Where Ralph Nader speeches have failed, this alliance might succeed. It could spark a broad backlash against globalization, uniting SportsCenter beer guts with black-block anarchists. You can already read the critics in the British sports pages. But nothing would be more counterproductive. Soccer fans have already seen the future of the new global economy, and it works.
Soccer embodies the glories of the coming world order.
Since the 1960s, Europe's once-great national leagues have been fading in importance. It is, after all, hard to care about the outcome of the English Premiership or the German Bundesliga. Before the season starts, every fan knows that Man U or Bayern Munich will ultimately be the ones hoisting trophies. The best clubs in Europe have shifted their attention to competing against one another in transnational tournaments. Every year it seems there's a new international cup to chase after the Champions League, UEFA Cup, Super Cup, the Cup Winners Cup, the World Club Championship.