02x06 - Sportswashing

[bunniefuu]

♪ ♪

You going to watch the xfl?

Bomani: why would I do

That?

Every time someone they ask me

Think about the worst

Quarterback of the nfl, do you

Want to watch him?

I do every day for my team,

The jets.

Bomani: I'm saying this,

The worst quarterback in the nfl

Is better than anybody in the

Xfl.

The dude that you would boo in

The nfl would be the mvp in the

Xfl-- football don't run me.

We have to stand up for football

At some point pick out the nfl,

Who does run me?

Hbo?

♪ ♪

[Cheers and applause]

Bomani: welcome to "game

Theory"!

You may have noticed there was a

Big boxing match over the

Weekend that was a bit personal

For your boy!

Former british reality tv

Star tommy fury defeated

Youtuber jake paul in one of the

Most anticipated matches between

Two novices in boxing history.

Sunday night's face off in saudi

Arabia was the first defeat of

Paul's fresh boxing career.

Sick really bad twice in this

Camp injured my arm, so it

Wasn't my best performance, but

I lost.

I'm not making excuses.

[Laughter]

[Applause]

Bomani: hold on-- what's

Funny about this fight as last

Time I talked to jake he told me

This wasn't going to happen.

After tommy theory where you

Go from there, what happens if

You lose one of these fights?

I don't plan on losing, I

Don't train to lose.

May be I feel like that's

Probably your mind-set.

Bomani: but one thing I

Noticed, your man had a rematch

Clause with tommy theory in the

Contract in case he lost!

Which he did!

It seems like losing is actually

Your mind-set, jake!

[Cheers and applause]

But let's talk about a rich

White jackass who is winning.

As dan

Snyder continues to accept bids

To sell the washington

Commanders,

Federal prosecutors

In virginia are investigating

The team's alleged financial

Misconduct.

One area that investigators are

Now focused on is a secret $55

Million dollar credit line that

Snyder took out without the

Knowledge or approval of

Snyder's three former partners.

The partners investigated the

Team's finances and claimed

Snyder had used the team as his

Personal piggy bank, including

Charging the team $3 million in

Advertising fees to put its logo

On his personal aircraft for one

Year.

Bomani: that is the most

Expensive r*cist bumper sticker

I've ever heard of in my life.

It's not just of the logo on the

Jet.

Snyder also allegedly try to

Charge the team a million

Dollars for vehicles and extra

Security while traveling abroad,

And also allegedly charge the

Team to throw a yacht party in

The south of france with

Jerry jones.

Now snyder's reps aren't

Directly answering questions

About any of these specifics but

They have said he hasn't done

Anything wrong and the team is

Cooperating with federal

Prosecutors.

Let's not lose sight of the

Craziest part of this.

Dan snyder was able to get a

Loan for $55 million without

Requiring signatures from his

Former partners.

The bank approved it.

The nfl approved it.

That's the difference between

Billionaires and people like us.

You gotta get your mama to

Co-sign and take a blood oath

Just to buy a used car!

The billionaire walks in the

Bank and they hand him the keys

To go play supermarket sweep in

The baltic.

Two years ago, snyder bought out

His superpowerful partners out

Of the team for $875 million,

Now he's trying to sell the team

For a reported $7 billion.

Which would mean his punishment

For use in the commanders as his

Personal piggy bank would be

Billions of dollars in profit.

God bless america.

I don't know why y'all clapping,

That makes me uncomfortable.

[Laughter]

The nfl is letting this all

Happen.

Which begs the question: what

Does dan snyder have on the

League?

He got a tape of tony dungy open

Mouth kissing peyton manning or

Something?

Because it kind of feels like

Snyder is winning this whole

Situation.

The only commanders fan to win

And 24 years.

And now unfortunately I got to

Talk about deion sanders again,

Because he's had some wild stuff

About his recruiting process.

Quarterbacks are different.

We want mother, father, you

Know, dual parent, we want that

Kid to be 3.5 and up because you

Got to be smart.

Not bad decisions off the field.

Defensive line is totally

Opposite.

What do you mean?

Single mama, trying to get

It.

He's on free lunch.

I mean like, I mean, I'm talking

About just trying to make it.

He trying to rescue mama.

I want him to just go get it.

