Dauert nicht lange, da verlangt Donald, dass ihm der Titel Handballeuropameister 2026 zugesprochen werden soll.

Exklusiv im @spiegel.de 🔍 Hier, dann als 🎁-Link:

Katherina Reiche erklärte ihren Aufenthalt bei einem exklusiven Geheimtreffen zur Privatsache. Doch in der Teilnehmerbroschüre, die dem SPIEGEL vorliegt, standen auch milliardenschwere Unternehmer mit klaren Interessen in ihrem Dienstbereich.

RIPsche mit Kraut. Danke, Gerd für die unzähligen Lacher!

Boykott. Mein Text dazu. www.spiegel.de/sport/fussba...

As intriguing a World Cup boycott may sound as “the right or noble thing to do”, it wouldn’t have so much impact on the political situation. If you want a boycott, why not boycotting the SuperBowl, LIV Golf and UFC. Because then billionaires will have a talk with The Donald.

www.politico.eu/article/germ... This is what we need to do!

As I read a lot of comments about #BoycottWorldCup here is an analysis and game theoretical approach I wrote for @playthegame-org.bsky.social in 2021 about Boycotting Qatar 2022. What a difference an administration change makes … www.playthegame.org/news/boycott...

Oh, tatsächlich … unter einer Woche.

Gibt es eine typischere „Studie” einer Consulting Firma als diese? „Wenn Leute einfach weniger dick wären, dann würde es weniger Sprit kosten und damit der Umwelt helfen. Wer braucht schon Coase oder Nudging, wenn Leute einfach sich mehr spritzen? Klima gerettet ✅“

Schon krass, dass der Afrika-Cup-Sieger vermutlich hoffen muss, als einer der besten Drittplatzierten bei der WM eine Runde weiter zu kommen.

Das erinnert mich immer mehr an meinen Geschichtsunterricht in der Oberstufe. Das ist nicht gut.

Was kann der Fußball vom Handball lernen?

War klar, dass das nicht lange gut gehen konnte. Dafür war Xavi #Alonso einfach viel zu ambitioniert. Und Real zieht einfach nie in Betracht, auch mal nicht die beste Mannschaft Spaniens zu sein.

The fact that Gianni “Big Stuff“ Infantino hasn’t posted anything on Instagram the past 24 hours, is quite telling. #footballunitestheworld ❤️ 🌎 🤝🏼 ⚽️

»And therefore, Fifa awards the 2025 FIFA Peace Prize – Football Unites the World – to Donald J. Trump, President of the United States of America, in recognition of his exceptional and extraordinary actions to promote peace and unity around the world.«

Das Leben ist nicht immer simplemente, manchmal ist es auch Maduro.

2025 neigt sich dem Ende zu und ich führe die Tradition nun hier fort: Ich teile meine diesjährigen Bücher. Kein Ranking, einfach nur Reihenfolge. Ich hoffe, ihr findet etwas Neues, das euch gefällt – und schickt mir auch gern Empfehlungen 🙂📚 🧵: Wie man mit Haien schwimmt - François Sarano

Fantastic! All of them.

He’s driving to heaven for Christmas. #RIP Chris Rea.

There is a saying in German: “Schuster bleib bei deinen Leisten.” Meaning that you rather should do what you’re supposed to do.

FIFA plan to setup a new "post-conflict recovery fund” Gianni Infantino saying “It’s a fund that will be open to donators, private ones or governments,” Sportswashing in plain sight? A busy end to the year for FIFA and its financial dealings with governments. A mini thread 1/4

Also fassen wir es mal zusammen: Trump hat den neu erschaffenen FIFA Peace Prize bekommen, weil er Waffenruhen (nicht direkt Frieden) zwischen Hamas und Israel, Thailand und Kambodscha, und Ruanda und Kongo „ausgehandelt“ hat. Und keine Woche später sind alle Konflikte wieder aufgeflammt. ✌🏼

Ein großartiger Text über ein fast vergessenes Attentat von meinem Kollegen @andreasmeyhoff.bsky.social . Hier als 🎁-Link:

In honor of the 17-time World Champion, John Cena, who will retire tonight. youtu.be/uO-TRfnwi7s

»categorically reject any activities related to supporting homosexuality […]«

It is a good opportunity to have a look at my recent journal articles that call for a rethink of #sportswashing with a bigger focus on the role of media and audiences in interpreting the political power of sports: www.manchester.ac.uk/about/news/r... thx @uomhums.bsky.social, @fettitude.bsky.social

And I just thought it’s a very cheap work of an uninspired goldsmith who is a fan of the Walking Dead. But this ⬇️ is even more sinister. A bald-headed goof is giving a golden “Peace Prize” to an autocrat billionaire (who doesn’t bother being called a fascist) which is inspired by a fascist novel.

