What happened to the beautiful game?

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What happened to the beautiful game?

Has football lost its soul? From Pele’s “Joga Bonito” to billion-dollar World Cups, sky-high ticket prices and growing commercialisation, the game has changed. But stories like Cape Verde’s fairytale run show football can still be beautiful. Al Jazeera’s Rahul Pathak explains.

Published On 9 Jul 20269 Jul 2026

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