U.S. as the World’s Villain in Sports?

During a recent podcast episode, CNN’s Audie Cornish and New York Magazine editor Will Leitch discussed the provocative notion that the United States could be seen as the “world’s villain” in the context of the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics.

Leitch appeared on Cornish’s podcast, “The Assignment,” where they talked about his March 2025 article titled “America is becoming the supervillain of global sports.” This piece pointed out multiple instances where the American national anthem was met with boos at sports events in Canada. Leitch noted the same reactions occurred while he was talking with Cornish and mentioned how Russia has been sidelined on the global sports stage due to its actions in Ukraine.

“It made me think—if this continues, the U.S. might find itself becoming a sort of pariah, much like Russia,” Leitch remarked.

Cornish emphasized the idea of the U.S. being labeled a “global villain,” aligning sports narratives with storytelling elements intended to engage audiences unfamiliar with the sports themselves. She shared her experiences growing up with narratives in which Russia played the antagonist, like in movies such as “Rocky.”

Adding to the conversation, Leitch expressed that, currently, the U.S. is viewed negatively by many. He described the situation by saying, “They’re almost universally seen as the bad guys right now.”

In another segment, Cornish expressed her curiosity about whether this perception was “official,” recalling the moment when former President Trump made an appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Leitch pointed out that Russian athletes are now considered neutral and compete without any national affiliation, suggesting that the same could occur if the U.S. were to invade another territory, like Greenland.

In his earlier article, Leitch questioned if America is ready to accept its role as the global “bad guy,” posing a thought-provoking dilemma: “Are we ready to be the villains? Really the bad guys?”