The problem was not the length or the sportswashing or cringe moments of that #worldcupdraw show. Those are already written. It was that it was just like the Infantino-Fifa acts: unrehearsed and throwing in a bunch of names:

This Prize is tremendously hideous. I mean, that’s not state of the art, that’s not gracious and that’s not even Trump-like pompous. Looks like that not only Gianni hasn’t asked his Council for permission, he also went to the cheapest goldsmith who is a fan of The Walking Dead. #peaceprize

1️⃣ So, the FIFA Men's Football World Cup draw in semi-authoritarian USAmerica: There's a paradox here that I first saw in the run-up to Russia 2018. It's a feature of mega-events in authoritarian or closed / closing contexts... Short 🧵

Kind of disappointed that Fifa hasn’t chosen the obvious low-hanging fruit with Village People’s »Far away in America« which is already a World Cup anthem. With »YMCA« it now looks like a regular Trump Rallye.

2/ Men's World Cups are very expensive for host governments, which spend billions, and very lucrative for FIFA, which makes billions. See the basic business model below (courtesy of @sdwolfe.bsky.social, Martin Müller and David Gogishvili). The USA will pay for the party and suffer the hangover.

It's the "MAGA-FIFA World Cup", Infantino has said he supports Trump's agenda, and Trump may be awarded a new FIFA Peace Prize. Why all this fawning? Well one plausible explanation is that Trump knows the World Cup is a complete swindle. A mini 🧵 to explain.. apnews.com/article/dona...

On Friday there’s the Final World Cup Draw and from then on we are only moments away from media outlets using the inaccurate data from @frontofficesports.bsky.social about the costs of the past FIFA World Cups. Stay tuned ✌🏼

Ich rechne übrigens noch damit, dass im Vorfeld der WM 2026 der WM-Pokal von 36,8 cm Höhe auf über 40 cm angepasst wird, weil „the biggest sport event in history“ braucht natürlich einen Trump-like großen goldenen Pokal.

My one-two punch on “#sportswashing”: Two (!) new journal articles are now out, in which I critique the concept and call for more attention to the role played by media and audiences in interpreting the political power of sports.

Zum Glück findet dort nächstes Jahr die WM 2026 statt, die alle soziale Missstände auflöst. Wie schon 1970 oder 1986 …

Heute meinen alten Europarechts-Prof @repasi.bsky.social im heute-Journal gesehen. Wie schnell die Zeit vergeht.

Jetzt hier.

The fact that Infantino is praising Donald Trump as a great leader, sitting on a stage in Miami (of course) of an economic forum sponsored by PIF (of course) while being mute on the sexual harassment another host country’s President, Sheinbaum (🇲🇽), experienced this week, is quite telling.

»End of Line«. Man, what a great headline for that article below. youtu.be/NOMa56y_Was

Why is there another friendly between WC2030-host Morocco 🇲🇦 and Haiti 🇭🇹 today? They both have played against each other just once before. Ever. In Morocco. In February. 1:1.

10 years ago, today: “Does the FIFA World Cup boost the economy?” Thanks @playthegame-org.bsky.social for the opportunity that has changed my career (and therefore my life). Only appropriate to visit Aarhus again for this. And also to meet up with PtG-colleague @vitalykaz.bsky.social 👍🏼

A criminal complaint for offering illegal gambling services has been filed by the Swiss regulator, GESPA, against Fifa's NFT platform Fifa Collect.

All I know is that it is a lot cheaper to hear me talk about ticket prices on NPR's Morning Edition today than it is to buy tickets to any sporting events nowadays. www.npr.org/2025/10/23/n...

Schon wieder kein Anruf aus Stockholm 😞

Oh, I think I should email him my research …

Donald Trump hofft wohl, nachdem er bei den bisherigen drei Nobelpreisen leer ausgegangen ist, auf den letzten Metern den Friedensnobelpreis zu bekommen.