Algeria’s Équipe FLN: the movement that used football to fight for freedom

“Football has long proven to be more than just a game. National teams have unified entire populations. Take Brazil, for instance. In the early 20th century, it was a divided country with various takes on national identity. It wasn’t until they came together and won the 1958 World Cup that the nation truly started to move towards unification. It was in part thanks to football; that one, giant unifier that everyone in Brazil – rich, poor, black, white – could unite behind and identify as truly Brazilian.