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2025 is the International Year of Cooperatuives and in 2026 the World Cup is coming to Canada. Why should Canadian co-ops care? Full disclosure: Libra knowledge and information Services co-op and TorontotheBetter co-founder Taodhg/Tim Burns played soccer for the Toronto entry in the North American Soccer League, predecessor of Major League soccer.  Yes-the FIFA World Cup is the biggest and most followed single sports tournament in the world, and yes spectators from around the world will be watching remotely or visiting matches in person. And yes, not everyone is into soccer, though it is now the most popular sport in the world for men and women, young and old. But perhaps more important it is a rare opportunity for the world to learn more about Canada’s significant differences from co-hosts the U.S.A, specifically the more social nature of the Canadian economy, with, most notably its public health system and the existence of a third political party with a history of power in some of Canada’s provinces that has roots in the co-operative movement, that is the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation now the New Democratic Party. The tournament represents great opportunity for co-op organizations, particularly retailers, to make their goods and services known t the many new and repeat visitors who will be attending 2026 World Cup matches in Toronto and Vancouver in June and July of the year. Not only I the tournament an opportunity for new friends and customers, it will contribute to recognition of  Canada’s social economy as a distinctive national feature as positively distinct from that of the two other Cup cohosts. Many around the world may not yet appreciate Canada’s difference from its southern neighbour. The World Cup is a rare opportunity to make this known to unique and/or infrequent guests international guests. It us from this viewpoint that TorontotheBetter will be posting regularly about the tournament as it unfolds.

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With the FIFA World Cup coming to Toronto and Vancouver in 2026 TorontotheBetter urges all Canadians to take serious note of values issues concerning FIFA tournaments including the new Club World Cup that debuted in 2025 with the scandal plagued US President in attendance. Notwithstanding the benefits of football AKA soccer for human fulfilment and youth development a professional sport as huge as the one governed by FIFA has ethical responsibilities beyond sports. Canadian and other activists should be aware of recent issues like bribery by FIFA officials in 2015, the improbable award of the 2022 World Cup to football desert Qatar plus the problematic human rights record of scheduled 2034 World Cup host Saudi Arabia. Sports and ethics are inseparable and TorontotheBetter urges all to recognize this and act accordingly for a better and juster world in Toronto and beyond.. 

 

The 2026 Football/Soccer World Cup, symbolized here by the winner’s trophy, to be co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States is a political opportunity for progressive societal forces in Canada and beyond to make the world aware of this country’s core political difference from the U.S.A., most clearly, the existence of a third political party with extant potency and historical roots in a progressive grass roots political movement, the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation, that pioneered North America's first public healthcare system. This difference is foundational and the need for its prominence is particularly acute at a time of decadence in the leadership of the United States under its current leader. Our challenge to Canadians: how can we use the 2026 World Cup to further a Canadian progressive political agenda among the thousands attending from home and abroad? One imperative is to prevent the scandal ridden World Cup proprietors, FIFA, from continuing its history of ethical laxity, most recently the award of the 2022 tournament to football desert but money rich Qatar. The other 2026 specific priority for Canadians and all in the U.S.A. and Mexico concerned to make the tournament a force for ethical probity at a time of murderous international conflict is to minimize tournament influence by the maleficent current president of the United States. Recent media publicity of the latter figure with the tournament holy grail, the Jules Rimet trophy, and beaming FIFA president Gianni Infantino, bodes badly. TorontotheBetter invites all engaged by this message to contact us. TorontotheBetter is an initiative of Libra Information Services, a long-standing worker cooperative, based in Toronto, Ontario. We can be reached at 416-707-3509 or by email to postmaster@torontothebetter.net. Our website is www.Torontothebetter.net

Donald Trump looks like he does not know what he’s holding” [it’s the World Cup of football aka soccer,  the most popular game in the world, Mr. Trump], FIFA President Gianni Infantino can’t contain his excitement but football fans should soon be saying “enough of Donald Trump’s hands on the World Cup.” By now, Trump has been informed that the World Cup  is 

The luddites were long historically derided by many as hopeless 19th century nostalgists for out-of-date textile machines but Ben Tarnoff's book "Internet for the People" rightly views them as intelligent workers who "looked backward in order to look forward". In his recent book Tarnoff rightly makes a parallel case for an Internet movement in the 21st century. As the 19th century Luddites protested reckless industrial change the Internet, as appropriated by profiteers like Donald Trump and Mark Zuckerberg must be reclaimed for the good of society by all with a vision of a better world and the tools to achieve it. TorontotheBetter is proud to dedicate itself to the Luddites' progressive cause and welcomes fellow travellers on similar paths they choose to travel on.     

Still often referred to as “the beautiful game” soccer/football is led by a scandal historied  Federation – FIFA – and is following up its improbable choice of tiny and football unknown Qatar as venue for the 2022 World Cup with a 2026 tournament in North America, where most games and the tournament final will take place under the watch of scandal-plagued U.S. president Donal Trump. It is with apprehension that anyone concerned about the inner beauty of the game must observe the progress of World Cup 2026. The signs are not good. Trump has already made an appearance on the FIFA 2026 scene by awarding the trophy to winners Chelsea at FIFA’s new spin-off club World Cup for the best professional club in the world. The signs are not good. Elected president of the United States, despite his well known habits of lying and sleazy behaviour, Trump will no doubt get his image plastered across World Cup 2026 media coverage for the 12 months leading to kick-off in June 2026. It is for true beautiful game amateurs/lovers to remind the world of the dark reality that haunts the 2026 FIFA World Cup.                        

Despite such justified fears Canada's inclusion as a co-host of World Cup 2026 offars some special opportunities for believers in the "inner beauty" of the beautiful game. By singling out Canada for tariff punishment and insulting the country verbally Trump is lnot just iving up to his reputation for vulgarirty he is setting the table for a recapture of Canada's reputationaal nobility on the world stage. Let all people, especially Canadians, both soccer/football lovers and others, ensure World Cup 2026 is beautiful for the world and all  people in it.