No. 56, Nov.-Dec. 2025 I have not lived through Hungary 1954 or Holland 1974, yet I feel them more deeply—perhaps more vividly—than anything I’ve personally witnessed or endured in my decades as a football fan (which started with USA ‘94 and England ‘96). Football thrives on myths. Immortal stories, some achingly painful, like those two etched in the sport’s soul. Both defied nature, logic, the very order of things. More
No. 56, Nov.-Dec. 2025 2025 marks a bleak chapter for Romania’s economy. A number of structural and cyclical factors are responsible for a slowdown, including a 1.7% decline in gross fixed capital formation (investment) in 2024 (the first since 2020), a negative net foreign demand contribution brought on by a 3.6% year-over-year drop in exports and a 3.4% increase in imports, as well as a loss of momentum in important industries like construction following the most recent governmentally imposed austerity measures. More
No. 55, Sep.-Oct. 2025 Alexandru Potcoavă makes a keen observation in the August 2025 issue of the literary magazine Orizont, based in Timișoara: “You know you’re in a Central European city when, in one of its squares, you stumble upon a Column of the Plague, erected in Viennese Baroque style”. If in Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, or Hungary these columns are a common sight (now cultural, religious, and artistic monuments, but with a less-than-pleasant origin), in Romania, we find columns of the plague only in Timișoara and Cluj-Napoca – proof that, if not geographically, at least ideologically, these two cities were (and continue to be) closer to a certain Central European ideal. More
No. 55, Sep.-Oct. 2025 The cobblestones of Staroměstské náměstí, once echoing with the footfalls of Czech kings and the shouts of revolutionaries, now feel the soft-soled steps of global travellers. The medieval Pražský orloj continues its silent, gilded dance, not for the locals who once set their lives by its chimes, but for a sea of up-turned faces, each framed by a glowing smartphone screen. The square, which once hummed with the daily rhythm of local merchants, gossiping neighbours, and street performers, now exists as a curated postcard. It’s a stage where the only authentic performance is the ironic tableau of a city selling its soul to the very people who come to see what it once was. More
No. 53, May-Jun. 2025 Wait—what? Bigger than politics? Yes. Because this isn’t about some passing political scandal. This is about the club. The biggest, boldest, most-decorated institution in the most beautiful game of all: football. It’s about Real Madrid. The Real Madrid. More
No. 52, Mar.-Apr. 2025 Ulf Hannerz wrote back in 1989 that that the twentieth century culture can be characterized as having been built on centre-periphery relationships. This divide has allowed cultural diversity to flow transnationally, empowering cultural creativity through the exchange of ideas and values, especially in peripheral societies. More
No. 51, Jan.-Feb. 2025 In My Russia (Romanian language edition at Curtea Veche, 2024, in translation of Adriana Dănilă), Mikhail Shishkin argues that one of the defining moments in Russian history was the choice of the “Old Church” language for Kievan Rus instead of Latin. This decision, which had major consequences for the cultural, scientific, and geopolitical development of the Russian sphere, cannot be attributed to a single ruler. Rather, it was a long historical process linked to the influence of Byzantium and the Christianization of Kievan Rus. It is true that the seeds were sown by Vladimir I of Kiev (978–1015), who decided to Christianize Kievan Rus in 988, adopting Byzantine Orthodoxy as the official religion. Through this decision, the path of the Slavic liturgical tradition, introduced by Saints Cyril and Methodius, was chosen, making Old Slavonic the liturgical and administrative language of the emerging Russian state. The decision was consolidated during the reigns of Yaroslav the Wise (1019-1054) and Ivan III (1462-1505), the latter’s rule coinciding with the period when, after the fall of Constantinople in 1453, Russia proclaimed itself the heir to the Byzantine Empire, and Moscow began to be regarded as the “Third Rome”. By choosing a language within the Byzantine sphere of influence, Kievan Rus distanced itself from Latin (the language of the Catholic world) in favour of the Orthodox model. The choice belonged to Vladimir I, who had to decide between Orthodoxy, Catholic Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. More
No. 50, Nov.-Dec. 2024 It is being said that Ponce de Leon brought bananas to Florida in the early 1500s, so Thorstein Veblen (1857-1929) was most probably well acquainted with the long curved fruit. Which, thinking further, the American economist has most probably also eaten. Yet, even for Veblen, bananas would not have been the sought after good to discuss the value of leisure class in economic modernity. More
No. 48, Jul.-Aug. 2024 Much awaited as any other major football tournament, the UEFA Euro 2024 brought along controversies regarding the competition format. Critics (or nostalgic fans) argued over the expansion of the tournament to 24 teams, considering that the old system, with 16 teams divided into groups of 4, would have been simpler and better. Better, meaning, more competitive (?). The current format sees the top two teams from each of the six groups (of four) qualify for the round of 16, joined by the best four third ranked teams of each group. More
The European environment – business and wider society alike – is undergoing significant disruptions following the impact of digitalisation. Traditional value creation models for European businesses change. Value creation models are impacted by digital transformations – both if we talk about a “digital twin” (a virtual/digital control of physically running processes and physical resources) or about a full “digital from scratch”. New combinations of digital and physical resources (components) allow new, innovative, fully – or partially – digital products to be launched onto the markets. Thereupon, digital platform ecosystems (DPEs) and digital platform-based value creation models leave their marks on production, consumption, organization and organizations, or exchange. More
Romania is attacking on the left side of the pitch, Răzvan Marin and Florin Tănase have a short exchange of passes in the corner of the penalty box, which opens some wide spaces for the latter to penetrate and make a decisive pass for Eric Bicfalvi, who, at 32, scores his first goal for the representative team of Romania, at his eighth cap. It was the 81st minute of the UEFA Nations League match on Windsor Park in Belfast. Around the same time that Răzvan, Florin and Eric had their passing game combinations, allowing the latter to find the back of the net, Sorin, Florin and Cătălin were finding the back of the plate. They were, obviously, not on any football pitch, but they were starring, as chefs and judges, in a well-known cooking show in Romania. More
People(s) worshiping different deities and subject to different kinds of democracies, people(s) coming from older cultures or younger countries, all feel at home in the stands of stadiums or in the TV-oriented armchairs during football World Cups. Savian was yards away from Russian playgrounds and Vlad was inches away from HD screens. They play a friendly match in TMFI. More
