The Enhanced Games, an elaborate ad for supplements masking as athletic competition, are here. I wrote for @jacobinmag.bsky.social about how the Games reflect the world forged by their billionaire backers: in a society dominated by scams, whoever can cheat most blatantly deserves to win.

The Enhanced Games Are a Scam on Steroids

The Enhanced Games allow athletes to dope in order to beat records in sprinting and swimming. It’s a perfect metaphor for the self-improvement industry: hurting your body and soul in order to chase a ...

jacobin.com

Thousands of workers are threatening to strike at the Los Angeles World Cup stadium. The SoFi Stadium plans to host two of the three US Men's World Cup matches, but now 2,000 cooks, servers, bartenders and more may strike. Their main issue? ICE being present at the World Cup.

FIFA faces new crisis as SoFi Stadium workers in LA threaten strike action

The union UNITE HERE Local 11 has made a series of demands to FIFA and voiced major concerns about ICE agents around World Cup venues

nytimes.com

One of the lessons of the Iran war is that it was a huge mistake not to even try to put any of the Iraq war architects in prison. We shouldn’t make it again.

Pyro display at this Union Berlin match only slightly obscuring the view of the pitch…

Economic strike in Minnesota to protest against ICE: ‘No work, no school, no shopping’

Economic strike in Minnesota to protest against ICE: ‘No work, no school, no shopping’

Organizers demand ICE leave state and agency be investigated for constitutional violations * ICE protests – live updates A “no work, no school, no shopping” blackout day of protest was kicked off by community leaders, faith leaders and labor unions on Friday in protest against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) surge in the state. The “Day of Truth & Freedom” protest comes in the wake of the killing of Renee Good, the unarmed woman killed by a federal immigration officer in Minneapolis earlier this month. Continue reading...

theguardian.com

wrote about the much-deserved death knell of the world's worst architecture project for @thenation.com www.thenation.com/article/worl...

The Line, a Saudi Megaproject, Is Dead

It was always doomed to unravel, but the firms who lent their name to this folly should be held accountable.

thenation.com

i think it is simply true that for all intents and purposes stephen miller is the president of the united states

The Wrath of Stephen Miller

The man who turns President Trump’s most incendiary impulses into policy

theatlantic.com

It’s very telling that ICE is being supported by companies like Palantir, building AI tech to help them abduct people, while the communities resisting them are organizing and creating their own systems. It’s always important to remember that these tech companies are not for people.

Nice little sticker on display in the true 2026 World Cup final host state, New Jersey

Breaking News: Gov. Kathy Hochul, partnering with Mayor Zohran Mamdani, will unveil a plan to expand free or affordable child care for New Yorkers across the state.

Hochul and Mamdani to Announce Road Map to Expand Child Care

Governor Kathy Hochul will appear with Mayor Zohran Mamdani to lay out a plan to expand free and subsidized child care in New York, which had been a central focus of his campaign.

nyti.ms

Seasons greetings from the best place to eat in NY, and possibly the world (a windowless mall basement in flushing, queens)

“Going to the World Cup” used to be something normal people did. Not with these ticket prices. @theathleticfc.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/athletic/688...

‘Going to the World Cup’ used to be something ordinary people did. Not with these ticket prices

The World Cup is about so much more than just the football. FIFA's pricing structure for next summer's tournament ignores that

nytimes.com

Breaking News: Republicans in the Indiana Senate defied President Trump and joined Democrats in voting down a congressional map aimed at adding GOP seats.

Indiana Lawmakers Reject Trump’s New Political Map

Republicans hold an overwhelming majority in the Indiana Senate, but more than a dozen of them defied the president’s wishes, voting against a map aimed at adding Republicans in Congress.

nyti.ms

FIFA's never exactly been a shining light, but its bizarre, sycophantic bowing to Trump's every whim is a new low for both FIFA and the world's most popular spot. I wrote for @jacobinmag.bsky.social about how football fans deserve more than a bleakly authoritarian cash grab - and need to push back.

The World Cup Shouldn’t Be Trump’s Toy

FIFA’s newly announced peace prize for Donald Trump is a craven act of stroking his ego. The 2026 World Cup is shaping up to be among the worst cases yet of sports bending to politics.

jacobin.com

FIFA's never exactly been a shining light, but its bizarre, sycophantic bowing to Trump's every whim is a new low for both FIFA and the world's most popular spot. I wrote for @jacobinmag.bsky.social about how football fans deserve more than a bleakly authoritarian cash grab - and need to push back.

The World Cup Shouldn’t Be Trump’s Toy

FIFA’s newly announced peace prize for Donald Trump is a craven act of stroking his ego. The 2026 World Cup is shaping up to be among the worst cases yet of sports bending to politics.

jacobin.com

Germany officially set to host Women's EURO 2029 - hopefully will help give their development a further push as they struggle to keep up with Spain and England. Plus Germany always a great host country (if you can avoid Gelsenkirchen, at least)

DER SPIEGEL@spiegel.de · 8mo ago

Fußball: EM 2029 findet in Deutschland statt: Zuletzt fand eine Fußball-Europameisterschaft der Frauen im Jahr 2001 in Deutschland statt. Nun steht das nächste Großevent für den DFB an.

