Russia and the 2018 FIFA World Cup

Despite many negative expectations of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Russia delivered one of the best World Cups in living memory. This book brings together leading scholars working in Russian studies, sociology, and political science to analyze the 2018 World Cup and assess its significance for sport, Russia, and the world.
The book explores the connections between sport, soft power, populism, protest, and international politics, and investigates topics including security, surveillance, social media, and patriotic mobilization, shining new light on key contemporary themes in the social sciences. It reflects upon the importance of sporting mega-events for public diplomacy and considers what the 2018 World Cup can tell us about the current condition of Russian society and the Russian state.
Join us for an upcoming PONARS Eurasia event celebrating the launch of this new book exploring soccer, sport, Russia, international politics, and post-Soviet society.

Speakers:

Richard Arnold is Associate Professor of Political Science at Muskingum University, where he teaches courses on International Sports and Politics, Russian Politics, Russian Foreign Policy, and Ethnic Conflict and Nationalism.

Olga Iakimova is Associate Professor in the Department of Integrated Marketing Communications and Branding at the Ural Federal University, Russia.

Marina Mikhaylova is Assistant Professor of Anthropology (Teaching/Instructional) and Affiliated Faculty of Global Studies at Temple University (Philadelphia, PA). Marina’s research and teaching interests include political anthropology, linguistic anthropology, youth, and transnationalism. Her current research focuses on local reactions to global media events, such as FIFA World Cup in Russia.

Michael Cole is a PhD candidate at the University of Tartu, Estonia, an Early Stage Researcher in the Marie Curie Horizon 2020 project ‘FATIGUE’, and a Doctoral Fellow at the Centre for Analysis of the Radical Right. His research interests include the relationship between football and far-right politics and the normalization of radical right-wing discourses on social media.

Andrew Foxall is Director of the Russia and Eurasia Studies Centre at the Henry Jackson Society, a London-based international affairs think tank.

Manuel Veth authored his PhD on Soviet and post-Soviet football economics and is now a full-time journalist. Currently employed by Transfermarkt, Manuel runs the outlet’s North America operations. He also contributes to various outlets, writing about football and economics in general, and the German Bundesliga, in particular.