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This is Defector, a new sports blog and media company. We made this place together, we own it together, we run it together. Without access, without favor, without discretion, and without interference.

Defector

Patrick Redford

WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 5: FIFA President Gianni Infantino and U.S. President Donald Trump on stage during the FIFA World Cup 2026 official draw at John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on December 5, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)

Soccer

The State Of Sportswashing

Sohini Desai

Somali World Cup Referee Denied Entry Into U.S.

Politics

Washed-Up Clown Spencer Pratt Will Not Be The Mayor of Los Angeles

Staff Writer
Find me on Signal @DefectorChris.19

Chris Thompson

FIFA President Gianni Infantino and U.S. President Donald Trump on the red carpet prior the FIFA World Cup 2026 Official Draw

Border Security Theatrics Are Rising At History’s Stupidest World Cup

Dave McKenna

The White house behind a hideous UFC stage

Donald Trump’s Birthday Plans Have Made Washington D.C. Hideous And Depressing

Tom Ley

Bari Weiss Even Worse At Her Job Than Previously Imagined

Justin Ellis

Knicks fans crowd around each other at a NBA playoffs watch party outside Madison Square Garden in spring 2026

The President Has Arrived To Fuck Up The Hottest Party In New York

Detainees gesture at windows from inside Delaney Hall Immigration Detention Center

Prisoners At Private ICE Jail In New Jersey Collectively Refuse Conditions Of Death

Sarah Borus

Why Did The Brewers’ VP Of Communications Retweet This Racist Crap?

Atlantic Writer’s Son Offers Bold Advice To Democrats: Pretend To Be A Sports Moron

Samer Kalaf

Ryan Fournier speaks to the crowd during the SAVE AMERICA TOUR

Students For Trump Co-Founder Arrested On Domestic Violence Charges, Allegedly Yelled “Do You Want To Die Today?”

Jaxson Dart and Donald Trump stand on stage at the rally.

Shocker: Jaxson Dart Is A Trump Guy

Nicholas Russell is a writer from Las Vegas.

Nicholas Russell

Interviews

How The U.S. Military Rots American Masculinity

<div><a href="https://bsky.app/profile/mattribel.bsky.social">Matt Ribel</a> writes about the intersection of science, technology, and politics. His features have appeared in WIRED, Washingtonian, and elsewhere.</div>

Matt Ribel

An illustration of a hand taking a circuitous route to a mailbox to send in a tax return, while a number of other hands try to block it.

Free, Easy, Dead: The Difficult Birth And Predictable Death Of IRS Direct File

charismatic megafauna (they/them)

Sabrina Imbler

People take part in a No Stage For Genocide protest to demonstrate against Israel's participation in the Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, Austria. Picture date: Saturday May 16, 2026. (Photo by Ian West/PA Images via Getty Images)

Eurovision Is Running Out Of Time

US President Donald Trump (L) meets with China’s President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of their visit to Zhongnanhai Garden in Beijing on May 15, 2026. (Photo by Evan Vucci / POOL / AFP)

Donald Trump Is Stealing Your Money

Activists unfurl a large banner reading "SAVE AMERICA DEPORT 100+ MILLION" in the stands at Nationals Park

White Genocide Conspiracy Freaks Flee Nationals Game After Banner Stunt

Tony Dokoupil at the 2026 White House Correspondents' Association Dinner

Media Meltdowns

Tony Dokoupil Flew 8,000 Miles Just To Eat More Shit

The Saddest Place In America Is Wherever The Washington Post Films This Podcast

Kelsey McKinney

shiny gold statue of turmp against a blue sky

Pastor Clarifies That Giant, Shiny Trump Statue Worshippers Love Is NOT An Idol

Jake Romm is a New York City-based writer and the Associate Editor of Protean Magazine.

Jake Romm

Arts And Culture

Franco Berardi’s ‘Thinking Gaza’ Fails To Think

Barry Petchesky

Science

Let Pluto Rest In Dwarf Planet Peace

Albert Burneko

Guests huddle under tables and on the floor after Secret Service agents hustle Donald Trump out of the WHCA Dinner on Apr. 25 2026

Everyone Survives White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner

Pete Hegseth Adds New Weapon To American Warfighter Loadout: Influenza

Robert Pastore

Participant holding a sign at the rally. Survivors of solitary confinement