Front lines
Feature: Why would football supporters cheer on dictators buying their clubs? David Goldblatt on identity, loyalty, and what all this money really pays for.
Total ownership
Feature: What do Middle Eastern states want with European football clubs? Sarath K. Ganji on autocratic governments’ ambitious move into the global game.
Mission drift
Feature: Why have Americans lost faith in higher education? Julia Adams and Sarath Sanga on what’s gone wrong—and what universities can do about it.
The state’s return
Feature: How have governments become some of the biggest investors in the global economy? Adam Dixon on a new era of state capitalism.
‘When the culture changes …’
Feature: Can you really switch off? Sara Robin on the growing resistance to addictive technology.
Unmatched speed
Feature: How is new technology reshaping the battlefield? Matthew Ford on why the most sophisticated weapons systems can’t overcome the oldest problems in warfare.
Borrowed trouble
Feature: Why is Pakistan in “open war” with the Taliban? Anatol Lieven on how Afghanistan became a battleground again.
Shadow state
Feature: Why did the Mexicans kill El Mencho? Benjamin Smith on the state losing control over the cartels.
An Orwellian war
Feature: Will Ukrainian democracy survive the Russian assault? Serhii Plokhy on the historical clues.