Bomani: I'm going to pull

Back the curtain and tell you

Something about "game theory."

We got a rule here.

If the white people ever laughed

That hard and the black people

Look like harry styles just won

Over beyonce, we ain't saying

That.

[Applause]

[Laughter]

I got big problems with the way

Dejan talked about kids being

Raised by single parents, he

Sounds like he's about to show

Up at juvenile hall with a bible

And a bunch of orange cones

Trying to scout.

First pray with them, than they

Line up for the oklahoma drill.

His broken home defensive line

Would be little orphan annie,

Bruce wayne, peter cory

Vito

Corleone,

Harry potter, the kid

From jungle book, the whole

Family from parasite, and his

Own son, a quarterback who came

From a broken home.

Haven't thought about that, have

You?

I guarantee you deion has never

Sat across from anybody's mama

And said, "I'm so excited his

Father walked out of his life.

One income is better than two.

Keep your head up."

I've been critical of deion

Lately.

I took a lot of heat from people

Who thought I was trying to take

A good black man down and I

Understand we are coming from.

But how good is that black

Man if he gets on tv sounding

Like the whitest white man?

Think about what he said.

Now imagine a white man saying

It.

Any ol white man.

Bobby bowden.

Andy reid.

Yosemite sam.

You could imagine any of them

Saying that same nonsense.

That's how it sounded when he

Trashed jackson, mississippi,

While praising boulder,

Colorado, for its lack of crime,

Remember that?

Is doing the same thing again.

The only black coach in the

Pac-12 thinks it's okay to

Relegate people to a lower caste

Because of something they have

No control over: their parents.

And he thinks it's funny.

And think white people thinks

It's funny too.

This is my thing with dejan, he

Insists we call him coach prime.

Please say the coach.

With that, comes something else.

Responsibility.

We're going to take deion

Sanders more seriously than we

Ever have.

And in this job, in this

Position, you can't play like

That.

[Applause]

It is officially march, which

Means the ncaa men's and women's

Basketball tournaments begin and

You get way too angry at about

19-Year-olds.

And no one gets more excited for

March madness than those folks

On capitol hill.

♪ ♪

We hear in congress are

Giving a new meaning to march

Madness.

Normally it means hoops and

Basketball.

But for our nation's seniors

In the middle class the real

March madness is happening here.

People in my district say

There is no place in washington

For march madness.

This madness isn't restricted

To the basketball court.

We aren't going to talk about

This.

What we are going to talk

About however is march madness.

March madness.

This is that, we are in the

Middle of march madness here to

Use a basketball metaphor, this

Is a lamp.

March madness.

Match mardness.

If the democrats are throwing

Up another airball with this

Legislation.

You know what we are going to

Do?

We're going to keep a dunking

That ball, we're going to put

That ball in the best possible

Hoop and win that game.

Go syracuse.

Bomani: my guest tonight

Was one of the most exciting and

Most had to the players in the

Nba during his 16 seasons.

Today, he's a liberal arts major

At north carolina a&t, and a

Walk-on on the golf team.

I am loving this brothers

Journey.

Give it up for jr smith!

[Cheers and applause]

I think a lot of people know

That you committed to play

Basketball at north carolina,

Then after the mcdonald's

North carolina game even roy

Williams told you you can come

Here if you want but you're

Going to the league.

While you were there did you

Wish you had gone to college?

At a certain point for sure.

First I would say 20, 25 games I

Barely played if I played at all

And it was demoralizing because

I'm watching carolina be the

Number 1 seed and watching

Marvin, my classmate and

Roommate, he's having all of my

Success and I'm sitting on the

Bench on a team that won 18

Games my rookie year.

I'm like I probably should've

Went to school, I probably

Should have did that.

Him I think I made the right

Decision I got to do something I

Love the due for a very long

Time and a lot of people don't

Get the opportunity.

My fortunate.

Bomani: I always wonder

About you in particular, he went

From living in new jersey to

Living in new orleans and I

Can't imagine a bigger cultural

Change in life.

Not only a culture change but

I'm 17 at the time, I came up

From a strong two-parent

Household.

At that point in time I'm making

My first money, I'm kind of like

Tops, slide back a little bit.

Out of all cities commits

New orleans.

