The World Cup finally came to Canada. But has MAGA turned the Beautiful Game into something ugly? According to the BBC fans from about a quarter of the countries taking part in this World Cup are facing travel bans, tighter restrictions, or high visa rejection rates.

What about supporters who are already in the U.S. who might fall under the gaze of ICE agents? If you were a Senegalese, Haitian, or Ecuadoran-American, would you wrap yourself in your team’s colours and take to the streets knowing ICE is playing their own game?

And where in all this is Canada? Our co-host has threatened to invade, launched tariff battles and Trump keeps thumping his 51st state schtick. Where does Canada belong in a MAGA world cup?

Karim Zidan is an investigative journalist covering the intersection of sports and politics. His work has been featured in outlets such as The New York Times and The Guardian, and he runs his own media platform called Sports Politika,

He joins us today to kick off the World Cup. And no, Karim Zidan is no relation to the other Zidane….

Clarification: A previous version of this podcast had an omission. The podcast stated that Somali referee Omar Artan was denied entrance to the U.S. for the World Cup because of his nationality. The updated version of this episode now includes the information that the U.S. government claims Artan was denied entry to the United States because of his “association with suspected members of terror organisations.” Artan denies the accusation.

Further Reading:

Host: Bruce Thorson

Credits: Tristan Capacchione (Audio Editor & Technical Producer), Bruce Thorson (Senior Producer), max collins (Director of Audio), Jesse Brown (Editor and Publisher)

Fact checking by: Julian Abraham

Additional music by: Audio Network

Sponsors:

oxio: Head over to https://canadaland.oxio.ca and use code CANADALAND for your first month free!

Squarespace: Check out https://squarespace.com/canadaland for a free trial, and when you’re ready to launch use code canadaland to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.

Article: Article is offering our listeners $50 off your first purchase of $100 or more. To claim, visit https://article.com/canadaland and the discount will be automatically applied at checkout.

BetterHelp: Visit https://betterHelp.com/canadaland today to get 10% off your first month.

Can’t get enough Canadaland? Follow @Canadaland_Podcasts on Instagram for clips, announcements, explainers and more.

Find out more about our live events at https://canadaland.com/live

Find out more about the our Audio Journalism Fellowship programme at https://labs.canadaland.com

If you value this podcast, support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch at our store, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kick to the Balls: MAGA’s World Cup

CANADALAND

Kick to the Balls: MAGA’s World Cup