Air Date: 7-7-2026

Today we use the 2026 World Cup to pull everything that runs under the game up into the light. Nearly a quarter of the players are representing a country other than the one they were born in, praised as national heroes when they score but scorned as foreigners when they lose. The history of colonialism built the machinery that turns immigrants into targets, and the results are playing out live around this year's tournament, in the towns that throw their arms open and the borders that slam shut, in who a country will claim and who it leaves outside.

Direct Download

Transcript

Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email [email protected]

BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!)

Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience!

Join our Discord community!

TOP TAKES

KP 1: Always Root for the Underdog - Pop Culture Detective - Air Date 7-1-26

KP 2: Colonial Wars Played On The Pitch - AJ+ - Air Date 6-21-26

KP 3: How the U.S. and France Ruined Haiti - Bianca Graulau - Air Date 8-14-25

KP 4: Who Gets To Enjoy The World Cup? - AJ+ - Air Date 6-19-26

KP 5: US Soccer Star Shows MAGA's Racism With Zero Effort - Rick Strom - Air Date 6-23-26

KP 6: How Colonialism Created Mbappe and Zidane, Explained - Uncivilized - Air Date 7-12-24

KP 7: Iran’s World Cup Team Divides the Diaspora in the US | DW Reporter - DW News - Air Date 6-26-26

KP 8: Keep My Culture Out Your Mouth! - PissedMagistus - Air Date 6-27-26

(00:59:27) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

The World Cup Exposes How Racism Is a Tool, Not a Belief

My commentaries on YouTube - Share them!

DEEPER DIVES

(01:11:20) SECTION A: COLONIALISM'S LONG GAME

A1: Colonialism Never Ended – It Just Became Debt - AJ+ - Air Date 9-6-25

A2: They BANNED Haiti World Cup Jersey to HIDE Black History - THE MERC - Air Date 6-21-26

A3: Belgium Hands Over Remains of Patrice Lumumba to DR Congo - DW News - Air Date 6-20-22

A4: DR Congo's Lumumba Super Fan Arrives at FIFA World Cup After Delays | Firstpost Africa | N18G - Firstpost - Air Date 6-23-26

A5: How a Football Team Fueled Algeria's Fight for Independence - Uncivilized - Air Date 8-1-24

(01:44:54) SECTION B: DIASPORA AND DUAL IDENTITY

B1: Tim Weah on World Cup Dreams, the African Diaspora and USMNT's Fair-Weather Knicks Fandom | PTFO - PABLO TORRE FINDS OUT - Air Date 6-19-26

B2: The Media Has Made You Hate Jude Bellingham For No Reason. - Small Talk with Ore Olukoga - Air Date 6-17-26

B3: Why Soccer Wonderkids Are Rejecting France and Spain - What Now? with Trevor Noah - Air Date 6-18-26

(02:08:22) SECTION C: THE CUP ON THE GROUND

C1: Alexi Lalas Is Ruining the World Cup in More Ways Than You Think - Rick Strom - Air Date 6-16-26

C2: World Cup Kicks Off in Mexico Amid Protests Against Austerity and Forced Disappearances - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-11-26

C3: Luke Thomas: World Cup Border CHAOS Humiliates America - Luke Thomas Gets Political (LTGP) - Air Date 6-15-26

C4: How a Small US City Fell in Love With Algeria Before FIFA World Cup | First Sports With Rupha Ramani - Firstpost- Air Date 6-12-26

C5: Okay, The 2026 Squad of Cape Verde Is Not Normal - Soccer Stories - Oh My Goal and PedTalksSports - Air Date 6-26-26

C6: Inside Algeria's Takeover of Kansas - RocaSports and RocaNews - Air Date 6-25-26

C7: 'It's a Disaster World Cup,' Iran's Football Captain Mehdi Taremi Says - Al Mayadeen English - Air Date 6-27-26

C8: Iran's World Cup Story Just Took A HUGE Turn - The Ring of Fire - Air Date 6-26-26

(03:00:05) SECTION D: RACE, MYTHOLOGY, AND IDEOLOGY

D1: AskHistorians Podcast Episode 197 - White Mythic Spaces in Historical Representation with Stefan Aguirre Quiroga Part 1 - The AskHistorians Podcast - Air Date 4-6-22

D2: Football Brings Out Argentina's Unspoken Racism Issue - Football Smash - Air Date 2-18-26

D3: AskHistorians Podcast Episode 197 - White Mythic Spaces in Historical Representation with Stefan Aguirre Quiroga Part 2 - The AskHistorians Podcast - Air Date 4-6-22

D4: Pete Hegseth Is Trying to Resegregate the Military - Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 6-20-26

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com

Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen

Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X

Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft

Contact me directly at [email protected]