In the glitzy Fifa museum, in squeaky-clean downtown Zurich, there is a new exhibition which sums up the upbeat, inclusive image which football’s world governing body is so eager to portray. It’s called ‘211 Cultures – One Game’, and it consists of 211 items of football ephemera, one from each of Fifa’s member associations all around the world.
Most of these items are fairly anodyne: trophies, fan regalia, football shirts and suchlike – curios you tend to find in any sports museum. A few are items of genuine historical interest: the Spanish contribution is a table football set, invented during the Spanish Civil War by a Spaniard called Alejandro Finisterre, after a bomb blast in Madrid left him lame and unable to play the game he loved.
The English FA have donated a pair of Trent Alexander-Arnold’s football boots, which he wore in Liverpool’s first match after those pesky Covid restrictions were lifted. The boots
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in