political football

plural political footballs

1. countableidiomaticA contentious political issue or problem that is often debated or discussed, but that remains unresolved; an issue or problem which is avoided by authorities and handed off to others.

   Obtaining approval for West Coast Main Line electrification south of Crewe became a political football in 1960.

   2020 April 8, David Clough, “How the West Coast wiring war was won”, in Rail, page 58

   2 more examples

   Last week the most curious sidelight on Winston Churchill's recent trip to Italy was the revelation that Sicily was once again becoming a political football at the toe of the Italian boot.

   1944 September 11, “Foreign News: Free Sicily”, in Time

   It is a trial that no city in Florida wants to hold, a political football that has already bounced from Miami to Orlando to Tallahassee, back to Orlando.

   1992 August 15, Larry Rohter, “Retrial of a Miami Policeman Could Test Judiciary on Race”, in New York Times, retrieved 12 Nov 2012

2. idiomaticuncountableOngoing unproductive wrangling or posturing between political factions, resulting in failure to deal with an issue or problem in a decisive or appropriate way.

   The pope's visit to the Holy Land seemed to be a game of political football, with both the Israelis and the Palestinians claiming he was rooting for their team.

   2000 March 25, Karen Armstrong, “A Pilgrim, Not a Pawn”, in New York Times, retrieved 12 Nov 2012

   1 more example

   Throughout the month preceding Bruno Richard Hauptmann's electrocution, Carter had relentlessly goaded New Jersey's Governor Harold Giles Hoffman and his henchmen for playing political football with the...

   1936 April 13, “The Press: Loudspeaker”, in Time