In this episode of The Sports As A Weapon Podcast, host Miguel Garcia is joined by a new friend of the podcast, Eri Lee, a PhD grad student and researcher at the University of Minnesota. Eri shares their insights on how the US national team serves as a tool of US imperialism and neoliberalism on the global stage, the role of Asian diasporic athletes and the model minority myth, and the impact of media representation in sports.

Eri also delves into their personal experience as a former Team USA synchronized Ice skater and current skating coach, highlighting the challenges and biases in the sport. Miguel and Eri also cover topics such as gender testing in sports, the meaning of liberating skating, and the urgent issues surrounding ICE activities in Minneapolis. Additionally, Eri also touches on their work with the Sports Scholars for Justice in Palestine, @ss4jPal. This episode is a prime example of how sports can be both a site of resistance and a perpetuator of systemic inequities.

Links

* Eri Lee Website

* Bridging the Gap Between Sport Studies & Asian American Studies by Eri Lee

* On Assimilation Politics: Reflections of an Asian American Athlete by Eri Lee

* Milan’s Winter Olympics met with protests against ICE and Israel by Ana Vračar/Peoples Dispatch

* Why the Olympics—Not the Super Bowl—Became a Political Football By Michael McCarthy/Front Office Sports

* Chloe Kim & More Fire Back at Donald Trump Calling Team USA Teammate a ‘Loser’ by Paige Strout/Yahoo Sports

* A Minneapolis Teacher Wants the Whole Country in the Streets by Dave Zirin/The Nation

Miguel Garcia and Comrade E produced this episode. The Sports As A Weapon Podcast is part of the @Anticonquista Media Collective. Subscribe to the ANTICONQUISTA Patreon and follow ANTICONQUISTA on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook.

All the video episodes are on the ATICONQUISTA YouTube, and listen/subscribe to the Sports As A Weapon Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Deezer, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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In this episode of The Sports As a Weapon Podcast, Miguel speaks with Rus Bradburd, current television color analyst on ESPN+ for New Mexico State Aggies men’s basketball. The discussion covers Bradburd's multifaceted career as a Division I college basketball coach at UTEP and New Mexico State, and a professor-turned-author. Bradburd shares insights from his novel 'Big Time,' which satirizes the corporatization of college sports and explores themes of radical politics and academic culture.

Miguel and Rus delve into topics such as the disparities in academic versus athletic department salaries, the implications of the Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deals in college sports, and the changing landscape of American universities. Additionally, Bradburd discusses his impactful 'Basketball in The Barrio' camp for the youth in El Paso and his upcoming book project on Syrian refugee children integrating into Gaelic sports in Northern Ireland.

Links:

* Visit Rus Bradburd’s Website

* Buy Big Time by Rus Bradburd

* Basketball in the Barrio Website

* Basketball in the Barrio Documentary (YouTube)

* Bradburd chooses writing over hoops by Scott Powers/ESPN (2013)

* Forty Minutes of Hell: The Extraordinary Life of Nolan Richardson by Rus Bradburd

* José 'Rocky' Galarza: A Legacy in El Paso Sports by José G. Loredo, Jr./Texas State Historical Association

Miguel Garcia and Comrade E produced this episode. The Sports As A Weapon Podcast is part of the @Anticonquista Media Collective. Subscribe to the ANTICONQUISTA Patreon and follow ANTICONQUISTA on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook.

All the video episodes are on the ATICONQUISTA YouTube, and listen/subscribe to the Sports As A Weapon Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Deezer, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow us on:

Twitter/X: @sportsasaweapon
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Visit our website: www.sportsasaweapon.com

In this episode of The Sports As a Weapon Podcast, Miguel welcomes British-Chilean journalist and documentary filmmaker Pablo Navarrete. The discussion centers around the recent US attack on Venezuela on January 3, 2026, which led to the kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, First Lady Cilia Flores. Pablo shares his experiences and insights on Venezuelan politics, the influence of Chavismo, and the impact of US imperialism. He also highlights his work in documentary filmmaking, focusing on Venezuela and Latin American issues. Miguel and Pablo’s conversation includes perspectives on independent media and grassroots journalism, and the roles of Chavista social activists of the Bolivarian Revolution, such as Mariela Machado in Venezuela.

