FIFA seen from a postcolonial perspective

Abstract

FIFA was created in Zurich in 1904 in order to oversee international football competitions among eight European states. The fact that FIFA was created by eight European states at the turn of the twentieth century is significant. The geopolitical context of the period is important for understanding FIFA’s pro-colonialist roots. With the exception of Switzerland, all the founding countries of FIFA were colonial powers. FIFA’s foundation coincided with the birth of the study of geopolitics and the perpetuation of control of territories and populations into the twentieth century. These pro-colonial foundations of FIFA are relevant because it would be European powers that originally controlled global football and also sought to block rival countries from other regions within the organization’s power structures. Europeans controlled FIFA through the selection of World Cup places that favoured Europeans. In addition, former colonial powers or ‘historically ‘aggressive racialized states’ have won all World Cup competitions.