He is one of the most powerful men in world football. We met at the offices of a very prominent European Football Association. He was there with a colleague. I was there to speak to them about match-fixing. The officials were interested, purportedly, in better protecting their sport. However, when his colleague, briefly, left the … Continue reading Mafia Threats and the To Do List for European Football
Category Archives: Blog
Fighting Justin
Five years ago, Canadian politics changed inside a boxing ring. The then backbencher MP Justin Trudeau fought the Conservative Senator Patrick Brazeau. Trudeau won so convincingly that he began his rise to power. Now on the anniversary of the fight Toronto Star contributor Declan Hill – who also fought that night – jumped in the … Continue reading Fighting Justin
The Cold War Spy Games Inside Sports
As the world fixates on Russian spying and cyber-attacks in U.S. politics, the field of sports has been struck by similar intrusions and Canadian athletes and organizations are among the hardest hit. The Montreal-based World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) was warned last summer that Russian hackers were trying to breach its computer system, according to security … Continue reading The Cold War Spy Games Inside Sports
The Greatest Case of Commercial Blindness in the History of Sports Integrity
There are all kinds of examples of inappropriate blindness. There was Captain Smith of the SS Titanic not seeing the iceberg. There was Admiral Nelson putting the telescope to his eye patch not to see the signal to retreat. There was Johnny Papalia the mafia thug who beat up the head of Toronto’s illegal gambling … Continue reading The Greatest Case of Commercial Blindness in the History of Sports Integrity
Penis Size, Golden Showers and the Sorry State of American Journalism
“You’re the opposition party. Not the Democratic Party. You’re the opposition party. The media is the opposition party.” Stephen Bannon is right. Sadly, he may even be right in the second part of his now-famous quote to the New York Times, “The media should be embarrassed and humiliated and keep its mouth shut and just … Continue reading Penis Size, Golden Showers and the Sorry State of American Journalism
Donald Trump is the Most Left-Wing President America Has Ever Had
They have lost the plot. The reaction of much of the mainstream media and some left-wing leaders towards the new American President Donald Trump is beginning to show signs of insanity. If you have read the headlines in the New York Times, Guardian and other international news outlets over the last few weeks you would … Continue reading Donald Trump is the Most Left-Wing President America Has Ever Had
Canada’s Pride
Its nice to be able to write a story where the Canadian sports officials are not burying their heads in the sand or passing the hot potato of accountability as quickly as possible. This is an exclusive interview with Richard McLaren, the Canadian sports lawyer who investigated the state-sponsored Russian doping system. It is the … Continue reading Canada’s Pride
Canada’s Shame
The success of Toronto FC aside, Canadian soccer remains an abject embarrassment — not because of quality of play, but because European police and sports officials say a lower-level Canadian league remains a hot spot of corruption and match-fixing. “You are supposed to be honest people,” Kee, a Chinese-Malaysian bookie who runs an illegal gambling … Continue reading Canada’s Shame
The High-Risk Week for the UEFA Champions League
This is the week for the Champions League fixes. The two matches to watch carefully (I do not say that they will be fixed, I am simply red-flagging the games) are Turkish champions Besiktas versus perennial no-hopers Dynamo Kiev and Juventus versus Dinamo Zagreb. Yes, the same Dinamo Zagreb of the infamous winking 7-1 loss … Continue reading The High-Risk Week for the UEFA Champions League
Turkey’s Slow-Motion Coup d’etat, Türkiye’nin ikinci hükümet darbesi
Spare a thought for Turkey. Türkiye’yi düşünceye ver. In the months since the July 2016 coup attempt, Turkey has had a second, slow-motion coup. President Tayyip Erodgan has arrested thousands of journalists, lawyers, professors, soldiers, policemen, prosecutors and university administrators. This has effectively stopped any opposition. Today, (December 5th) Wikileaks published a cache of over-57,000 … Continue reading Turkey’s Slow-Motion Coup d’etat, Türkiye’nin ikinci hükümet darbesi
