World Cup boosts Iran’s image, highlights political sports battles
By James M. Dorsey It didn’t take long for it to emerge…
AFC power struggle reflects sorry state of football governance
By James M. Dorsey FIFA Vice President and Asian Football Confederation…
Lax FIFA policing of political interference in football focuses on Egypt
By James M. Dorsey World football body FIFA has dispatched investigators to…
Jail sentences re-position Egyptian football as potential protest venue
By James M. Dorsey An Egyptian court has sentenced 12 militant football…
Egyptian autocrats struggle with football’s political pros and cons
By James M. Dorsey An Egyptian government initiative to build more than…
Bahrain detains soccer teams and scores of players and athletes
By James M. Dorsey Bahrain has detained a soccer team as well…
World Cup emerges as agent of change in Qatar
By James M Dorsey Qatar is taking a beating in the court…
Turkish football’s financial crisis potentially sharpens political divide
By James M. Dorsey Financially stressed Turkish football clubs are becoming pawns…
Turmoil in Egypt: Learning lessons from the Philippines
By James M. Dorsey With Egypt deeply polarised politically and religiously, kick-starting…
Football militants put their mark on Egyptian protests
In a perverse way, the ultras’ dilemma is not dissimilar from that…