Can you love your country and cheer against it?

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Plus: Ben Franklin's anti-counterfeit techniques; Epstein's effect on businesses ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌
The Conversation

Welcome to the Saturday edition of The Conversation U.S.’s Daily newsletter.

Can you support your country’s national team if you despise the leaders of your country?

Wake Forest University philosophy scholar Adam Kadlac is the author of “The Ethics of Sports Fandom.” He explores a tension that some fans, particularly in the U.S., are grappling with as the World Cup approaches.

“It’s one thing to pull for your national team when patriotism feels uncomplicated,” he writes. “It’s quite another when you aren’t feeling very proud to be an American.”

Kadlac acknowledges that it’s impossible to divorce politics from global sporting events like the Olympics and the World Cup. But he points to the players on the pitch as perhaps the best model to follow. Many of those who play for brutal regimes are keen to avoid overtly praising the country’s leaders in the wake of a victory or goal. They love the game. They love their fellow countrymen. And that’s usually enough for them.

“If the athletes who wear their national colors can maintain such nuanced views, surely fans can, too,” Kadlac adds.

This week we also liked stories about solar energy and the importance of considering land use, why residents in U.S. territories have no vote in Congress, and – also on the topic of the “beautiful game” – a story on why some people call it soccer and others football.

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Nick Lehr

Senior Arts + Culture Editor
President Donald Trump appears at a FIFA Club World Cup 2025 match at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium on July 13, 2025, with FIFA president Gianni Infantino standing to the right. Eva Marie Uzcategui/FIFA via Getty Images

As an American, should you feel guilty about rooting against the US in the World Cup?

Adam Kadlac, Wake Forest University

It’s one thing to pull for your national team when patriotism feels uncomplicated. It’s quite another when you aren’t feeling very proud to be an American.
Ben Franklin played a key role in America’s founding, which included helping to design its paper currency. Kristina Davis

We analyzed paper money printed by Ben Franklin to uncover his anti‑counterfeiting techniques and materials innovations

Khachatur Manukyan, University of Notre Dame

Ben Franklin led an effort to print paper bills in the American colonies, after a coin shortage constrained the economy.
Pictured are warships during the 1898 Spanish-American War, after which the U.S. acquired from Spain new territories thousands of miles from the mainland. Bettmann/Getty Images

US territories have a voice in Congress but no vote – here’s why

Elliot Mamet, Princeton University; Austin Bussing, Trinity University

125 years ago, the Supreme Court ruled that some territories belonged to the US but weren’t part of it. The reasoning was openly racist – and it still shapes how millions are represented in Congress.

How businesses with ties to Jeffrey Epstein saw norms – and even share prices – suffer

Michaela Pagel, Washington University in St. Louis

The more Epstein-connected directors a company had, no matter its size, the more likely it was to have governance problems.

Bison restoration efforts and grazing rights hinge on one question: Are bison wildlife?

Madison Stevens, Montana State University; Elizabeth (Libby) Lunstrum, Boise State University

Approximately 400,000 bison roam the North American landscape today, of which nearly 90% are considered livestock.

Democrats don’t get why they’ve lost most working class voters

Nicholas Jacobs, Colby College; Institute for Humane Studies

Class-war rhetoric from Democratic candidates jams working-class voters into a prefabricated progressive agenda, an expert on rural and working-class communities argues.

Marjane Satrapi’s masterpiece Persepolis transformed the world’s understanding of Iran

Shadi Rouhshahbaz, The University of Melbourne; University of Newcastle

First published in 2000, Persepolis created a transformative shift in comics, memoir and political storytelling. Its Iranian–French creator has died, aged 56.

The Conversation News Quiz 🧠

  • The Conversation U.S. weekly news quiz

    Fritz Holznagel, The Conversation

    Here’s the first question of this week's edition:

    During a test of its New Glenn booster at Cape Canaveral on May 28, a rocket built by Jeff Bezos' company Blue Origin did what?

    1. A. Veered off course and crashed into Jeff Bezos' yacht
    2. B. Landed safely after a 5-mile flight
    3. C. Failed to ignite
    4. D. Exploded in a giant fireball

    Test your knowledge