‘Brexitball’ mirrors populist politics

The article argues elite football’s return to long balls and powerful centre‑forwards reflects a wider cultural pivot from cosmopolitan technocracy to visceral populism. It roots the earlier Guardiola‑era ‘chess‑like’ style in rule and technology shifts (offside, tackling, pitch quality) and suggests today’s aesthetic reversal tracks politics’ ‘big man is back’ mood. — Linking sports tactics to political sensibility offers a sticky way to read culture-wide shifts away from managerialism toward populist directness.