Foreign Policy Blogs

Meet the New Boss, Same As the Old Boss

Carlos Alberto Parreira former and now restored Bafana Bafana coach carries the weight of a nation on his shoulders. South Africa wants to distinguish itself as a World Cup host, and the legions of rabid fans of the national football team hope that Bafana Bafana will perform in such a way as to augment that distinction. Parreira took over from his seemingly hapless fellow Brazilian Joel Santana recently, but the disarray of the side he once coached leaves Parreira with a daunting task.

 

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Author

Derek Catsam
Derek Catsam

Derek Catsam is an associate professor of history at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin. Derek writes about race and politics in the United States and Africa, sports, and terrorism. He is currently working on books on bus boycotts in the United States and South Africa in the 1940s and 1950s, the Freedom Rides, and South African resistance politics in the 1980s. He has lived, worked, and travelled extensively throughout southern Africa. He is also a lifelong sports fan, with the Boston Red Sox as his first true love. He was one of about three dozen people to write books about the 2004 World Champion Red Sox, and the result is Bleeding Red: A Red Sox Fan's Diary of the 2004 Season. He writes about politics, sports, travel, pop culture, and just about anything else that comes to mind.

Areas of Focus:
Africa; Zimbabwe; South Africa; Apartheid

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