| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? 10:19 - Jan 10 with 693 views | You_Bloo_Right |
As with '36 there will doubtless be a lot of objections (if you look for them) to this year's competition but the official sporting organisations around the world, as with 1936, will see no issue (although the IOC in '36 did draw SOME concessions from the German regime).
After all, FIFA have previously awarded the WC to countries that, for a variety of reasons, have been seen by the world as pariahs on one level or another and despite lots of talk, and in Qatar the arrest of journalists, the tournaments went ahead.
So is the comparison hyperbole or are there real parallels to be drawn?
What's your view TWTD?
Sorry if covered before. |  |
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| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? on 10:43 - Jan 10 with 627 views | Plums |
I think it's a very fair question. FIFA have already bent themselves to Trump's will by giving him their ludicrous peace prize, which will undoubtedly not be rescinded despite the violent breaches of national and international law he is embarking on.
I don't think it can be directly compared with 1936 as it's not particularly helpful, it's awful in its own right and should be viewed as such. The host nation has just kidnapped the head of state of a FIFA member country which should be enough for severe sanction but nothing will happen. If civil unrest in the states reaches the point where it's not safe to host the tournament then that may bring things to a head.
I think it will be very interesting when a nation Trump disapproves of does well at the USA's expense on their own soil. It will be tantrum-tastic.
Whatever happens, I'm pretty sure history will not look back on the 2026 FIFA World Cup as something anybody should be proud of. That's the point at which the 1936 comparisons will have value. |  |
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| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? on 10:43 - Jan 10 with 631 views | Guthrum |
In both cases the perception will be framed retrospectively.
In 1936, the full horrors of nazism had not yet manifested. Kristallnacht was still two years in the future, the War ten months beyond that. People were nervous about the beginnings of rearmament, but the government didn't seem at that stage much more extreme than several other contemporary European regimes (some of which were equally anti-semitic and all violently anti-communist)*.
That Olympic Games is seen in the context of what came after. Likewise, views of the 2026 World Cup will be shaped by how things progress over the next decade.
* A couple of years before, the Fascist-dominated government in Austria was shelling a workers' housing estate in an open war to suppress the left-wing opposition. |  |
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| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? on 10:48 - Jan 10 with 614 views | bsw72 |
It isn’t just hyperbole, but the parallels are procedural rather than moral. As with the 1936 Summer Olympics, governing bodies like FIFA and the International Olympic Committee tend to prioritise getting the tournament staged, drawing a few limited concessions while maintaining a position of official neutrality, something that was also visible at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
The real parallel is that once an event is awarded, institutions close ranks and criticism is managed rather than confronted, with the scale and excitement of the spectacle making serious political objections easier to overlook, even though the underlying contexts are very different.
From a morality and ethical aspect, you would have to be very careful not to draw comparisons between the two with a view of 1936 in hindsight (knowing what the world knew 10 years later). Remember that the olympics back then were very much about prestige vs money, while in the modern media age it is very much about the money.
From a political aspect 1930s Germany and 2020s USA are not really comparable in substance, yet. In 1936, Germany was a one-party dictatorship using the Olympics deliberately as propaganda to disguise repression and project legitimacy abroad. In 2026, the US is still just about a pluralist democracy with free media and contested politics with the World Cup risking acting as a soft distraction, muting scrutiny of polarisation, democratic stress, and rights issues rather than actively hiding them. |  | | |
| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? on 11:54 - Jan 10 with 530 views | iamatractorboy |
The LA Olympics in 2028 might become a better event to compare to given Trump will have had another 2 years to implement fascism.
Edit: oh and coincidentally, he will have been in power for almost exactly the same amount of time as a certain Austrian was when the Olympics start. [Post edited 10 Jan 11:57]
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| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? on 12:07 - Jan 10 with 496 views | WeWereZombies |
But if a number of nations were to withdraw from this year's World Cup, maybe on teh grounds of supporter safety, what could be done ? Is there anywhere that could host at such short notice ? A nation or two that have never hosted but have significant inputs into football history ?
Ladies and Gentlemen I propose to you that 2026 World Cup in the Netherlands and Scotland... |  |
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| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? on 12:19 - Jan 10 with 472 views | iamatractorboy |
| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? on 12:07 - Jan 10 by WeWereZombies |
But if a number of nations were to withdraw from this year's World Cup, maybe on teh grounds of supporter safety, what could be done ? Is there anywhere that could host at such short notice ? A nation or two that have never hosted but have significant inputs into football history ?
Ladies and Gentlemen I propose to you that 2026 World Cup in the Netherlands and Scotland... |
But Scotland qualified properly (finally), why waste their 'Get into World Cup FREE' card on 2026?! | | | |
| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? on 12:22 - Jan 10 with 458 views | WeWereZombies |
| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? on 12:19 - Jan 10 by iamatractorboy |
But Scotland qualified properly (finally), why waste their 'Get into World Cup FREE' card on 2026?! |
Perhaps we could defer our qualification until the World Cup afterwards ? Just imagine a World Cup final at Hampden. | |
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| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? on 14:47 - Jan 10 with 358 views | SuperKieranMcKenna |
I mean we’ve had Russia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia to come. FIFA handed the WC to the military junta in Argentina who used to enjoy throwing dissidents out of helicopters, so yeah it’s silly hyperbole.
FIFA have a long list of shame when it comes to dirty money. | | | |
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| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? on 17:21 - Jan 10 with 270 views | LeoMuff |
| Is the 2026 WC this generation's 1936 Olympics? on 11:54 - Jan 10 by iamatractorboy |
The LA Olympics in 2028 might become a better event to compare to given Trump will have had another 2 years to implement fascism.
Edit: oh and coincidentally, he will have been in power for almost exactly the same amount of time as a certain Austrian was when the Olympics start. [Post edited 10 Jan 11:57]
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Hopefully a heavy turnaround in the mid terms will reign him in, not banking on it though |  |
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