Links:

* Emergency Rally in Sheffield, England - Hands Off Venezuela! by Pablo Navarrete/Level Ground Substack

* The War On Democracy (2007 Documentary) by John Pilger

* Inside the Revolution: A Journey into Heart of Venezuela (2009 Documentary) by Pablo Navarrete/Alborada Films

* Venezuela: Defending the Revolution (2019 Documentary) by Pablo Navarrete/Redfish Media

* The Other Venezuela (2019 Documentary) by Pablo Navarrete/Redfish Media

* Caesar Crossed the Rubicon; So Did Trump by Maria Páez Victor/Orinoco Tribune

* Mariela Machado Instagram Interview via @chanramosvictoralfonso

* Venezuelan, International Popular Movements Condemn US Bombings, Maduro Kidnapping by Ricardo Vaz

Miguel Garcia and Comrade E produced this episode. The Sports As A Weapon Podcast is part of the @Anticonquista Media Collective. Subscribe to the ANTICONQUISTA Patreon and follow ANTICONQUISTA on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook.

All the video episodes are on the ATICONQUISTA YouTube, and listen/subscribe to the Sports As A Weapon Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Deezer, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow us on:

Twitter/X: @sportsasaweapon
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UpScrolled: @SportsAsAWeapon
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Visit our website: www.sportsasaweapon.com

The 2025-26 College Football Playoff (CFP) begins this week, on Friday, December 19, 2025. In this new episode, Miguel is joined by our friends from The End of Sport Podcast, Derek Silva and Nathan Kalman-Lamb, and we discuss their award-winning book, The End of College Football: On the Human Cost of an All-American Game.

In their book, they "explore how football is both predicated on a foundation of coercion and suffused with racialized harm and exploitation (UNC Press)." Using 25 in-depth interviews with college football athletic workers from college football's Power 5 (now 4) programs, Derek and Nathan outline the plantation dynamics and racial capitalism built into college football.

Miguel, Derek, and Nathan also discuss how college and high school football coaches replicate the overseer role in the Plantation dynamics of college and high school football, the impact of COVID, and more!

Nathan Kalman-Lamb is assistant professor of sociology at the University of New Brunswick and author of Game Misconduct: Injury, Fandom, and the Business of Sport. Derek Silva is associate professor of sociology at the University of King’s College and coauthor of Power Played: A Critical Criminology of Sport.

Links:

Listen to The End of Sport Podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Abolish College Football by Nathan Kalman-Lamb and Derek Silva/The Nation

Fired Penn State football doctor back in court accusing ‘fraud’ in coverup of his James Franklin complaints by John Luciew/Penn Live

Why Did the US Block a Canadian Professor From His Own Book Event? By Dave Zirin/The Nation

Most athletes have chosen to ‘shut up and dribble’ over Gaza by Nathan Kalman-Lamb and Derek Silva/The Guardian

Ex-NFL CB Shareece Wright alleges sexual assault by trainer, John Barr/ESPN

Miguel Garcia and Comrade E produced this episode. The Sports As A Weapon Podcast is part of the @Anticonquista Media Collective. Subscribe to the ANTICONQUISTA Patreon and follow ANTICONQUISTA on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook.

All the video episodes are on the ATICONQUISTA YouTube, and listen/subscribe to the Sports As A Weapon Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Deezer, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow us on:

Twitter/X: @sportsasaweapon
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UpScrolled: @SportsAsAWeapon
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Visit our website: www.sportsasaweapon.com

Miguel is joined by a returning guest, journalist Abraham Marquez. In this episode, we discuss ICE and the 2025 World Series champion Dodgers.

Throughout the 2025 baseball season, Dodgers Chairman Mark Walter and Guggenheim Baseball Management have made headlines by first having the Dodgers team visit the Trump White House in April 2025 to honor the 2024 championship team. Additionally, the Dodgers were accused in June 2025 of allowing ICE to stage operations inside their parking lots, and most recently, in November 2025, ICE once again staged at a parking lot near Dodger Stadium the day after the 2025 Dodgers championship parade.

Lastly, Guggenheim has investments in GEO Group and Palantir Technologies. We do our best to talk about it all, including the contradictions of Dodger fandom and the fallacy of ethical consumption under capitalism.

Abraham Marquez is a freelance writer from Inglewood, California, and a National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) member. He is a 2021 USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism fellow. He's reported from Tijuana, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Honduras, and writes about social movements, immigration, politics, and sports.He currently has a Substack at https://abemarquez.substack.com/ and is a contributor for LA Taco, The Southland and others.

Links:

Miguel Garcia and Comrade E produced this episode. The Sports As A Weapon Podcast is part of the @Anticonquista Media Collective. Subscribe to the ANTICONQUISTA Patreon and follow ANTICONQUISTA on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook.

