fans gathered in brand new stadiums that were right next to favelas which were rapidly gentrified for the event. Four years later, twelve stadiums that were built over people’s homes stand empty. Money floats around and governments can dig into federal funds, essentially resulting in a huge cash-grab for any corporation claiming financial gain.

Conditions for the 2026 World Cup are already proving to be polemic. Amid political grandstanding over NAFTA negotiations, border walls, and tariff wars, Trump, Trudeau, and former Mexican President Peña Nieto were all giddy about the U.S., Canada, and Mexico winning the FIFA bid. If the World Cup’s history has shown us anything, it’s that global leaders will hock a narrative of diplomatic unity and economic growth while working in the interest of billionaires that include themselves.

 

 

Now that the next World Cup is coming to our home, we should be vigilant of the relationships that are and will continue to develop. Beckham’s MLS stadium plans, for example, have already drummed up issues around gentrification, the movement of toxic waste, and competing business interests. His most recent proposal involves the dynastic development firm MasTec and the potential for almost $50 million in annual revenue (through land rental and taxes) for Miami-Dade county. All these decisions will help bring profit to developers, politicians, and land owners as people continue to get exploited and used for the benefit of the few on top.

 

 

Nationalism and warring class interests have long been weaponized against the people to keep us divided. Beckham, MasTec, and city commissioners will tell us that bulldozing our communities, razing our land, and flooding the city with short-term, minimum wage jobs is going to help us grow. We know that our well-being is at the bottom of their list. We know that they will trample our culture and our livelihood for a low bottom line and a high profit.

We need to get organized in order to combat their efforts before it’s too late. We need to galvanize people in our neighborhoods, in our workplaces, and in our social circles. We need to raise political consciousness in order to recognize the exploitation inherent to capitalism. And while we can have pride for our home, we also need to stand united against the violence of borders and the dangers of nationalism in a global arrangement that is not and has never been for us.

Stand Up. Fight Back. ORGANIZE.

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