1st Edition

Russia and the 2018 FIFA World Cup

Edited By Richard Arnold Copyright 2021
222 Pages 1 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

222 Pages 1 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

222 Pages 1 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

Despite many negative expectations of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Russia delivered one of the best World Cups in living memory. This book brings together leading scholars working in Russian studies, sociology and political science to analyse the 2018 World Cup and assess its significance for sport, Russia and the world.  The book explores the connections between sport, soft power, populism,... Read more

Introduction: a sporting riddle wrapped in mystery

RICHARD ARNOLD

1 The state of play in Russian football

MANUEL VETH

2 Security and the spectacle: the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia’s “safest city”

VOLKAN IPEK AND ANDREY MAKARYCHEV

3 Populist tactics: Ramzan Kadyrov’s use of football as a political tool during the 2018 FIFA World Cup

MICHAEL COLE

4 Increased output legitimacy by hosting mega sport events? The 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russian Twitter discourse

HENK ERIK MEIER, JULIA GLATHE, MICHAEL MUTZ AND MARTIN HÖLZEN

5 Sport and domestic “soft power” in Russia: take the skinheads bowling

RICHARD ARNOLD

6 The case of Pussy Riot’s protest at the World Cup 2018 in Russia: ‘the policeman enters the game’

OLGA IAKIMOVA

7 Football, film, and the Russian state: an unorthodox alliance

PETER ROLLBERG

8 Russian soft power as a result of FIFA 2018

TATIANA ZONOVA

9 Vladimir Putin, Russian foreign policy, and the 2018 FIFA World Cup: making Russia great again

ANDREW FOXALL

10 Global soft power and local effects of the World Cup in Russia, Brazil, and South Africa

MARINA MIKHAYLOVA

Biography

Richard Arnold is Associate Professor of Political Science at Muskingum University, USA, where he teaches courses on International Sports and Politics, Russian Politics, Russian Foreign Policy, and Ethnic Conflict and Nationalism.

"Richard Arnold's volume is the first comprehensive, multidimensional academic reflection on the impact and legacy of the 2018 tournament for Russia in its immediate aftermath. It is a valuable addition to the libraries of scholars of Russian politics, society and sports, and a necessary starting point for subsequent reflections on the 2018 World Cup." – Vitaly Kazakov, University of Manchester, Europe-Asia Studies