Special coverage – from physics of ball flight to players' tattoos
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Right, that’s it. I’ve edited my last piece and written my last newsletter for a month or so. I’m “soccerquitting” – a neologism to describe the phenomenon of a productivity slump during the duration of the World Cup. But in advance of the beautiful game’s biggest tournament, I and colleagues across The Conversation network have worked hard to provide readers with World Cup coverage that marries the flare of the Brazilian teams of the 1970s with the rigor of the Italian sides of the 1980s. But I prefer to see our coverage as something akin to the Dutch teams of the 1970s, providing a “total football” approach in which all desks and disciplines contribute. So, we have physicists testing out the flight of the World Cup ball, plant scientists explaining how they cultivated the turf being used, and data whizzes talking us through who will win the final … according to their machine learning program. Meanwhile, soccer economists have taken a stab at explaining why ticket prices are crazy high, and what FIFA says it will do with the money raised. On the cultural front, we have cast an eye back to dramas and the legacy of the 1994 tournament in the U.S., delved into the meaning of players’ tattoos, and the story of migration that drives many of the teams and their players. We’ve even put together a special World Cup quiz based on our stories to test your knowledge. One final thing: For readers who may object to the use of “soccer” over “football” in our coverage, we have a nice explainer as to why it really doesn’t matter what you call it – just enjoy the beautiful game. |
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Matt Williams Senior International (and Soccer?) Editor |
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 Cesar R. Torres, Penn State Global soccer was in the doldrums in the early 1990s – with poor ethics and boring defensive tactics. Then FIFA set about changing the game. |
 Laurent Dubois, University of Virginia For the first time since 1974, the Haitian men’s team has qualified for the World Cup. This is their story. |
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 John Eric Goff, University of Puget Sound For two decades, researchers have studied soccer ball aerodynamics. Latest tests suggest the 2026 ball is more stable, but with a slightly shorter range. |
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 Achim Zeileis, University of Innsbruck Data science and machine learning algorithms can help us form probabilistic forecasts of things like sporting events. |
 Gustavo Morello, Boston College As millions watch the 2026 FIFA World Cup, players’ tattoos will be on display – offering a glimpse into the inner lives of soccer’s biggest stars. |
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 Stefan Szymanski, University of Michigan The wild swings of dynamic pricing, ongoing accusations of FIFA corruption and questions of host-nation probity have created a huge backlash. |
 Vaughan Cruickshank, University of Tasmania; Brendon Hyndman, Charles Sturt University The soccer was superb but the 1994 World Cup in the US is also remembered for multiple controversies. |
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 Shirvin Zeinalzadeh, Arizona State University Iran’s team faces a hostile reception from the US government and some of its brethren in the diaspora. Yet others hope the event will trump politics — for now. |
 Kirk Bowman, Georgia Institute of Technology ‘Soccer’ originated as a slang term in the 1880s and continues to be used around the world today. So why are some people squeamish about the term? |
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 Andrés Henao, University of Colorado Anschutz Respiratory diseases like measles and flu pose a much bigger threat to public health for the World Cup than does Ebola. |
 Joshua McLeod, Deakin University; Hunter Fujak, Deakin University Several so-called minnow nations are making their debuts at the World Cup. Will they add to the tournament or is it overkill? |
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 John N. Trey Rogers, Michigan State University; Jackie Lyn A. Guevara, Michigan State University; John Sorochan, University of Tennessee; Ryan Bearss, Michigan State University The new playing fields are rolling out in stadiums from Mexico to Canada. Creating the perfect pitch in very different climates requires the right grasses and some creative tricks. |
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Gemma Ware, The Conversation Listen to football historian John Sloop trace the history of soccer in the US on The Conversation Weekly podcast. |
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The Conversation News Quiz 🧠 |
Matt Williams, The Conversation Here’s the first question of this week's edition: The last time the World Cup was staged in North America was 1994. Its opening ceremony was overshadowed by what event on the same day?
- A. The final episode of Dallas
- B. Nelson Mandela's swearing in as South African president
- C. The O.J. Simpson car chase
- D. The attack on figure skater Nancy Kerrigan
Test your knowledge |
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Video 📽️ |
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