Show Notes
Racketeering. Wire fraud. Money laundering.
Those are the charges that helped bring down some of the most powerful figures in world football. Not a crime syndicate, but FIFA — the organisation that governs the world's most popular sport.
With more member associations than the United Nations and an audience measured in billions, FIFA oversees the biggest sporting event on Earth: the World Cup. But alongside its global influence has come decades of controversy, from corruption scandals and bribery allegations to accusations of sportswashing and close relationships with authoritarian governments.
From Fascist Italy in 1934 to Argentina's military dictatorship in 1978, and more recently Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022, critics argue that World Cups have repeatedly been used to boost the international standing of powerful leaders and regimes.
So why does scandal never seem to stick? How has FIFA remained one of the most powerful institutions in global sport despite years of scrutiny?
Bianca Nobilo is joined by sports historian and former professional footballer Jules Boykoff, who examines the role of sportswashing, the commercialisation of the game, and the global influence of football's most powerful organisation.
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