The Weekly Wrap for Saturday, 16 June 2018

DEEP DIVE The 2018 World Cup is upon us* once more. The best football teams in the world (sorry Italy) have gathered on Russian soil to compete for the ultimate trophy. We're ready for everything it will bring: the on-field brilliance, the off-field scandals and naturally the fear and fandom of Seleção and Die Mannschaft (the formidable Brazilian and German teams). * We're using the inclusive 'us' because there is a good chance that the combined viewership of this football tournament will include half of the world's total population. Four years ago the finals alone were watched by a billion people! There is no such thing as a gracious host in a World Cup. PHOTO: AFP The home ground advantage It's estimated that half a million spectators will travel to Russia for the biggest event held there since the 1980 Moscow Summer Olympics. The Russian Federation has poured an estimated $13b into the World Cup, building or renovating 12 huge stadiums. The centrepiece arena in Moscow, Luzhniki (home at different times to each of the city's three major football clubs) now seats a staggering 81,000 viewers. The hosts opened the festivities by romping to a 5-0 victory over Saudi Arabia; during the deluge of goals all Vladimir Putin could do was shrug to his viewing partner, Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman. The tournament is being touted as a real chance for Russia to display its openness however some concerns linger. In recent months Russia has been fined after its football supporters hurled racial insults at non-white players during friendlies. Likewise, LGBT+ couples have been asked to avoid outward displays of affection in the openly homophobic country. And one Russian lawmaker implored local women to avoid having sexual relations with members of 'another race'. Without wanting to be boorish it must be noted that sports and politics are inextricably linked. The World Cup is nothing short of a public relations coup for Vladimir Putin. It's hardly been a good year for Russia's spokespeople: a botched assassination (to be confirmed), incontrovertible proof that their military hardware brought down MH17, and some unwanted developments in Syria. As a testament to just how intoxicating the World Cup is, most of those political issues have melted away. But enough of that for now. The favourites Who else but Germany? In 2014 they towelled their expectant Brazillian hosts 7-1 in the penultimate game and went on to defeat Argentina with a solitary goal in extra time from the young substitute Mario Gotze. This year they'll be without former champions (like Klose and Schweinsteiger) but consider the talent remaining; Boateng, Kroos, Draxler, Neuer and the unstoppable goalscorer Thomas Müller. Expect greatness. One ought to spare a thought for those unlucky enough to find themselves in Germany's group: Mexico, Sweden and South Korea. Brazil went through a period of deep mourning following their humiliation at the hands (and feet) of the aforementioned team. But now, having made peace with the ghosts of World Cups past, they will be keen to restore their honour. And their roster is nothing short of extraordinary; the vast majority of their team plays for European powerhouses like Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona, Manchester City, Liverpool and other such feted clubs. The electrifying PSG forward Neymar (the world's most expensive player) is a breathtaking athlete and hopefully now full recovered from an injury sustained in February. Expectations are high for Brazil but their group-stage won't be a cakewalk: a fiery team of Serbian upstarts as well as quality opponents in Costa Rica and Switzerland await. Similarly, France can choose from a dizzying array of talent. That Les Bleus have been described as the most balanced squad in the tourney doesn't take anything away from the individual brilliance at hand. Antoine Griezmann has enjoyed a blistering year up front for both Atletico Madrid and his national team. Then of course there is the masterful Paul Pogba in the middle who will be looking to break out after a middling season in the English Premier League.  Their southern neighbours in Spain have a similarly solid lineup including a triplet of Davids (de Gea, Iniesta and Silva). Yet the Spanish camp was thrown into disarray when Julen Lopetegui was dethroned as coach just two days before their opener. Lopetegui had committed the cardinal sin of negotiating a contract with Real Madrid without the blessings of his country's powerful football federation. The players are reported to be in a state of shock. The magic Amongst the myriad hopes and expectations for the World Cup there is one that stands head and shoulders above the rest. Egyptian talisman Mohamad Salah's rise has a touch of folklore to it. An inimitable forward who scored 32 goals in his first season for Liverpool; the world