: The Secret World of Fifa: Bribes, Vote Rigging and Ticket Scandals and my own investigative journalism on the ground in South Africa in 2010 and Brazil in 2014 convinced me that soccer’s governing body, FIFA, is not only an utterly corrupt and immoral entity but even a supporter of dictators and bulwark against democracy. In the US, we are certainly getting the financial chaos, the fears of displacement (which the unhoused people of past host cities can attest to), and the hyper-militarization. When I think of the “fan fests” in Rio, which were just as fun—sometimes more fun—than the matches themselves, the ticketed-then-canceled New York/New Jersey event looks like an apt symbol for how joyless this country has become under the authoritarian eye of the current regime and how pitiable this World Cup will likely be.
Author: Dave Zirin
Published at: 2026-03-05 00:00:00
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