Xavier college down there,

Dillard down there--

Bomani: you were doing it

Right.

Yeah, I was shy of older

People because I work with them

Grown men who make sure I know

There is an age gap and there's

A difference.

Wrote, you've got to go eat at

The lunch table type stuff.

For me it's I want to be hanging

Around people my age.

I want to work out with

Different schools or stuff like

That, watch d.j. Augustine in

High school, but when I started

Turning 18-19 I really started

Venturing out.

Bomani: if I was an nba

Player only 18 years old, they

Would know me on the yard.

I would be like just every other

Dude on the yard, they would

Know me.

It was hard to miss me, at

The time I had a chain that was

Probably as big as my chest, it

Was really hard to miss.

Bomani: the news is just

Coming out from lebron and the

Tendon injury he's going to be

Out for a few weeks but what do

You think it's like for guys to

Be playing with this older

Version of lebron james, guys

Who grew up watching him I know

He's right there next to you?

sh*t.

[Laughter]

Honestly it's a gift and a curse

Playing with bron, I love

Playing on his team because I

Feel like I thrive more under

The pressure.

A lot of guys don't like it

Because it can go 1 of 2 ways.

It's either what did you not do

To help him win?

And who else it didn't help win?

It's like don't get me wrong,

Yes he had 40-15-9-8 that she

Missed the free throw too.

Don't just look at me because I

Missed an open shop, we're all

Missing out here!

I think for a lot of guys it's

Hard especially in the day and

Age we are in with social media,

You've got analysts running

Around talking crazy, when

You're playing on that team I

Think 12-13, still the most

Talked about team on tv.

I think it's always going to be

That supporting cast of who's

Not doing what.

If you aren't built for that

It's going to eat you alive.

Bomani: j.r. Smith I

Appreciate you so much, man,

Thanks a lot.

What's a country you won't go to

For moral reasons?

I'm going to say iran or

China.

Saudi arabia.

North korea.

Massachusetts.

[Laughter]

They don't appreciate culture.

Bomani: what if they

Promise you a new rihanna album?

Solo?

I'm looking at flights.

Bomani: was the most evil

Country in the world?

Vatican city is a country,

Right?

You know what I mean?

Bomani: is there a live

Event they could have at the

Vatican were if they gave free

Tickets you would go?

I mean, it's got to be the

Strokes.

Bomani: you would do it for

The strokes?

I wouldn't say they can

Continue their activities.

Bomani: what if they got

Out cast back together, you

Think you'd want to go to

Tehran?

Outcast I can see at an

Arby's somewhere here.

I feel like they are looking for

Gigs.

Bomani: I can't believe you

Said that out loud!

If I get a strokes concert

I'm down with what they are

Doing but I would go, I would do

It.

Him I'm hoping on that day they

Are doing what they are doing.

Bomani: take the day off

For the strokes.

Tonight we are talking about

Sports washing were countries

And regimes use sporting event

To cover up the vile stuff they

Do, was the first lace you think

Of when you think of sports

Washing?

Russian, china, n*zi germany.

You want to start with that.

China, the type of country

That has the resources to do a

Lot of sportswashing.

Bomani: you don't think

About america?

Good point.

Bomani: among us.

[Applause]

Look here, when I was growing

Up, it was the cool kids that

Came up with the new trends.

New words.

New slang.

But in sports, it's the dorks

Coming up with new words.

Over the last year there was one

Word I kept hearing a

Particular.

Sportswashing.

Sportswashing!

Hold on, hold on, hold on,

Hold on.

Explain that.

This concept called sports,

Washing.

Can you explain what this is?

Bomani: thank you for

Asking, I can!

Sportswashing is a tactic

Employed by controversial

Governments or shady actors

Working with them.

They host sporting events, or

Purchase prominent sports teams,

Or create new leagues, to

Get us to look away from all

That sketchy stuff they are

Doing just out of sight.

Or to use a less technical term:

The okey-doke.

Think about sportswashing like

Your company christmas party.

They're giving out drinks,

Music, free food, try to make

You forget how much you hate

Your bosses.

And this winter, the country of

Qatar tried to hosted the

Biggest "dry' christmas party.

The world cup.

Ever!

They promoted it like if you

It was disneyland, the country.

