The Palestine Exception in Football with Abubaker Abed episode artwork

EPISODE · Mar 30, 2026 · 1H 15M

The Palestine Exception in Football with Abubaker Abed

from The End of Sport · host The End of Sport

Abubaker Abed speaks about FIFA and European football's double standards regarding Israel, his reporting on the genocide in Gaza, and the importance of boycotting the 2026 World Cup.Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Guest Credibility01:12 Iran's Potential Boycott and US Match Relocation02:58 US Policies and Impact on Palestinian Athletes04:34 Iran's Goodwill Gestures and US Political Interference05:45 FIFA's Obligation to Ensure Player Safety06:14 Israel's War Crimes and FIFA's Inaction07:42 Comparison of Sanctions: Russia vs. Israel08:39 Iran's Right to Boycott and FIFA's Refusal09:06 Palestinian Football and FIFA's Past Decisions10:05 Hypocrisy in FIFA's Treatment of Palestine and Israel11:02 FIFA's Corruption and Media Complicity12:34 FIFA's Double Standards and Israel's Segregation12:59 Infantino's Leadership and FIFA's Future14:23 Israeli Military Attacks on Palestinian Sports Facilities15:42 Destruction of Gaza's Sports Infrastructure16:42 Mainstream Media's Silence on Palestinian Sports17:10 Football Legends and Political Silence18:37 Global Solidarity Movements and Their Absence for Gaza19:36 Football Stars and Their Silence on Palestine20:58 Sportswashing and Political Complicity of Players22:19 Personal Impact of Conflict on Abubakar's Love for Football24:31 Growing Movement to Boycott the World Cup24:59 Voting with Feet: How Fans Can Protest26:24 Abubakar's Shift from Football to Political Activism33:05 The Destruction of Gaza's Sports Community42:19 Palestinian Sports as Resistance and Identity45:49 The Tragedy of Gaza's Sports Infrastructure48:15 FIFA's Complicity and International Hypocrisy51:42 The Role of Media and Journalistic Integrity01:02:11 The Silence of Western Media and Athletes01:08:45 Current Situation in Gaza and Future Outlook01:12:48 Hope and Resistance in GazaGaza, football, FIFA, Palestine, sportswashing, human rights, geopolitics, boycott, genocide, sports activismHosts: Nathan Kaman-Lamb, Priyansh, Anna Posbergh, Johanna Mellis, and Derek Silva________________________________________Support & Follow The End of SportPatreon: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/Theendofsport⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (Support the show!)Bluesky: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@endofsportpod.bsky.social⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@endofsportpod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter/X: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@EndofSportPod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The End of Sport⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen, share, and support The End of Sport, a proud member of the Harbinger Media Network, a community of over sixty leftist podcasts at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠harbingermedianetwork.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Abubaker Abed speaks about FIFA and European football's double standards regarding Israel, his reporting on the genocide in Gaza, and the importance of boycotting the 2026 World Cup.Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Guest Credibility01:12 Iran's Potential Boycott and US Match Relocation02:58 US Policies and Impact on Palestinian Athletes04:34 Iran's Goodwill Gestures and US Political Interference05:45 FIFA's Obligation to Ensure Player Safety06:14 Israel's War Crimes and FIFA's Inaction07:42 Comparison of Sanctions: Russia vs. Israel08:39 Iran's Right to Boycott and FIFA's Refusal09:06 Palestinian Football and FIFA's Past Decisions10:05 Hypocrisy in FIFA's Treatment of Palestine and Israel11:02 FIFA's Corruption and Media Complicity12:34 FIFA's Double Standards and Israel's Segregation12:59 Infantino's Leadership and FIFA's Future14:23 Israeli Military Attacks on Palestinian Sports Facilities15:42 Destruction of Gaza's Sports Infrastructure16:42 Mainstream Media's Silence on Palestinian Sports17:10 Football Legends and Political Silence18:37 Global Solidarity Movements and Their Absence for Gaza19:36 Football Stars and Their Silence on Palestine20:58 Sportswashing and Political Complicity of Players22:19 Personal Impact of Conflict on Abubakar's Love for Football24:31 Growing Movement to Boycott the World Cup24:59 Voting with Feet: How Fans Can Protest26:24 Abubakar's Shift from Football to Political Activism33:05 The Destruction of Gaza's Sports Community42:19 Palestinian Sports as Resistance and Identity45:49 The Tragedy of Gaza's Sports Infrastructure48:15 FIFA's Complicity and International Hypocrisy51:42 The Role of Media and Journalistic Integrity01:02:11 The Silence of Western Media and Athletes01:08:45 Current Situation in Gaza and Future Outlook01:12:48 Hope and Resistance in GazaGaza, football, FIFA, Palestine, sportswashing, human rights, geopolitics, boycott, genocide, sports activismHosts: Nathan Kaman-Lamb, Priyansh, Anna Posbergh, Johanna Mellis, and Derek Silva________________________________________Support & Follow The End of SportPatreon: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/Theendofsport⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (Support the show!)Bluesky: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@endofsportpod.bsky.social⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@endofsportpod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter/X: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@EndofSportPod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The End of Sport⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen, share, and support The End of Sport, a proud member of the Harbinger Media Network, a community of over sixty leftist podcasts at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠harbingermedianetwork.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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The Palestine Exception in Football with Abubaker Abed

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This episode was published on March 30, 2026.

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Abubaker Abed speaks about FIFA and European football's double standards regarding Israel, his reporting on the genocide in Gaza, and the importance of boycotting the 2026 World Cup.Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Guest Credibility01:12 Iran's...

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