The 2018 FIFA World Cup kicks off Thursday (Get it? Kicks? Like a soccer ball?), and all eyes are on rising star Mohamed “Mo” Salah of Egypt.
Salah is treasured across the United Kingdom and the Middle East for his outstanding athletic prowess. He is Egypt’s best player, a forward for Liverpool, and the record-holder for the most goals scored in a single premier-league season in England (an accomplishment he made in his first season in England).
Benjamin Koevary
But he is also a beloved Arab Muslim whose stardom has helped counteract Islamophobia in Europe and all over the world. In the UK, which some reports say has seen a 47 percent spike in hate crimes related to Islamophobia in 2016, Liverpool fans love Salah so much, they sing fan chants with lyrics: “If he scores another few, then I’ll be Muslim too” and “Sitting in the mosque, that’s where I wanna be.”
Rory Smith, the New York Times’s chief soccer correspondent, explains:
For more about about Mo, the World Cup, and the unfortunate reality of persistent racism in sports, listen to the latest episode of Today, Explained.
Related reading:
How do I get even more Today, Explained?
You can get the news we’re reading throughout the day, facts and stats to make you smarter about the world, and behind-the-scenes photos on Twitter at @Today_Explained. You can follow Sean Rameswaram at @Rameswaram, Rory Smith at @RorySmith, and Mo Salah at @MoSalah.
How do I report a problem?
For all issues or feedback, please email todayexplained@vox.com.
How do I listen?
If you don’t see the player above, you can listen, subscribe, and review Today, Explained on Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, and Google Play Music.
What if I want to listen at home?
If you have Amazon Echo, add Today, Explained to your flash briefing. If you have Google Home, just say, “Hey Google, play the Today, Explained podcast!”
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
0.00 (0%) 0 votes
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Coalition for the Restoration of Democracy (CORED), which unites 18 opposition parties in Guinea, said on…
The news of an interplanetary scale comes after NASA believed it had captured its first sample with Perseverance last month,…
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The last pipe of the second string of Nord Stream 2 has been welded, and after a…
LONDON (Sputnik) – The UK government on Monday condemned the military coup against the president of Guinea, Alpha Conde, and…