The Hoddle of Coffee: Tottenham Hotspur news and links for Friday, June 26

Hi, everyone.

Let’s cap the week off with another discussion from the world of football, this time from the NBC Sports broadcasters covering the Premier League in the U.S.

Ramble of the Day

Of the many thoughts about football, the overarching thought I have is this: It is a comprehensive lens to view the rest of the world. It does not exist in a vacuum, and demonstrates that on a regular basis. We see so many versions of the human experience through it, and as a result, I feel that conversations around the sport (and sport overall) should reflect that. It’s not enough to merely have conversations about which teams are good and which aren’t — football includes almost everything our society does. Understanding that is like the important ask of doing your best to understand the way the world works.

As a result, I have to commend NBC on their coverage of the Premier League since the restart. They haven’t shied away from talking about racism before, but have done the work of having different and nuanced conversations while the players and league show support for the Black Lives Matter movement. Here’s a conversation Robbie Earle, Rebecca Lowe, and Kyle Martino had the other day that I didn’t have a chance to spotlight yet, but will today.

This was in response to the banner that flew over the Etihad the other day, but the conversation covers other topics. It’s a very impactful watch, too, to the point where transcribing does not do it justice. Earle talks about being stereotyped as a Black man, and in some ways leading a double life — he has different experiences when people see him in a suit and tie and hear his English accent compared to his more casually dressed days, which include people crossing the street to avoid him and security following him in stores.

This ends up being a very good example of having those important conversations many of us have encouraged each other to have over the last month. He, Lowe, and Martino later get emotional about Earle sharing his experiences, and Lowe makes the point that these are things that she and Martino need to hear as White people even if they wish they didn’t have to.

The video is under five minutes, so I’d encourage you to take that time and watch it, and take that advice to have the necessary conversations.

Links of the Day

A Colorado Rapids player tested positive for COVID-19.

Australia and New Zealand will host the 2023 World Cup, beating Colombia in a 22 to 13 vote.

A number of Orlando Pride players and staff who tested positive for COVID-19 have since tested negative, but the team will still miss the NWSL Challenge Cup.

Concacaf will change its 2022 World Cup qualifying format after FIFA canceled the September international break.

A longer read: Jonathan Liew on the state of punditry in England as it grapples with being informative or entertaining for The Guardian