watched as the devout Muslim perform sujood - the Islamic act of prostration before Allah - after each goal. He's won over supporters and fans far beyond Anfield. Yet in the Champion's League his ascent was cut short by a villain in the shape of Real Madrid (and Spain's) captain Sergio Ramos. A shocking tackle nearly took one arm off. Salah's medical team raced around the clock to get him fit for his first game against Uruguay - a game that will also feature the return of Uruguay's infamous nibbler, Luis Suarez. While Egypt is unlikely to make inroads beyond the group stage the country has been galvanised by Salah. Many are hoping that his opponents have more of a sense of occasion than Ramos did. The money Any discussion of the World Cup must also inevitably lead back to the manner in which governing body FIFA conducts its business. The corporate giant has a track record of corruption that would make the hardiest mafioso blush. While the more egregious examples of cronyism and bribery have been stamped out, the underlying business model of rent-seeking-writ-large is once again in the spotlight. A joint American-Canadian-Mexican bid to host the 2026 World Cup won out over Morocco. A North African country hosting the tournament would have been not only a boon to the local game but also a powerful symbol of equality within the global community. But the paltry few billion dollars in revenue that Morocco could promise FIFA didn't have a patch on the $12b in broadcasting rights that North America could rake in for HQ. The excuse that Morocco would need to build or refurbish all of its stadiums hardly holds water when one considers Qatar's successful bid for 2022. While of this reflects poorly on FIFA, thankfully we don't watch football for the well-recompensed officials. Despite the commercialisation of the game, FIFA's pocket-lining, and the rule-tinkering - the World Cup is a unique spectacle that melds high and low art, tribalism and generosity. There's a reason it's called "o jogo bonito", the beautiful game. WORLDLYWISE Protestors clogged Amman's streets during the week. PHOTO: Reuters Yemen's civil war is an undeniably complex affair. Decades-long rivalries, cynical foreign interventions and the shifting sands of alliances all play a role in obscuring the conflict on the ground. Yet some aspects of the war, like the ongoing assault on the Red Sea port of Hodeidah, are simple. Hodeidah is the last port supplying Houthi-held territory in the fractured state of Yemen. It is the gateway for the vast majority of food and medical aid entering the country. Before the war Yemen's lack of arable land forced the government to import around 80% of its food. The Saudi/Emirati coalition blockade of north-west Yemen has caused an artificial famine, putting millions of lives at risk; today Hodeidah is less a port than it is a lifeline. This week Houthi rebels entrenched in the port refused a United Nations deal that would have saved the port from heavy fighting. The cashed-up militias aligned with Gulf monarchies (who are far better armed than their counterparts in the hollowed-out Yemeni military) began their advance on Wednesday. The United Nations has warned that 250,000 people are at risk from the fighting and that significant damage to the dock could cause a vast number of the 8 million food-insecure Yemenis to starve.  An unlikely pair make history. PHOTO: Anthony Wallace / AFP / Getty And just like that North Korea is no longer a nuclear threat (if you take Donald Trump prima facie). This week the American leader and North Korean Chairman Kim Jong-un made history in Singapore. Hands were shaken and documents were signed at the first face to face meeting between the two former adversaries. There was even a garish promotional video ("A story of opportunity for North Korea") that hyped-up the importance of the meeting and a looming duality: glittering rewards of economic enrichment, or perpetuated militarism. There's been a lot of chatter about who 'won' the talks, but we'll skip straight by that. The meeting was undeniably productive. Their talks culminated in the signing of a document that describes a shared desire to work towards normalised relationships. Each leader agreed (timetable pending) to visit the other's country - a genuinely relieving change considering the recent spate of barbs and threats. Yet the sheen wore off the document in question less than a day later. The thorniest issue (nukes) was barely touched on, in fact the document simply repeated North Korea's position, "the DPRK commits to work towards complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula." As always the devil is in the details. These are the early days, and it's yet to be seen how negotiators from either side (let alone their bombastic hand-shakers) will reconcile their differing views on what denuclearisation means. America's position is that the disarmament must be