Association football and politics are connected in club identities, clashes, and footballers who choose a career in politics.Association football has played a role in maintaining the differences which give each European country a distinct identity, while strengthening the bonds that bind Europe together. According to Macon Benoit, European football underwent a massive transformation during the World War II era (1933–45). The game's sharp rise in popularity came at a time of high political intensity, leading to football's politicization. Benoit writes that during this period, European football began to embody four main characteristics: 1) an agent of international relations, in the sense that the foreign policies of European nations became articulated in matches; 2) a source of political pr