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There’s a battle outside waging with both horrible news (from the Supreme Court) and a glorious result (from NYC). Meanwhile, the world’s greatest spectacle rolls on with El Tri surviving, in spite of a wretched performance against Sweden, thanks to their Los Angeles neighbors, the Koreans, who won the day, eliminating the defending champions Germany. It’s a world full of drama and struggle; a time for solidarity & soccer! Alan Minsky speaks with Meleiza Figueroa & Fernando Romero about the day’s events.

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Alan Minsky talks with author Laurent Dubois and Philosopher Achille Mbembe about today’s action, in particular the dramatic match between Nigeria and Argentina; but also about the tournament in general and how global futbol speaks to, and reflects, some of the most important social and political issues of our time.

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A dramatic day of 21st century Futbol, as Spain and Portugal had their fates decided in the final moments by the new VAR technology. But one team continued to glide through the tournament undefeated and (somehow) below the radar screen, Uruguay. Alan checks in with Lazar Treschan, The People’s Game Uruguay correspondent from 2010 and 2014, to get his take on this year’s La Celeste.

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32 down, 32 to go. We’ve reached a halfway point of sorts, even though it’s only day 11. 50% of the matches have been played in World Cup 2018; with each team having one more game left in the group stage, eight teams know it will be there last while six are already guaranteed another. Meleiza and Alan look forward to tomorrow’s four matches, and backwards at today’s three games through the lens of our troubling political times that sees a rise of ethno-nationalism in Europe; at the very time that diverse sides filled the children of immigrants are prospering on the pitch.

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Gustavo and Alan hail the glory of El Tri, the Mexican National Team, in advance of their showdown with South Korea (which Alan dubs the LA Derby). They reflect on how supporting El Tri makes a powerful political statement in the Age of Trump; and why this might be further accented by Andres Manuel Lopez Obredor (AMLO) winning the presidential election on July 1st.

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Man, what a day for Argentina – as the much-anticipated team of Lionel Messi flames out against Croatia in a 3-0 rout that stunned the world. Alan and Meleiza discuss what the hell happened in that match, plus: France & Peru’s beautiful game; the misadventures of VAR in Denmark vs. Australia; and the potential for classic World Cup drama that is hopefully yet to come.

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