Q&A with Franklin Foer

  

Photo by Evy Mages

 

 

Franklin Foer is the author of the book How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization, which is now available in a new edition. His other books include World Without Mind. He is a staff writer at The Atlantic, and he lives in Washington, D.C.

 

Q: Why was this new edition of How Soccer Explains the World created?

 

A: I wrote this book more than 20 years ago! Damn, I'm old. During the long life of this book, the World Cup has never been hosted by the United States. This is the year, at long last—and, obviously, the peg for the new edition.

 

I first fell in love with soccer during the 1986 World Cup. The ABC feed was grainy, the coverage was spotty, but, boy, did it excite.

 

What I remember most is the passion in the stands. That's what sparked my lifelong fascination. The stakes felt so high. People cared so deeply that I began to suspect that soccer was about more than the game being played on the pitch.

 

With this new edition, I hope I can explain the political, cultural, and sociological import of soccer to a new generation of readers, just connecting with the sport for the first time.

 

Q: What’s different in this new version of the book?

 

A: This book has a new introduction, which updates its thesis to account for some of the biggest changes to the global game since 2004. Nation states—Saudi Arabia, the U.A.E., Qatar—now own clubs. American private equity has entered the game in a major way. Fans think about soccer differently; they obsess over the finances of their favorite teams. 

 

Q: Has the relationship between soccer and globalization changed at all since the first edition of the book was published?

 

A: Soccer was always at the forefront of globalization, and that hasn't changed. What's fascinating is how the book's core argument holds up. Globalization, as experienced through soccer, presents this paradox: the more the game is integrated into an international economy, the more people remain loyal to their local institutions.

 

Wrexham is a terrific example. It's owned by Hollywood stars and the subject of a television series—and yet it's the perfect emblem of a bedraggled corner of Wales, looking for hope and dignity. In a homogenized world, people still cling to their tribes. 

 

Q: How do you think the current state of U.S. politics will affect the 2026 World Cup?

 

A: This World Cup, sadly and unsurprisingly, will be all about Donald Trump. FIFA has spent years currying favor with him. I'm sure he will do his best to exploit the moment in the spotlight.

 

I've found it somewhat confusing that Mr. America First is a fan of the global game—though, to be sure, the game is a cesspool of corruption.

 

There's also the fact that the New York Cosmos, of the North American Soccer League, were hugely popular when he was elbowing his way onto the city's scene in the 1970s.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: I'm working on a history of American Jews in the years after World War II. It's a fun book to research, since it encompasses Saul Bellow, Paul Simon, Betty Friedan, and Henry Kissinger, among others. My editor says it's the book I was born to write.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb. Here's a previous Q&A with Franklin Foer.