@mahermezahi.bsky.social may have Philly contacts.

Ja, don't wait for South African journalism to do it. News24, the largest news outlet with real resources, operates as his PR arm. The DA's model is basically a cheap imitation of US Republicans and Blue Dog Democrats, or, if you had to make a UK comparison, combinations of Reform and the Tories.

Just launched, a gathering of resources for teaching & thinking the World Cup, featuring contributions from @brendaelsey.bsky.social @seanjacobs.bsky.social, Peter Alegi & Martha Saveedra.

worldcupsyllabus.com

Try Living in Cape Town, Where 70% of Downtown Housing Is for Tourists

For presiding over this www.nytimes.com/2026/04/01/w...

Mandela United Netflix’s new series, “The Trials of Winnie Mandela,” revisits a key anti-apartheid figure; I wrote this piece, slightly edited, upon her death in April 2018.

The Mandela United Football Club didn't play much football.

The Anticolonial Imagination Jeremy Harding’s new book offers a glimpse of the anti-colonial imagination in 20th century Africa and its diaspora in the West. It also includes a finely wrought reference to football.

London Review of Books contributing editor Jeremy Harding’s new book, "Analogue Africa" (@versobooks.bsky.social), consists of a series of essays that “offer a brisk, selective glimpse of the anticolonial imagination" in Africa and its diaspora.

"In Africa, soccer enjoys great popularity and has a particular place in the hearts of people..." (Nelson Mandela, May 2010).

Mayor's Ball.

Ne touchez pas à Cuba - Parti pris Les États-Unis ont imposé à Cuba un blocus sur les carburants et menacent d’accélérer un changement de régime. Face à cela, les pays africains sont bien silencieux, alors que certains doivent (…)

Les États-Unis ont imposé à #Cuba un blocus sur les carburants et menacent de faire tomber le régime. Face à cela, les pays africains sont bien silencieux, alors que certains doivent beaucoup au peuple cubain.

📌 #USA #Colonialism #apartheid #Afrique

👉 Un parti pris par @seanjacobs.bsky.social ⤵️

Equator. Tomorrow, @seanjacobs.bsky.social and Jeremy Harding will discuss Harding’s outstanding new essay collection, “Analogue Africa”, published by @versobooks.bsky.social
Register here for free:

Sean Jacobs talks to Jeremy Harding about his new book Analogue Africa and the light it casts

Bridging Divides For Football’s Biggest Stage: What Global Tensions Can Mean For Africa's World Cup Moment With the quadrennial World Cup football tournament set to kick off in June across North America, amid growing uncertainty in the Middle East, will the love of the game be enough to unite fans the worl...

 “Each country brings its own rhythm [to the World Cup]: Ivorian fans with their percussion, Ghanaian brass bands, and, if the DRC makes it through the playoffs, the iconic ‘Patrice Lumumba’ figure standing and singing for an entire match.”  Via @forbesafrique.com.web.brid.gy @forbes.com

Float Like a Butterfly Boxing is often described as an art; a raw, universal medium for expression and human experience.

... sting like a bee.

(Congolese) Leopards in Guadalajara Football, solidarity and the limits of soft power

Michel Kuka Mboladinga, incidentally, did not get a visa to attend DRC's final qualifying match today in Guadalajara.

La promesse sud-américaine des joueuses d'Afrique du Sud Les footballeuses sud-africaines pourraient ouvrir de nouvelles perspectives en Amérique du Sud et en Amérique centrale à leurs compatriotes masculins, qui n’ont pas réussi à briller jusqu’ici, en (…)

Les footballeuses sud-africaines pourraient ouvrir de nouvelles perspectives en Amérique du Sud et en Amérique centrale à leurs compatriotes masculins, qui n’ont pas réussi à briller jusqu’ici, en dépit de recrutements ponctuels depuis cinquante ans. afriquexxi.info/La-promesse-...

Mohamed Salah is one of the all-time greats of the Premier League, but he is a G.O.A.T. for this.

Mohamed Salah, IR Theorist What would a Mohamed Salah theory of international affairs look like?

An ode to Mo Salah.

I will be presenting, along with Martha Saavedra, on Monday, April 6th, as part of this series on the 2026 World Cup, organized by the Global Sports Lab at the University of Washington. The series is online. jsis.washington.edu/news/spring-...

World Cup 2026 • Courses • EQUATOR 04 Apr, 2026

NTRODUCING EQUATOR SEMINARS!

The 2026 Men's World Cup is set to be the most political tournament in history.

@davidgoldblatt.bsky.social, one of the world's foremost writers on football and society, breaks it all down in our first ever online seminar.

Sign up: equator.org/courses/worl...

On this day in 1951, Iran nationalized its oil industry, triggering a US-backed coup.

"Evening Prayer, Muslim Father and Son, New York, 1963", by Gordon Parks.

Mahmoud Darwish (born 13 March 1941) could bring his lyric precision to anything, even football. On Diego: “Strong as a bull. Fast as a missile. He enters the stadium as if entering a church. He sifts through the defense and scores. Doctors won’t find blood in his veins. They will find rocket fuel.”

Sean Jacobs (@seanhjacobs) Andre De Jong, a New Zealand international, plays for Orlando Pirates F.C. in South Africa. He’s of Dutch descent. If you really wanted to stretch it, you could say there’s a very distant historical c...

White Genocide substack.com/@seanhjacobs...

"A group of boys playing cricket in a Salt River side road during the December Holidays, Cape Town, 2014." By Mads Nørgaard.

GOAT Tours Lionel Messi has never turned down a big cheque. His trip to India, organized by an event and sports marketing company, is just the latest example.

People keep waiting for Lionel Messi to say or talk about politics; otherwise, they argue, they can’t make up their minds about where he stands. But just look at how he moves and what he does. That will tell you everything. For example, elevennamedpeople.substack.com/p/goat-tours

The Argentinian Football Proxy War Argentine footballers operate in a system in which the sport is inseparable from politics, business, and patronage networks. With strange bedfellows.

And back in Argentina, he sides with the right elevennamedpeople.substack.com/p/the-argent...

GOAT Tours Lionel Messi has never turned down a big cheque. His trip to India, organized by an event and sports marketing company, is just the latest example.

Lionel Messi has allegience to one thing: money elevennamedpeople.substack.com/p/goat-tours...

The 'Sideman' Despite his central presence in duos and ensembles with Coltrane, Don Cherry, and Abdullah Ibrahim, ​Carlos Ward did not always receive the recognition accorded to his more illustrious colleagues.

More on Carlos Ward, who passed away in January 2026. elevennamedpeople.substack.com/p/the-sideman

Abdullah Ibrahim (born 1934) and Carlos Ward (1940 - 2026) in Nyon, Switzerland, 1983. By Dany Gignoux.