The World Cup of all excesses

This is his moment. From Thursday June 11, Donald Trump is more likely than ever to occupy the media field for the duration of a competition that he has literally confiscated. “With the World Cup, he has five weeks to play the president of the planet and assume a central role in a spectacle that will captivate the entire world… écrit The Atlantic.

Already, during the draw in December, “during a stunning ceremony of cynicism where the grotesque competed with vulgarity†, then protested Time, Donald Trump had de facto stolen the spotlight from his peers, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney – the leaders of the two other countries co-organizing the event. While Gianni Infantino, president of the hegemonic International Football Federation (FIFA), bowed to the master of the place.

“He went so far as to create the FIFA Peace Prize to flatter Trump’s ego… is sorry, in USA Today, Nancy Armour, for whom, however, “this flattery might end up proving usefulâ€. “This World Cup, even more than that of 2022 in Qatar, will serve as a referendum on Infantino and his leadership, she wrote in the American daily. [C'est lui] who insisted that it be expanded to 48 teams. While the exorbitant ticket prices have already earned it criticism, it will be necessary that, once the competition is launched, everything goes off without a hitch.â€

Nothing is less certain, reading the foreign press in recent weeks. If the 2026 World Cup promises to be the most lucrative in history, the largest ever organized in terms of number of participants and matches, it will also be the hottest and the most polluting. These are all the aspects of this excess that we decipher in our file this week.

“Football embodies the purest distillation of globalization†, recalls Franklin Foer in The Atlantic, where he explains very well Donald Trump’s fascination with football. “Although the world’s most popular sport may disconcert many of the president’s supporters, Trump’s relationship with football does not contradict his policies, it is an emanation of them. Because this sport is the playground of his peersÂ: Russian oligarchs, Middle Eastern monarchs and Latin American tycoons.†So much for the political aspect.

Regarding the organization, from ticket prices to climatic conditions, visa restrictions to security measures or the threat posed by the Ice, the American immigration police, here again, the foreign media are sounding the alarm. The New York Times went to meet Argentinian supporters in Buenos Aires. While the tournament promises to be the most expensive in history, most are still trying to find a way to go and encourage their team. At what price…

During the competition, they also risk suffering, explains The Country. The Spanish daily, which cites a recent study according to which a quarter of matches will take place in conditions dangerous to the health of players – and often spectators – – has identified the teams most exposed to this climatic risk. The worst off? Portugal, one of the favorites.

If we add to this spectators (especially Africans) with tickets and nevertheless prohibited from entering the United States, the Iranian team forced to increase the number of trips back and forth between Mexico, where its base camp has been relocated, and the American territory, a Somali referee turned away even though he had a diplomatic visa, an unfair bail system imposed at the borders, torrential rains which threaten the opening ceremony and the protest which is swelling in Mexico… The event seems to be off to a bad start.

And yet… “If there is one thing in common with all World Cups, it is that before kick-off all the commentators are predicting a fiasco… écrit Giles Turner for Bloomberg. “Don’t panic! dare the journalist, the World Cup will go very well.†The almost universal pleasure of football will eventually prevail, abounds The Athletic. “In these troubled times†, Free Letters believes that football is a “last link between societies†. “A break for the world†, headlines the Spanish monthly. We would like to believe it.

Also read in this issue

Lyhanna’s murder fuels anger against justice system

After the white march on Sunday June 7 in Fleurance, in Gers, more than 60,000 people demonstrated in front of the courts in France the next day. The assassination of little Lyhanna triggered a wave of anger against the judicial institution, observes the foreign press. This risks igniting the presidential campaign.

“On aurait déjà dû dire stop à 9 millionsâ€Â : Ces villages suisses qui s’inquiètent de la surpopulation

On June 14, the Swiss will vote on a controversial initiative, which intends to fight against overpopulation by drastically reducing immigration. The project, called “Pas de Suisse à 10 million†, is especially popular in the less urbanized areas of the country. The conservative Zurich daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung sought to understand why.

War in Iran: the American shift is underway, to the great displeasure of Israel

The repositioning of Donald Trump, who set himself up as arbiter during the latest escalation between Tehran and Tel Aviv, constitutes, for this Lebanese journalist, a turning point in the war and reveals differences that are now irreconcilable between the American president and the Israeli Prime Minister. An article published in L’Orient-Le Jour. Also read in this issue, the analysis of the British weekly The Economist on Benjamin Netanyahu’s last stand.

Sciences Po, le “sanctuary†des étudiants étrangers à l’ère Trump

Since the re-election of Donald Trump, foreign students have been abandoning American universities, preferring their European equivalents. Sciences Po has become a refuge for those who now fear studying in the United States, notes The New York Times on the Reims campus. But also for Americans fleeing the ambient agitation.

Marjane Satrapi was the voice, the spokesperson of all Iranian women in exile

In the community of Iranian exiles, Marjane Satrapi, who died on June 4, was a unique, essential personality. The writer Dina Nayeri, based in the United States, recounts in The Guardian everything she owes him.
Also read, Marc Bassets’ tribute in The Country and reactions all over the world.