Would The Athletic post about a 'Donald Trump sports year' if the Yankees won?
When two storied franchises claimed long-awaited championships in the same summer, a prominent sports outlet chose to frame both victories not through the athletes who earned them, but through the fan enthusiasm of a single politician. The gesture, however celebratory in intent, invited a deeper question that sports media rarely asks of itself: whether the standards by which credit and blame are assigned shift quietly depending on who is being celebrated. In the larger human story, it is a familiar pattern — the meaning we attach to triumph often reveals more about our allegiances than about the triumph itself.
- The Athletic declared a 'Zohran Mamdani sports summer,' crediting a New York state legislator's fandom for both the Knicks' first NBA title since 1973 and Arsenal's first Premier League crown in over two decades.
- The players who actually delivered those championships — Jalen Brunson, Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, and others — went unmentioned in the framing, replaced by a politician who had never lived in North London.
- Critics immediately pressed the consistency question: would the same outlet celebrate a 'Donald Trump sports year' if the Yankees won, given Trump's decades-long attendance at Knicks games?
- The selective logic grew harder to defend when the New York Mets suffered a 12-game losing streak after Mamdani posed with their mascots — a failure the outlet did not attribute to his fandom.
- The deeper irony landed quietly: the championships being credited to a self-described opponent of billionaires were built on the resources of exactly the kind of wealthy owners — Kroenke and Dolan — he publicly criticizes.
On a Sunday afternoon in June, The Athletic posted a social media celebration that stopped readers mid-scroll. The New York Knicks had just won their first NBA championship since 1973, defeating the San Antonio Spurs 94-90. Weeks earlier, Arsenal had claimed the English Premier League title for the first time in over twenty years. Rather than credit the athletes who delivered these victories, the outlet framed both championships as a 'Zohran Mamdani sports summer,' attributing the wins to the fan enthusiasm of a New York state legislator.
The rosters that actually earned those titles were formidable. The Knicks leaned on Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby, and Karl Anthony-Towns through a grueling postseason. Arsenal's run was built on Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, and goalkeeper David Raya. None of them appeared in The Athletic's framing. Instead, the story belonged to a politician whose connection to Arsenal, by his own account, began in the early 2000s when the club signed African players including Kolo Toure and Nwankwo Kanu — a bond of representation, not geography.
The editorial choice invited immediate scrutiny. Donald Trump has attended Knicks games for decades — longer than Mamdani has lived in New York — yet critics doubted The Athletic would frame a Yankees World Series title as a 'Trump sports year.' The inconsistency sharpened further when the New York Mets collapsed into a 12-game losing streak after Mamdani posed with their mascots. His fandom, it seemed, earned credit for success but escaped responsibility for failure.
A quieter irony ran beneath the surface. Arsenal's owner Stan Kroenke donated to Trump's 2016 inaugural committee. Knicks owner Jim Dolan has publicly praised Trump. Mamdani, who opposes the existence of billionaires, was being celebrated for championships built on the organizational power of exactly the figures he criticizes — by the same outlet that had previously blamed those owners for disrupting the Knicks' 'vibe' during the Finals. It was a small moment in sports media, but one that exposed how editorial judgment can bend in directions that consistency alone cannot explain.
On a Sunday afternoon in June, The Athletic posted a celebratory message on social media that stopped readers mid-scroll. The New York Knicks had just won their first NBA championship since 1973, defeating the San Antonio Spurs 94-90 in a hard-fought series. Weeks earlier, Arsenal had claimed the English Premier League title for the first time since 2003-2004. Two major sports victories, two teams loaded with star talent. The Athletic's framing of these wins, however, credited none of them to the players, coaches, or front offices responsible. Instead, the outlet attributed both championships to a single person's fandom: New York state legislator Zohran Mamdani. The post called it a "Zohran Mamdani sports summer."
The Knicks' roster featured Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby, and Karl Anthony-Towns, who carried the team through the postseason. Arsenal's lineup included Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, and goalkeeper David Raya. These were the athletes who trained, competed, and ultimately delivered championships. Yet The Athletic's framing suggested that because Mamdani happened to be a fan of both teams, the victories belonged to him—or at least, that his fandom was the story worth celebrating.
The logic raised immediate questions about editorial standards. Would The Athletic post about a "Donald Trump sports year" if the Yankees won the World Series? Trump has attended Knicks games for decades, longer than Mamdani has lived in New York. The comparison highlighted what critics saw as selective application of credit and blame. Mamdani received celebration for Arsenal's success despite never having lived in the United Kingdom. His own explanation for supporting Arsenal—that the club signed African players in the early 2000s, including Lauren, Kolo Toure, Nwankwo Kanu, Emmanuel Eboue, and Alex Song—suggested a connection born of representation rather than geographic or historical ties to North London.
The timing of the post also invited scrutiny. Arsenal had lost the Champions League final to Paris Saint-Germain just weeks before claiming the league title. More pointedly, the New York Mets had endured a 12-game losing streak after Mamdani posed for a photograph with the team's mascots. The Athletic's celebration of the Knicks and Arsenal wins while ignoring the Mets' collapse created an inconsistent narrative: Mamdani's fandom was credited for success but apparently bore no responsibility for failure.
Underlying the criticism was a deeper tension about wealth and politics. Arsenal's owner, Stan Kroenke, is a billionaire who donated $1 million to Donald Trump's 2016 inaugural committee and has supported Republican candidates. The Knicks' owner, Jim Dolan, is also a billionaire and has publicly praised Trump. Mamdani, by his own stated politics, opposes the existence of billionaires. Yet The Athletic credited him with celebrating victories built on the resources and organizational power of exactly the kind of wealthy figures he criticizes. The outlet that had previously blamed Trump and Dolan for dampening the Knicks' "vibe" during the Finals—before the team won Game 4 after falling behind by 29 points—now attributed the team's championship to a politician's fandom rather than the players' performance or the owner's investment.
The post raised a straightforward question about consistency: Does a major sports outlet apply the same standards regardless of a subject's political alignment? The Athletic's choice to frame two championship seasons through the lens of one politician's fan status, while ignoring the contributions of players, coaches, and billionaire owners, suggested an answer that critics found troubling. It was a small moment in sports media, but one that exposed how editorial judgment can bend in unexpected directions.
Citas Notables
I came up as a fan in the early 2000s, and it was my uncle who introduced me to the team. Arsenal was one of the first teams to have a number of African players.— Zohran Mamdani, explaining his Arsenal fandom to Vulture in 2025
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why would The Athletic even frame a championship this way? It seems like an obvious miss.
Because Mamdani is a visible political figure they cover, and both teams he supports won. It's the kind of thing that feels clever in the moment—a cute tie-in—without thinking through what you're actually saying.
But he didn't play, coach, or own either team. He just watched.
Exactly. And that's where the inconsistency becomes the real story. If a Republican politician had the same fandom, would they get the same celebration? Or would the outlet focus on the billionaire owner's role instead?
So it's not really about Mamdani at all.
No. It's about whether a sports outlet applies its own standards evenly. The Athletic credited him for wins but didn't blame him for the Mets' losing streak. That's the pattern that matters.
What does Mamdani himself think about this?
The source doesn't say. But his own explanation for why he supports Arsenal—because they signed African players—suggests he's a genuine fan, not someone performing fandom for attention. The Athletic's framing might actually misrepresent what his interest in these teams means.