Reading List: Ronnie Close
The author of a book on football and revolution in Egypt gives us a list of must reads on football in the Middle East and North Africa.
Sports
The Blitzboks in America
What the recent World Rugby Sevens Series global championship reveals about national rugby cultures, particularly South Africa's.
Afro football fever
Football historian and broadcaster David Goldblatt’s new, encyclopedic book of football opens with a chapter on Africa. Here we republish an excerpt.
Zimbabwe’s forgotten football history
Zimbabwe’s national football was under black control decades before independence—but the colonial legacy of racial segregation still haunts.
Rugby and rainbows
Reflecting on white joy, black celebration, and the meaning of the Springbok win at the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
Why, despite it all, I’m still a fan of the Springboks
We should not let the achievements of a multiracial Springbok rugby team, led by its first black captain, be commodified and commercialized in the service of neoliberalism.
Chester Williams: pioneer of excellence
The late Springbok rugby wing's legacy needs to be sustained, and the hope that he represented is perhaps more critical than ever.
The Ship from Cameroon
The fate of Cameroon's women's national football team, like much else in the country, is a reflection of the sorry state of its politics.
The long short history of post-apartheid South African rugby
The compromises and conciliations of South African rugby mirror the unfinished transition from apartheid racism in the broader society.
South African rugby’s race problems
What does the divergent fates of Springbok Eben Etzebeth and former coach Peter de Villiers say about the state of South African rugby?
Chester Williams and the making of modern South African rugby
Williams, the only black South African player in the 1995 Rugby World Cup, was a complex figure in complex times. He deserves to be remembered as such.
General Sisi’s empty seats
Football and neoliberal repression go together in Egypt.
Cake politics
The Rugby Championship, the World Cup, and Springbok politics in South Africa.
Okocha, love you. Pass Maradona!
The midfielder Augustine "Jay Jay" Okocha is arguably one of Nigeria's best men's football players ever. It is his birthday today, August 14th.
Beyond game day
Ultras or extreme fans of football clubs in Morocco use their collective identity to push for social and political demands.
Pirates and Chiefs
Why do football matches between Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates matter more than any other sporting event in South Africa. Even more than when the rugby Springboks play.
Sport, history and politics at the African Cup of Nations
How AFCON 2019 showed up Arab-African identity and cultural politics between North Africa and countries south of the Sahara.
Algerian football success is a double-edged sword
Algeria reached the African Cup final for the first time in 29 years after defeating Nigeria. It can't be divorced from politics back home.
Yes We Can—Football and Nationalism
The 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt and football’s peculiar hold on national identity.
African Cup of Nations: A PR fiasco for Egyptian hosts
Egypt got knocked out in the Round of 16, but the hosts have been hamstrung by multiple events, including the military's control, besides its poor performance in the tournament.