Jun 20, 2026 – 5.00amLast weekend, as millions of Australians sat down to watch the Socceroos first World Cup match against Turkey, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese did what any good politician would do: he unlocked his phone and got in on the action.At 1.04pm on Sunday afternoon, Albanese posted a dorky photo of himself in a Socceroos jersey, grinning with two thumbs up, to all the major social media platforms. “Go #socceroos #fifaworldcup2026 the whole country is cheering for you,” he wrote.Subscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? Ryan CroppEnergy and climate reporterRyan Cropp is an energy and climate reporter at The Australian Financial Review based in the Canberra bureau.Joshua PeachData journalistJoshua Peach is a data journalist at The Australian Financial ReviewFetching latest articles
The human bots powering One Nation’s online blitz
A flood of pro-Hanson comments on social media has raised suspicions of AI-powered foul play. The truth may be more concerning for the major parties.
PM Albanese posted Socceroos World Cup photo across platforms during Turkey match, coordinating real-time political messaging. Synchronized deployment signals modern strategy: cultural moment leverage for digital reach and sentiment amplification.