Nothing better than CONCACAF qualifying. Also loving that if Suriname qualify, between them, Curaçao and the Netherlands there will be like 80 Dutch-born players at the World Cup. The Netherlands x CONCACAF combo is becoming unstoppable

CBS Sports Golazo@cbssportsgolazo-m.bsky.social · 9mo ago

CURAÇAO HAVE QUALIFIED FOR THEIR FIRST-EVER WORLD CUP ❤️ WHAT A MOMENT FOR THE BLUE WAVE 🌊

It’s become conventional wisdom that America’s young men are in crisis. The reality is more complicated than that. https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-weekend-essay/what-did-men-do-to-deserve-this

What Did Men Do to Deserve This?

Changes in the economy and in the culture seem to have hit them hard. Scott Galloway believes they need an “aspirational vision of masculinity.”

newyorker.com

After 11 years in Berlin I’m officially a German citizen! Will celebrate by consuming concerning quantities of bratwurst, tut tutting jay walkers, and complaining (highly encouraged among Germans and a big no no when foreigners do it). Where do I pick up my Camp David shirt?

NEW: NYC's mayor-elect must now grapple with the sweeping NYPD surveillance apparatus that has historically targeted Muslims and other minority groups. @awinston.bsky.social reports for @wired.com www.wired.com/story/welcom...

Zohran Mamdani Just Inherited the NYPD Surveillance State

In addition to affordability, New York City’s mayor-elect will be forced to reckon with the NYPD’s sweeping mass surveillance operations.

wired.com

An excellent question at the end of this well done video from @braneck.bsky.social. But a sad one to consider in a city like Birmingham.

Vienna's war on parking

YouTube video by DW Planet A

youtube.com

Mamdani up another two points on this alone

TKarney@pecunium.bsky.social · 9mo ago

More incentive

As ceasefire takes hold, Germany's pro-Palestinian protesters grapple with fallout at home @braneck.bsky.social www.courthousenews.com/as-ceasefire...

As ceasefire takes hold, Germany's pro-Palestinian protesters grapple with fallout at home

German politics and policing have taken an aggressive approach to criticism of Israel. What happens to the protest movement — and national rhetoric — now?

courthousenews.com

Had a great time on @cornerspaeti.operationglad.io delivering for the all important Berlin leftist sports fan demographic (we exist!) and chatting with Nick about the encroaching Americanization of European sport. Worth a listen even if we won't see you at the Berlin NFL games, check it out!

Corner Späti

Discussions of a deteriorating world all from the comfort of your local smoke-filled Spätkauf.

operationglad.io

🚨NEW EPISODE🚨 Nick has on @braneck.bsky.social to talk about SPORTS! Wait don't leave, it's focusing on American sports being exported to EU markets and beyond. Globalisation! Geopolitics! Economies! You love that shit. Also Ciarán leaves a quick news update from paternity leave. OPERATIONGLAD.IO

Big moment in club history: Union Berlin make their women’s Bundesliga debut in front of a packed crowd. Also momentous for women’s football in the city - they’re the first side from Berlin proper to play in the top flight since 2010. This will be fun. #FCUnion #FCUFCN

Germany welcomed them with open arms. A decade later, migrants grapple with a rightward lurch @braneck.bsky.social www.courthousenews.com/germany-welc...

Germany welcomed them with open arms. A decade later, migrants grapple with a rightward lurch

People who arrived here in 2015 have changed significantly — finding work, learning German, even becoming citizens. So has the nation. The far-right, anti-immigration AfD now sits atop the polls.

courthousenews.com

This is Stadio. youtu.be/XCw27DskYRw?...

This is Stadio

YouTube video by Stadio

youtu.be

Pumped to again appear on the great @spassbremse.bsky.social, where we discussed finance and sportswashing in football, the women’s Euros, and Berlin’s wildly unsuccessful branding as a ‘sport metropole’. Plus, of course, stadium bratwurst chat. Check it out!

71 - At the intersection of sports, politics, and culture w/Dave Braneck

Spaßbremse · Episode

open.spotify.com

An entire news crew working for Al Jazeera was killed by Israel as they sought to bring the world firsthand reporting from #Gaza. Among them was prominent journalist Anas Al-Sharif, who had been previously smeared and threatened by the IDF. #NotATarget Full statement: cpj.org/2025/08/isra...

Israel kills Al Jazeera journalists in targeted Gaza City airstrike - Committee to Protect Journalists

New York, August 10, 2025—The Committee to Protect Journalists is appalled to learn of the killing today of Al Jazeera journalist Anas Al-Sharif, Mohammed Qreiqeh, camera operators Ibrahim Zaher and M...

cpj.org