The next football World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games threaten to produce a catalogue of white elephants for Brazil, while restricting benefits to the business community, a panel of academics warned at today’s Play the Game.

Whilst WADA is well-established, there are still a lot of challenges in anti-doping work. The cheats are getting better all the time, and international federations lack resources for quality testing. Meanwhile athletes believe that the testing system in Europe is a mess.

The governing body of aquatic sports is getting richer and becoming less unaccountable, a former Olympic swimmer told Play the Game.

UEFA revealed fresh details on the woeful state of European club football to Play the Game ahead of the introduction of the new Financial Fair Play measure that aims to curb the game’s endemic losses.

Are the security measures implemented at sports events always in proportion to the threat? Or are security issues being used to protect narrow business interests and profitability?

Bloggers from different countries are following Play the Game.

An acceptance of hooliganism is growing and fuelling both right wing extremism and corruption, warned a trio of academic researchers at Play The Game 2011. In Argentina, clubs pay fans not to cause trouble whilst in Germany hooligans are central to organising right-wing extremists.

Few people can be unaware that 2011 has been a momentous year for the many Arab nations. Successful uprisings in Tunisia, Libya and Egypt, and ongoing conflicts in Bahrain, Syria, Yemen and elsewhere have made headlines across the world. Much less known, however, is the role played by football supporters in these popular revolutions.