The Signal, Issue 3

Gulf royals have moved billions into global football. Now what? Shadow Play is a limited-run print magazine about football and dictators, produced by The Signal, in partnership with the Human Rights Foundation. Over the past two decades, authoritarian regimes have systematically used football ownership and sponsorship to launder their reputations. United Arab Emirates. Qatar. Saudi Arabia. Rwanda. This isn’t a secret. Fans have called it out. Supporter groups have taken action. Journalists have covered it. Advocacy organisations have published reports. Many who love the game have some of the information, in fragments—but it’s hard to see the full picture. This magazine explores football from village-green origins to sovereign-wealth-fund ownership to Iran’s Blue Girl—in five charged sections. Featuring:; Sarath K. Ganji on how the Gulf states have come to take such an interest in global football—Ganji is an analyst based in Washington, D.C., and the founding director of the Autocracy and Global Sports Initiative. David Goldblatt on the supporters, the clubs, and what these governments now own—Goldblatt is a British sports journalist and sociologist, and the author of The Ball Is Round and The Age of Football. --- 21 x 30 cm Paperback 78 pages May 2026 English 9770959004176