Messi, Ronaldo and sportswashing

[AgentDaleCooper]

I was as delighted as anyone to see Messi win the world cup...but at what point does it become accepted that these two players, along with many others, are directly engaging in politics, and be treated as such? Same goes for Beckham. They are being paid for an essentially political purpose, so they need to be asked political questions in every interview they do.

[MWHIBBIES]

Pep and Eddie Howe are the faces of sportswashing organizations, don't forget them.

[AgentDaleCooper]

Pep and Eddie Howe are the faces of sportswashing organizations, don't forget them.

yep, absolutely. Pretty sure Pep claims to be left win - it's absurd. The whole 'I'm only interested in the football' line is becoming increasingly inexcusable.

[Bostonhibby]

Agents and go between being handsomely rewarded to direct their cash hungry drones to help these despots improve their global image.
I agree re city and very sadly, especially now Newcastle where the man behind the scenes very recently seems to have shown he doesnt mind a bit of blood on his hands to get his way/revenge.

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[AgentDaleCooper]

Agents and go between being handsomely rewarded to direct their cash hungry drones to help these despots improve their global image.
I agree re city and very sadly, especially now Newcastle where the man behind the scenes very recently seems to have shown he doesnt mind a bit of blood on his hands to get his way/revenge.

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Agreed, absolute parasites - but we've always known that. Messi and Ronaldo aren't stupid though, and they are the 'brands' that ultimately need to be persuaded to stop doing what they are doing.

[Bostonhibby]

Agreed, absolute parasites - but we've always known that. Messi and Ronaldo aren't stupid though, and they are the 'brands' that ultimately need to be persuaded to stop doing what they are doing.I suspect they both simply put their self interests first rather than doing the "right thing".
Messi's reluctance to pay his share of tax in the country he got a fair slice of his wealth generated from is but a small example.

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[AgentDaleCooper]

I suspect they both simply put their self interests first rather than doing the "right thing".
Messi's reluctance to pay his share of tax in the country he got a fair slice of his wealth generated from is but a small example.

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i'm sure the agents would use the same argument. it's not down to a lack of intelligence, it's just down to really ****ty values, which need to be exposed in every interview they do IMO. the point is that when politics sneaks into sports through the back door, it's still politics, and it's no excuse for players to plead ignorance to avoid accountability for their involvement.

[Bostonhibby]

i'm sure the agents would use the same argument. it's not down to a lack of intelligence, it's just down to really ****ty values, which need to be exposed in every interview they do IMO. the point is that when politics sneaks into sports through the back door, it's still politics, and it's no excuse for players to plead ignorance to avoid accountability for their involvement.We are as one here but never going to happen, society is being led the other way sadly. Money talks.

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[ekhibee]

i'm sure the agents would use the same argument. it's not down to a lack of intelligence, it's just down to really ****ty values, which need to be exposed in every interview they do IMO. the point is that when politics sneaks into sports through the back door, it's still politics, and it's no excuse for players to plead ignorance to avoid accountability for their involvement.

Really valid points that you make and I totally agree with too, but as I'm sure you're aware, there's a lot of hypocrisy involved and not just by players. We are probably all in agreement in criticism of a really ugly regime in Qatar and the deaths and treatment of migrant workers, and at the same time the enthralling football on show during the World Cup, but when the 2 are merged, one of them is clearly pushed to the back burner and then brought up again when all the football matches are over. Football is a corrupt sport so unfortunately there was always going to be more emphasis on the sporting product than on the humanitarian outrages that take place in the likes of Qatar. I also think that geography has a psychological effect- lots of people, whether they admit it or not, will not attach as much outrage if it's thousands of miles away. If the World Cup was being held in, say, France and the regime that was in power there was a Nazi regime responsible for x amount of deaths and outrages, people's reaction and actions might and probably would be completly different.

[cameronw-hfc]

Think Ronaldo probably has bigger legal issues to worry about than a bit of sportwashing tbf. Wonder why he ended up in the middle east and not America?