Brian Phillips pens a piece in Slate detailing the “bizarre, sad tale of Togo’s fake national team.” It’s an impressively researched look into what exactly happened last month when a contingent supposedly representing the African nation squad lost 3-0 to Bahrain. The story received some play in the United States and abroad before succumbing to the never-ending newscycle, but it continues to be a major issue in Togo.

Your money quote:

In Togo, however, this bizarre story has continued to dominate the public’s attention. Over the past few weeks, it has gone beyond a simple case of mistaken identity to include layers of conspiracy, fraud, corruption, political instability, and horrific violence. The fake team that played in Bahrain, then, can be seen as a stand-in for all the difficulties that face African soccer, where sports and political instability are often juxtaposed and where day-to-day reality can be starkly different from the cheerful picture painted during this summer’s World Cup in South Africa.

Football has a long way to come on the nation’s second-largest continent.