All the video episodes are on the ATICONQUISTA YouTube, and listen/subscribe to the Sports As A Weapon Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Deezer, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow us on:

Twitter/X: @sportsasaweapon
Facebook: fb.com/sportsasaweaponpodcast
Instagram: @sportsasaweaponpodcast
UpScrolled: @SportsAsAWeapon
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Visit our website: www.sportsasaweapon.com

Robert E. Wilson joins Miguel to discuss the beautiful game of Football/Futbol and Robert's vision for the beautiful game in the United States: a grassroots and supporter-owned professional league modeled after Germany's Bundesliga professional football league.

Robert discusses his fascinating book, The Football Manifesto and Club Handbook: Bringing the Beautiful Game to the People and Making the USA #1 in the World.

Links

Visit UrbanRefugee.com

Visit GAIA Labs

The Supporters Trust League (STL) Manifesto

Sports, Political Education, and Football in the U.S. -The Black Agenda Report

Note: The episode was originally recorded in October 2025

Miguel Garcia and Comrade E produced this episode. The Sports As A Weapon Podcast is part of the @Anticonquista Media Collective. Subscribe to the ANTICONQUISTA Patreon and follow ANTICONQUISTA on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook.

All the video episodes are on the ATICONQUISTA YouTube, and listen/subscribe to the Sports As A Weapon Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Deezer, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow us on:

Twitter/X: @sportsasaweapon
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UpScrolled: @SportsAsAWeapon
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Visit our website: www.sportsasaweapon.com

We are finally back with a new episode! In this episode, Miguel is joined by Bay Area Swim Coach and host of the swimming + politics podcast, Crossing the Lane Lines, Naji Ali.

Miguel and Naji discuss Race and Swimming, Palestine, and much more!

Listen to the archive of Crossing the Lane Lines on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!

Links:

Palestinian Pelé’ killed in Israeli attack in southern Gaza (The Guardian/August 2025)

Inspiring Journey of Naji Ali: Black Open Water Swimmer (Black Kids Swim/January 2021)

Note: The episode was originally recorded in September 2025

Miguel Garcia and Comrade E produced this episode. The Sports As A Weapon Podcast is part of the @Anticonquista Media Collective. Subscribe to the ANTICONQUISTA Patreon and follow ANTICONQUISTA on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook.

All the video episodes are on the ATICONQUISTA YouTube, and listen/subscribe to the Sports As A Weapon Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Deezer, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow us on:

Twitter/X: @sportsasaweapon
Facebook: fb.com/sportsasaweaponpodcast
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UpScrolled: @SportsAsAWeapon
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Visit our website: www.sportsasaweapon.com

In this episode of The Sports As a Weapon Podcast, host Miguel Garcia returns from a long hiatus to discuss the intersection of sports, politics, and social issues. The special guest is Dr. Jules Boykoff, a political science professor and author renowned for his critical analysis of the Olympics. Together, they explore the political dynamics of the Paris 2024 Olympics, including intense security measures, the impact on marginalized communities, and pro-Palestinian protests. They also touch on the upcoming 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and the preparations already impacting the city. Dr. Boykoff shares insights on Israel's participation amidst ongoing conflicts and the remarkable stories of Palestinian athletes. Tune in for an in-depth discussion on how sports, activism, and politics intertwine on the global stage.

Dr. Jules Boykoff is the Author of What Are the Olympics For? (@BrisUniPress) Power Games (@VersoBooks) & NOlympians (@Fernpub). His writing on the Olympics has appeared in places such as the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, The Nation, and Time Magazine. Previously, Jules was a professional soccer player representing the U.S. Olympic Soccer Team in international competitions. He teaches political science at Pacific University in Oregon.

Links:

Meet Fadi Deeb: Gaza’s Paralympian Is Showing the World That Palestine Still Lives

We Must Defend Imane Khelif

The Man Using Sports to Fight Israeli War Crimes

EXCLUSIVE: Israel shouldn't be allowed at the Olympics w/Jibril Rajoub | Edge of Sports

Miguel Garcia and Comrade E produced this episode. The Sports As A Weapon Podcast is part of the @Anticonquista Media Collective. Subscribe to the ANTICONQUISTA Patreon and follow ANTICONQUISTA on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook.

All the video episodes are on the ATICONQUISTA YouTube, and listen/subscribe to the Sports As A Weapon Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Deezer, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Follow us on:

Twitter/X: @sportsasaweapon
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Visit our website: www.sportsasaweapon.com