Memes

• Memes

  Futbol y Libertad: Banksy, Inter Milan, and the Zapatistas

  June 24, 2014 - By admin

  

  

  Today we celebrate Mexico’s triumph on the field by honoring its rebel side: the famed EZLN FC. In 2005, Subcomandante Marcos challenged world-class Italian club team Internazionale Milan to a friendly match, as a gesture of appreciation for the solidarity and support given to the Zapatistas by the club – especially from its captain, the famed Javier Zanetti.

  Unfortunately, the match was never actually played – but EZLN’s futbol team did find a few moments of glory on the field. Banksy, the famed street artist, came to Chiapas in 1999 to paint murals commemorating the Zapatistas’ passion for the sport (including the mural pictured here). Banksy’s own team, the anarchist Easton Cowboys from Bristol, were the first European football team to traveled to Chiapas and play with the rebel club, raising money to initiate clean water projects for Zapatista communities.

• Memes

  Argentinian Heroes: Maradona and Che

  June 21, 2014 - By admin

  

  

  Talk about wearing your politics on your sleeve!

  As Argentina kicks off against Iran, we pay tribute to arguably the two most famous Argentines in history: the revolutionary fighter Che Guevara, and the revolutionary footballer, Diego Maradona.

  Maradona, who is currently a World Cup commentator for left-wing media network Telesur, is perhaps as famous for his outsize personality as well as his brilliance on the field. Like his friend, the late Hugo Chávez, over the past decade he has railed against U.S. imperialism and argued for peaceful relations with Iran.

• Memes

  Calcio e Autonomia!

  June 20, 2014 - By admin

  

  On a day when the Azzuri play, we give a shoutout to the left-wing ultras of Associazione Sportiva Livorno Calcio, whose fan culture reflects the great tradition of Italian Communist autonomism.

  Striker Cristiano Lucarelli, who hails from Livorno and played on the Italian national team, famously walked away from a career at top-flight club Torino, taking at 50% pay cut, to play for this home team and stay true to his politics. He said: “Some players buy themselves a Ferrari, or a yacht, for a billion lira. I bought myself a Livorno shirt.”

  

• Memes

  FC Barcelona – Mes Que Un Club

  June 18, 2014 - By admin

  

  As 2010 World Cup champions Spain face an unthinkable elimination in today’s game against Chile, we remember the powerful history of Spain’s greatest football club, whose players form the core of the Spanish national squad.

  FC Barcelona’s slogan is “mes que un club” (“more than a club”) – and throughout its history, it has indeed kept the flame of Catalonian identity and spirit of resistance alive and burning bright in the face of state and cultural repression. During the Spanish Civil War, FC Barcelona’s president Josep Sunyol transformed the club into a democratic arena of ‘sport and citizenship,’ and was arrested and executed by Franco’s regime for his role in the struggle against fascism. FCB was also an important space for the preservation of the Catalan language, which was banned during the dictatorship.

  Fans of FC Barcelona, or ‘Barça’ as it is affectionately named, continue to keep the tradition of Catalonian resistance alive today through its rivalry against Franco’s chosen team, Real Madrid. During these ‘El Clásico’ matches, Barça fans often break into freedom chants at 17 minutes and 14 seconds, signifying the year 1714, when Catalunya was invaded by Castilian forces.

  Tots Units Fem Força!! Adelante Barça!

  

• Memes

  Football and the Struggle for Algerian Independence

  June 17, 2014 - By admin

  

  In 1958, Rachid Mekhloufi, star striker for French club team St. Etienne, and nine other Algerian players walked away from promising careers in France to form a national team for a country that, at the time, existed only in the revolutionary dreams of the anti-colonial movement in Algeria.

  The Algerian national team formed by the FLN went on to spectacular success, winning 65 games in 4 years despite France’s efforts to ban them from FIFA and international play. Their stellar performances despite the odds made them a powerful symbol for the Algerian struggle, and an inspiration to oppressed peoples everywhere – including today’s Palestine.

  1-2-3, Vive l’Algiré!!

  

• Memes

  Hooligans of the world, Unite! FC St. Pauli

  June 16, 2014 - By admin

  

  Football hooligans, or ‘ultras,’ are notorious for their fanaticism, violence, and reactionary home-team politics. But on the other hand, football fandom can also express radical virtues of solidarity, community, and resistance. As Germany plays today, we pay tribute to the revolutionary anti-fascist fan base of Hamburg’s football club FC St. Pauli – embraced by anarchists, communists, punks, and other left-wing counterculture fans the world over.

  Never Again Fascism! Never Again War! Never Again the Third Division!

  

• Memes

  The Hand of God. ‘Nuff said.

  June 15, 2014 - By admin

  

  

• Memes

  Football and Socialism: Bill Shankly

  June 14, 2014 - By admin

  

  Bill Shankly, the legendary Liverpool manager, never coached a World Cup team – but his legacy of great sports and fierce politics is carried on by progressive and radical followers of English football across the globe.

  

• Memes

  Que viva El Tri!!

  June 13, 2014 - By admin

  

  Today’s meme is in honor of today’s victory for Mexico’s national team, El Tri, as well as its storied legacy and passionate national fan base north and south of the border. Adelante la selección!

  

• Memes

  Sócrates, “O Doutor”

  June 12, 2014 - By admin

  

  Sócrates was a fierce political thinker and philosopher who used his football stardom on the legendary 1982 Brazilian national team and his home team, São Paulo’s Corinthians, to agitate, educate, and organize the Brazilian people. Against the dictatorship, he turned his own club, Corinthians, into a popular school for democracy.

  O Doutor, presente!