The World Cup of Calvinball: Fifa’s hasty changes turn refereeing into a free-for-all | World Cup 2026

In the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes, the titular characters occasionally played a game known as Calvinball.

The rules were amorphous. At any moment, something like a “30-yard base wicket” may become part of the game. Determining a “winner” was besides the point, as the score for one game was given as “Q to 12.” The fictional, farcical sport entered public consciousness and was even…