This is qatar.

This is a country full of

Memorable experiences set

Against

A backdrop of

Fascinating traditions.

The modern and traditional

Are fused to create something

Really special.

Qatar really is an incredible

Place to spend a few days on a

Stopover.

Who are you?

On the official mascot of the

Fifa world cup.

Pleasure to meet you!

Bomani: looking like a

Little child of a manta ray a

Pillowcase.

But qatar's world cup is a prime

Example of sportwashing: they

Hosted an event that broadcast

An image of qatar to billions of

People that it was a nation of

Inclusive, modern, and fun.

But it also showed how that can

Backfire, all that spectacle and

Attention can shine light on the

Exact stuff a regressive nation

Like qatar might want to keep

Covered up.

Like human rights abuses.

Qatar is facing new scrutiny

For migrant worker deaths after

The ceo of the 2022 world cup

Downplayed a recent migrant

Worker's death.

Amnesty interational claims

Authorites failed to properly

Investigate the deaths of

Thousands of migrant workers.

A recent report from the

Human rights watch details

Several cases of g*y people in

Qatar being subjected to severe

Beatings and forced into

Conversion therapy.

Bomani: the sports washer

Didn't work, we are still

Talking about all the messed up

Stuff they did over there and

They are still doing.

This world cup is the latest of

A string of failed exports

Washes.

The olympics in 2014 didn't make

The world forget about

Vladimir putin's sins, the

Beijing olympics didn't make the

World forget they are conducting

A state-sponsored genocide in

China.

Saudi arabia funding a golf

League didn't make them forget

About murdering a journalist in

"The washington post."

All it

Did was just make us worried

That phil mickelsen was dying.

He's got them true detective

Eyes.

But you want to know a

Sportswash that did work?

Adolf hitler attempts to turn

The summer olympics into a

Propaganda platform for the n*zi

Doctrine of aryan supremacy.

Bomani: dolph thought he

Was in his bag with that one.

He tried to use their limericks

To gain credibility and

Legitimacy on the national stage

Which is pretty much ruined when

The lasting image of the games

Was black a*s

Jesse owens stunting on

The podium holding four gold

Medals!

They were successful sports

Wash, just not for germany.

America used his success at the

Olympus to conduct a sports wash

Of its own.

It was our country that spun his

Victories and four gold medals

In a national virtue is.

Heroism, overcoming odds.

Being the greatest.

That legacy is still being

Talked about today.

Sports is actually a unifying

Factor for our country.

Uh, jesse owens in the olympics.

I was thinking today

About jesse owens back in 1936

There's always some healing

Moments that can come out of

These olympics.

Jesse owens in the olympics.

I think everybody, republican

And democrat, can appreciate

Those moments that bind us

Together as americans.

The history of jesse owens is

American history about

Americans.

[Laughter]

Bomani: if you consider

Making wholesome television a

Sport, that last guy it might be

One of the most successful

Sports washers of the past 50

Years.

You may have noticed something

Missing from all those people

Talking about jesse owens.

Like the fact when he was racing

In america, he wasn't allowed to

Stay at the same hotels as his

White teammates.

And the fact he didn't even

Receive a congratulations

Telegram from fdr.

Or the fact that when he was

Being honored for his

Achievements at the olympics, he

Had to enter his own ceremony

Via a freight elevator.

That's the sportswash.

America used it jesse owens

Victories to sportswash the

Country's racism.

While continuing to be r*cist

Towards jesse owens himself.

It's not just america as a whole

That sports washed, regions of

Our country have used sports to

Rewrite history.

Look at college football in the

Jim crow south.

Football was strongly

Identified with the new south

Movements.

This was a movement of business

Progressives who want to remake

The south in the image of the

North.

We need to industrialize,

Urbanize, remake our society.

Football was going to teach

Modernity, leadership at a time

When the u.s. Was reaching for

Global power.

Bomani: in the same decade

As the berlin olympics, the

South realized something about

The sportswash those slow footed

Germans did not-- it really

Helps if you win.

You need an athlete or a team

For people to rally behind.

Like jesse owens in the "36

Games.

Or, in the south's case, one

College football team in

Particular.

Alabama's rose bowl games

Particularly that first one

That's when alabama football

Stopped being a totally regional

Affair and became a national

Affair.

