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The 2026 World Cup is shaping up to be a pivotal moment in modern international relations, with the world heading to North America at a time when global peace appears delicate.
A handful of players and activists are mobilizing to help promote peace through sport. Team USA and San Jose Earthquakes defender DeJuan Jones and DC United forward Dominique Badji lent their platform to the Ronald Reagan Foundation and Presidential Institute for a seminar on how soccer can help promote positive relations between fans of competing countries.
But as the World Cup moves to the United States for the first time since 1994, a point of debate in these international relations is whether America should follow the rest of the world in calling the sport soccer.
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Cade Cowell #11 of the United States, Jesús Ferreira #9 of the United States, DeJuan Jones #15 of the United States, Matt Miazga #4 of the United States and Aaron Long #3 of the United States applaud as a penalty shootout takes place during a match between Canada and the USMNT at TQL Stadium on July 9, 2023 in Cincinatti, Ohio. (Jason Allen/ISIPhotos/Getty Images)
President Donald Trump even said he thought America would name soccer after soccer, while renaming American soccer under another name during Sunday’s World Cup draw.
Jones and Badji both agree with Trump, but they don’t think a complete name change is feasible.
“I think it makes the most sense for football to be called football, however, we have the NFL, so I think it would be really difficult to change the name of the NFL,” Jones told PK Press Club Digital. “So I think we’ll still call it football and, you know, people might make fun of us for that, but we can have that as what we call sports.”
Badji, born in Senegal, believes that renaming the sport to football would symbolically help the United States catch up with the rest of the world when it comes to competitiveness in the sport. But he is also aware of the cultural dominance of American football.
“By calling it soccer here, you’re competing with the most important sport in the country…I think it should be soccer, because that’s what the rest of the world calls it,” Badji told PK Press Club Digital.
“When you talk about American football, you’re trying to get in line with the rest of the world, and it’s just a little barrier in football-soccer, but at the end of the day, I think it should be called football. But it’s a losing battle, you’re not going to be able to change the name of American football.”
Jones and Badji think one thing that could be addressed in the United States by the start of the World Cup is fan behavior during games.
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In 2025 alone, football matches around the world have been the scene of violent fan behavior.
This month, at a match for French club OGC France, players and staff were attacked, spat on and punched by their own fans after a defeat and a man in the UK was accused of racist abuse against Bournemouth player Antoine Semenyo during a Premier League match against Liverpool.
“The most important thing is the behavior of the fans,” Jones said. “It is important that adults model appropriate behavior for children as they become adults.”
Jones added of the upcoming World Cup: “There will be a lot of people from different cultures, so I’m sure there will be clashes, but I think it will also be a great opportunity to celebrate everyone’s differences and learn about each other’s cultures.
“Safety is going to be important, and you want to make sure that it’s a safe environment for everyone, and that everyone can just enjoy the games and go home safely.”
Badji said he was disappointed with the behavior of fans at MLS games “all the time.”
“People push you around, people insult you, unfortunately I’ve received racist insults. I’ve heard other insults thrown at other people, so it’s unfortunate,” he said.
Badji said that one of his biggest hopes and goals for the next World Cup is to “get rid of some of the ignorance that comes with not knowing the cultures of different countries”, and that
“Football will bring people together who may not speak the same language,” Badji said, later adding: “Politics is so involved in football that sometimes it influences the way people perceive other people, other teams, other countries.”
It’s a topic Badji and Jones spoke about during the panel, “Three Nations, One Match: North America’s Role in Shaping Global Sportsmanship,” at the Ronald Reagan Institute’s Center on Civility and Democracy (CCD) in downtown Washington, DC, on December 2. They delivered their speeches alongside Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn.
CCD Director Fred Ryan told PK Press Club Digital that he believes that, even more than fans, players have a responsibility to show respect on the field in order to promote a peaceful environment.
“There have been a few disappointing things from time to time, there’s an athlete on the field who doesn’t show respect to their opponent, the rules of the game or the referee,” Ryan said. “On the field, we want to applaud sportsmanship, we want to applaud people who respect their opponent… and people who respect the rules of the game.”
For Jones, one of his ways of maintaining respect and promoting unity as a player on the field is by channeling his devotion to Jesus Christ.
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DeJuan Jones #15 of the United States before the 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-final match against Panama at Snapdragon Stadium on July 12, 2023 in San Diego, California. Panama won the match in a penalty shootout after a 1–1 draw. (Shaun Clark/ISI Photos/Getty Images)
“I believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins and every day, honestly, when I read my Bible and I pray and especially before I step on the field, I just ask the Lord to protect me and guide me when I’m out there,” Jones said.
“One of the most important things that Jesus teaches is to love your neighbor as yourself…I think a lot of times in society people are concerned about themselves and whatever advances them, but if we all had a little more empathy and looked at our neighbors and saw what we could do to help them instead of always getting something and receiving…I think that would go a long way to making the world a more peaceful place.”
