As the FIFA World Cup draw unfolded, an unwelcome thought arose. Did the golden trophy for FIFA’s first-ever Peace Prize , given to Donald Trump, look like the hands of the damned reaching up toward the world, or the hands of the mob attempting to steal or grope or drag it down with them? It was hard to tell, really, and not just because of the clunkiness of trophy itself. It was a surreal day.

And a big day, it should be said. Football is a multi-denominational religion and a money-making device like no other, and the result is one that experienced fans know too well: The greatness of the game and its squalidity walk out onto the pitch arm in arm.

But then came the 2026 World Cup in Canada, Mexico and, critically, the United States, where the game’s debasement will be advanced. The

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