You can look at the 1926

Rose bowl as the most

Significant event in southern

Football history.

It was a sublime tonic for

Southerners who were buffeted by

A legacy of defeat, military

Defeat, a legacy of poverty, and

A legacy of isolation from the

Bomani: anytime I see white

People celebrating in sepia, I

Get a little nervous.

[Applause]

Here's the thing, alabama won.

All the winning they didn't do

In the civil w*r, they had to

Get done on football field.

In doing so, they cemented

Southern college football as

Legitimate.

It became a source of regional

Pride that allowed the south to

Have a counter narrative to the

Terror of jim crow and that's

What a lot of people remember

Today.

Because now, people promote

Southern college football just

Like qatar promotes the

World cup.

There's a place known for its

Beauty and unique culture where

Tradition runs deep.

Here we sweat the small stuf

Stuff.

The attention to tradition.

I'm here to visit with spirit

To the ball eagle

Who soars over jordan hare

Stadium before auburn games in

One of the most majestic

Traditions in all of college

Football.

Bomani: I can't even front,

That's a cold a*s eagle right

There.

Tradition is code for successful

Sportswash.

A.k.a., We're not changing

Anything so you may as well

Enjoy it.

America's white folks, they

Don't sportswash come but it's

Something coming this do or

Russians or or middle eastern

Oil nations with strange

World cup mascots.

Why isn't it just a soccer ball?

That's right, sportswashing is

Just whitewashing.

America's exports would look a

Lot different if we didn't

Exempt ourselves from the moral

Accounting we subject others to.

If there's something messed up

Going on in the world, america

Is doing it bigger and better.

Even on an individual level, our

Billionaire owners sportswash,

Turning franchises into personal

P.r. Machines.

In los angeles there was a

Former clippers owner donald

Sterling a r*cist real estate

Magnet who paid a record-setting

Settlement for housing

Discrimination but owned an nba

Team, even a sorry one, made all

Of that seem less important.

Over in detroit you got tom

Gores, owns the beloved pistons

Franchise and somehow less known

For his firm █that charges

Inmates predatory phone calls

And also private conversations.

We've also got to talk about the

Orlando magic which is been

Owned by a shady dynasty that

Builds their fortune and named

Their arena after amway, a

Multilevel marketing corporation

That is definitely not a cult

Because they say so on their

Website.

That's sportswashing, baby!

You watch sports long enough you

Start to realize one thing.

All sports are washes.

From the world cup at qatar to

Southern college football, the

Donald's clippers.

That's why I hate hearing these

Dorks who don't even sound like

They watch sports talk about

This like it's a new conspiracy.

It's condescending to sports

Fans.

What are you going to next,

Politicians are bad?

Heroin is addictive?

You're supposed to wash your

Legs in the shower?

[Laughter]

[Applause]

I'm just saying, you think he is

Going to eagle out of the rough

And suddenly sports fans are

Going to be like popping up a

Journalist, it ain't so bad?

No!

There's a fantasy at the heart

Of all these pundits talking

About sportswash, it's one that

Implies major sports could ever

Just be about sports, separate

From the agendas of governments

Or the mega-wealthy.

The mega-wealthy they aid to get

That money by being good to

People.

As long as people with the most

Money control sports, there is

Going be sportswashing.

And for now, at least, that's

Just sports.

But thank you so much for

Watching.

By the way there were no human

Rights abuses committed during

The making of this television

Show, good night!

[Cheers and applause]

I wasn't willing to compromise

No morals.

I like the strokes.

Bomani: you know they still

Do concerts and stuff that would

Be a special occasion, it's not

Like marvin gaye is singing

There.

If they got out cast back

Together, they haven't done a

Show together since 2014, I'd

Would go to the vatican for

That.

I don't know if andre can

Wrap anymore.

Bomani: say that again.

I haven't seen him on a

Feature for how many years?

Bomani: the last feature I

Saw him on was 2019 and it was

Incredible.

So he can wrap on someone

Else's song.

Bomani: your telling me

Don't want--

I live out cast my live out

Cast.

Bomani: but they are no

Strokes!

I want you to know for real,

I was the same title on the way

Here.

Bomani: I got to say it's