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النسخة العربية
  • Politics
  • Culture & Social Affairs
  • Business & Economy
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  • Tag
  • Football

Boris Séméniako

10 books that showcase how football mirrors the world

All of life can be seen and understood through the world's most popular sport, as authors from different countries and eras have shown. Al Majalla looks at the books with the biggest impact.

Bahaa Iy'ali 25 June 2026
A painting by the Egyptian artist George Bahgory from the series “Love and Football”.
George Bahgoury via Facebook

Football and art: fusing a popular sport with culture

Artists use paintings, sculpture, murals, and digital designs to iconise, idolise, and mythologise football culture in a language understood by all

Mimoza Al-Arrawi 23 June 2026
Sara Gironi Carnevale

A smarter ball, or a safer one? The header dilemma facing world football

The official World Cup ball showcases the latest advances in football technology, but new research questions whether future designs should prioritise brain safety as well as performance

Marco Mossad 18 June 2026
Stefano Summo

World Cup songs: from local themes to global industry

Football's biggest tournament has come to adopt a single soundtrack every four years to give each offering a distinct identity. Is this genuine culture, or a mass marketing technique?

Najeeb Mubarak 16 June 2026
This view shows the stand and the skyscrapers of New York during the 2026 World Cup Group C football match between Brazil and Morocco at the New York/New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford on 13 June 2026. Angela WEISS / AFP

How FIFA turned the World Cup into a giant cash cow

Billions of dollars are streaming into the Swiss-based organisation from broadcasting rights, advertising revenue, and ticket and hospitality sales, but have the fans been left high and dry?

Abdulfattah Khattab 14 June 2026
Al Majalla

From first-timers to semi-finalists: Arab teams in the World Cup

Fans of Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar have made their way across the Atlantic to cheer on their teams

Mohamed Qutob 14 June 2026
Olga Aleksandrova

2026 World Cup: football in the age of AI

From 3D players to data-transmitting balls, the sport's biggest tournament is awash with technology to help with everything from offside decisions to viewer angles, but does this come at a cost?

Marco Mossad 11 June 2026
Gregori Saavedra

The World Cup has always been a pitch for global politics

From Hitler and Mussolini to South American dictators, world leaders have long seen in football's biggest tournament an opportunity to further an agenda

Mohamed Qutob 11 June 2026
Al Majalla

Al Majalla’s Film Watch: football on the big screen

We highlight some of the most notable movies centred on the world's most coveted sport

Wael Said 11 June 2026
Eduardo Ramon and Diana Estefania Rubio

World Cup 2026: biggest and most inclusive to date

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will mark the most significant transformation in the tournament's nearly century-long history. For the first time, football's biggest event will be jointly hosted by three…

Al Majalla - London 10 June 2026
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CIA Director John Ratcliffe at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson on 15 August 2025, in Anchorage, Alaska, where Donald Trump met with Vladimir Putin for peace talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. ANDREW HARNIK / AFP
Politics

Why Ratcliffe's secret visit to Moscow is concerning

27 August 2026

The American CIA director's visit looks to be a desperate attempt by the Trump administration to avert a doomsday scenario in which NATO is pulled into a larger war with Russia

Con Coughlin
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Chinese President Xi Jinping during their meeting in Beijing, China, on 2 September 2025. Reuters
Business & Economy

Will US sanctions on Iran bite? It may depend on China

26 August 2026

Beijing says it will not abide by the new 'Economic D-Day' measures and warns the US of retaliation if they hurt their oil trade with Tehran

Rana Freifer
Nigel Buchanan
Politics

Gadi Eisenkot: Israel’s next leader?

27 August 2026

Al Majalla looks at the former army general's career, political positions, possible paths to victory, and what a change in leadership could mean for Israel and the region after three years of war

Al Majalla - London
Sara Padovan
Science & Technology

When myth replaces medicine

25 August 2026

As social media transforms how people seek medical advice, figures such as Barbara O'Neill offer something conventional medicine rarely can: absolute certainty

Mohammed Mansour
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (C), Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif posing after signing the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement in Mecca, Saudi Arabia on 7 August, 2026. PAKISTAN PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE / AFP
Politics

Networked Middle East security

22 August 2026

The Iran war exposed the risks of being too closely tied to US military posture, which is why some Gulf states are repositioning themselves not merely as consumers of security but as architects of it

Bilal Saab

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OPINIONS

The artist who used land to capture Palestinian identity

Farouk Yousif
Farouk Yousif

Gadi Eisenkot: Israel’s next leader?

Al Majalla - London
Al Majalla - London

The general who could end Netanyahu’s era

Michael Horowitz
Michael Horowitz

Why Ratcliffe's secret visit to Moscow is concerning

Con Coughlin
Con Coughlin
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