complete, verifiable and irreversible. North Korea's would see it as part of a broader deal to remove America's nuclear capabilities (and possibly ballistic missile shield) from South Korea along with the tens of thousands of soldiers it has stationed there. If a comprehensive plan is agreed upon it will be an artful deal indeed. WHAT ELSE HAPPENED A country by any other name. PHOTO: The Independent Macedonia's president refused to sign-off on an agreement that would end Skopje's long-running titular feud with Greece. Obama-era regulations protecting net neutrality expired on Monday; the threat of a segregated internet (tiers of speed, quality and access) is closer to being realised A judge ruled in favour of AT&T and Time Warner's $85b tie up; this will doubtless spur further merger efforts amongst media and internet giants The United Nations voted 120 to 8 in favour of a resolution that strongly condemned Israel's "excessive, disproportionate and indiscriminate force" in Gaza Volkswagen agreed to pay a €1b fine over its central role in the 2015 emissions-cheating scandal that threw the company's name (and much of the industry) into disrepute The billionaire jeweller Nirav Modi surfaced in Britain to apply for asylum; he has been on the run since being accused of defrauding India's Punjab National Bank of $2b Over 100 people were arrested in Vietnam after rare anti-China protests turned violent; tensions are rising over special economic zones and preferential treatment for Chinese companies In good news for those wanting to marry young, Japan made a rare revision to its civil code; as of 2022 the age of legal adulthood will be dropped from 20 to 18 Turkish strongman Recep Tayyip Erdogan ordered his air force to bomb Kurdish targets in northern Iraq for a pre-election (June 24th) poll boost Chilean prosecutors raided offices of the Catholic Church as part of the wide-ranging investigation into child sex abuse; a Papal purge of those culpable is also underway THE BEST OF TIMES... Turning over a new leaf. PHOTO: AFP For the first time in living memory Robert Mugabe is not dominating Zimbabwe's election season. During those decades the brave few who stood against the government faced the prospect of threats, beatings and even murder. While Emmerson Mnagagwa's rise to power was hardly an example of democratic process, it must be noted that the lead up to the vote has been peaceful. ZANU-PF managed to oust a dictator and so far they've met a challenge from the Movement for Democratic Change fairly; hopefully a negative result won't change that. Our readers will recall that last week we raised the plight of Penka the cow who faced the executioners' axe (or bolt-gun). European Union regulations stipulate that bovine border-crossings were clearly illegal without the proper paperwork and any transgression was punishable by death. This week we can gladly pass on the fact that Penka's death sentence has been commuted by the relevant authorities. A hearty congratulations to the Bulgarian officials who relented in the face of reason and decency. THE WORST OF TIMES... A win for Beijing. PHOTO: Sam Tsang The two student leaders of the 2016 Mong Kok riots in Hong Kong have been handed severe punishments by the High Court. Lo Kin-man and Edward Leung found themselves heading a burgeoning pro-democratic grassroots movement for a brief period of time. The ensuing crackdown by Hong Kong's pro-Beijing authorities swept up the activists; today there are fewer avenues than ever for Hong Kong's citizens to express dissent. The six and seven year sentences handed to the pair convey a clear message to those with similar political leanings. We've known for quite some time just how damaging a lack of sleep is to the human body. But a new study has blown the covers off a threat in bed: oversleeping. The scientists are coming after our weekend sleep-ins. According to research conducted at the Seoul National University College of Medicine, those sleeping in for more than 10 hours run the risk of doing the same damage to their metabolic system that sleeping for less than six hours does. Alarming news (pun intended). P.S. Your weekend long read... A story that has resisted all attempts to derail it: meet the workers who are paying for Elon Musk's dreams. Quote of the week... “Raccoons don’t think ahead very much, so raccoons don’t have very good impulse control" - An animal behaviour expert chimes in during the frantic few hours when one of the furry critters ascended a skyscraper in Minnesota.  What to watch next week... The World Cup One last thing... If you haven't purchased an inkl plan as yet, you can get the world's best news coverage for an entire month for just 99c. That's a mere 3 cents per day for access to important, trusted news from the world's most experienced journalists.  Tom Wharton for inkl Eid mubarak to readers celebrating Eid al-Fitr (the end of Ramadan festival)