Soccer Has Always Been Political

By Aulla Elhassan

A fan in downtown Seattle holds up a sign that displays the U.S. flaf with "It's "Soccer"" written across it on July 6, 2026. (Photo by Elias Mwago.)

The 2026 World Cup, which was hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, concluded a month ago. The biggest sporting event in the world, an opportunity for a host of cultures to unite through our shared love of soccer, was tainted by intolerance. Anti-immigration sentiment, racist chants, and power imbalances were persistent themes. 

The World Cup began and ended on a sour note. Before the tournament even began, FIFA came under fire for ticket price-gouging and unfair selling practices, with tickets for the final matches well-exceeding $4000, seven times the price of the ones for the 2022 World Cup. Not only that, FIFA re-drew stadium seating maps then adjusted ticket categories accordingly, misleading many fans who had paid extra for what they thought were better seats, or even displacing them altogether.

Additionally, the 2026 World Cup was expected to be “the most polluting ever,” as it would allow 48 teams to participate as opposed to 32 teams (significantly hiking up the greenhouse gas impact of the competition due to more matches and further travel distances.) Despite this, FIFA president Gianni Infantino plans to expand the World Cup to 64 teams for future tournaments. President Donald Trump’s strict border security and immigration policies also put a damper on the event, causing entry delays or even flat-out denials for many officiators and players.  

Most recently, Infantino attempted to sell partial ownership of the tournament to private equity Thrive for $4.2 billion USD. Yet still, the phrase “keeping politics out of soccer” reoccurred. To these people I say, “Open your eyes. Sports have always been political.”

In 2018, when Lebron James criticized President Trump and racial slur being graffitied onto his home, Fox News host Laura Ingraham told him to “"shut up and dribble." When Colin Kaepernick kneeled during the U.S. national anthem to protest police brutality, he was met with intense backlash and was demoted from his position as quarterback. 

Sports are inherently political in every sense. Who has the opportunity to reach the professional level ultimately comes down to socioeconomic access, as early training, travel expenses, and participation in club sports are pricey. Which countries have the resources to invest in sports teams relates to development status and geopolitical stability.

Social justice issues such as misogyny(especially as it relates to overly sexualized uniforms and reduced investment in female sports teams), racism, xenophobia, and more permeate the sports world. Even who has the time to keep up with sports and the money to stream and attend matches is political.

Being apolitical, viewing the mention of  as a nuisance, is privilege. Being unable to see broadly how politics, social hierarchies, and lived experiences infiltrate nearly every aspect of human life is a clear indication of lack of nuanced thinking. Everything is political. You can enjoy professional sports and still acknowledge its inherent social and political dynamics.