02/07/2026
🌟 CMEPS Recommends: ”The World Cup and the Politics of Football in the MENA Region“ by Dr. André Bank, Dr. Idriss Jebari, Hamid Talebian, and Prof. Dr. Eckart Woertz. 📖⚽
Following last Wednesday’s talk by Dr. André Bank (German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA) ) on “Syria after Assad: Political transition under the aegis of Salafi rebels,” this month our Program Coordinator Dr. Mirjam Edel recommends the latest GIGA Focus publication 📚 co-authored by Dr. André Bank, Dr. Idriss Jebari, Hamid Talebian, and Prof. Dr. Eckart Woertz. 📖✨
⚽ How’s everyone‘s World Cup going? The group stage just wrapped up and we now know who made it to the round of 32. From the MENA region, Morocco, Egypt, and Algeria are all through!
🌍 This GIGA Focus digs into Politics of Football. The authors look at three things running through MENA football politics: nationalism (governments leaning on the ”national team“ for legitimacy), sportswashing (Gulf states pouring money into stadiums, clubs, and star signings to build soft power abroad), and protest (the backlash when these mega-projects come at a real cost to ordinary people, Morocco’s Gen Z protests over stadium spending, or Tunisia‘s ultras scene).
💭 The best part of this piece is how it connects football directly to politics. Iran’s Team Melli caught up in wartime nationalism, Jordan‘s monarchy riding its first World Cup qualification, Algeria and Morocco’s rivalry turning into actual diplomatic tension.
If you‘re into football or Middle East politics (or both), give this one a read. 📖 ⚽
On 10 June 2026, Dr. André Bank visited the Institut für Politikwissenschaft (IfP) to give an lecture titled ‚Syria after Assad: Political transition under the aegis of Salafi rebels!