Far-right fight groups endorse ‘youth clubs’ targeting US young men and boys | Far right (US)
A national network of American neofascist fight clubs is endorsing youth-oriented offshoots aimed at grooming the next generation of racist activists. So-called “active clubs” have proliferated across the US and are a combination of fitness and mixed martial arts groups that often espouse neo-Nazi and fascist ideologies, openly taking their historical cues from the Third […]
A national network of American neofascist fight clubs is endorsing youth-oriented offshoots aimed at grooming the next generation of racist activists.
So-called “active clubs” have proliferated across the US and are a combination of fitness and mixed martial arts groups that often espouse neo-Nazi and fascist ideologies, openly taking their historical cues from the Third Reich’s obsession with machismo and European soccer hooliganism.
Active clubs have emerged as perhaps the most dangerous form of far-right political organizing today. With links to other militant organizations, including Patriot Front, they encourage a seemingly mainstream version of masculinity, layered with ideologies promoting a US race war and using the popularity of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) as a gateway to recruiting.
Earlier this month, their main Telegram account, endorsed “youth clubs”, which are chapters beginning to spring up online across the country, showing pictures of 18-year-olds and under engaging in mixed martial arts, racist meme-ing, and posts referencing genocidal and bigoted literature.
“Youth clubs are for those under 18 that still want to get active,” said the recent active club post with thousands of views, linking to the central account of all youth clubs.
By all appearances, these youth clubs are proliferating. On Telegram alone, there are accounts showing nationwide chapters with photos of teens between the ages of 16 to 18 in Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, the New England states, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, Washington DC, lowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Michigan, among others.
The chapters have close to a thousand followers in total and in some cases list the same recruitment contact, suggesting a certain level of national coordination and vetting – an important aspect of far-right recruiting done to prevent against police or antifascist infiltration.
“Unapologetically Pro White”, posted one of the youth clubs, adding they were also “American Nationalist”.
Combined with the massive popularity among teen boys of the Tate brothers, mixed martial arts enthusiasts in their own right, young men and boys have emerged as the prime targets for far-right recruitment in recent years.
“The youth clubs are part of the same concept of active clubs’ white supremacism ‘3.0’ strategy: a decentralized movement focused on combat sports, fitness, propaganda activities, and building local groups,” said Joshua Fisher-Birch, an analyst of the American far right who has documented its rise for nearly 10 years.
“The youth clubs are self-described white nationalist activist groups for young men 18 and younger who train in combat sports and participate in extreme right propaganda activities.”
Their direct links to active clubs aren’t a secret or hidden, either.
Fisher-Birch continued: “Several youth club Telegram channels have also shared posts from active club-affiliated accounts. Additionally, youth club chapter logos are modeled on active club symbols. The logos are nearly identical in some cases.”
skip past newsletter promotion
after newsletter promotion
The network of active clubs’ original founder, Robert Rundo, pleaded guilty in 2024 to conspiracy to riot at 2017 political rallies in California. During that period, he was the leader of the Rise Above Movement, a violent neo-Nazi gang that promoted combat sports and physical assault of perceived enemies. Four of its members were charged for their part in the infamous 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Rundo and other members of the active clubs network made it clear in the past that they saw young men and boys as the next and important frontier for building the new American fascist movement.
Writing in a 2022 post on one of its main websites Rundo and others described how their “tools of persuasion” can draw underage boys to join them. Along with flyers and stickers of local areas with their Nazi propaganda they told followers to “target boxing and MMA tournaments, gyms, and motocross courses”, but then went further.
“Ground-level intelligence collection might then inform that same activist crew that changing demographics at a local high school have led to gang-beatings of minority White youth,” they said. “The cunning and resourceful activists see this news as [an] opportunity for a campaign focusing on the importance of a Brotherhood of young White men having each other’s backs.”
During the Third Reich, Adolf Hitler made it a staple of his regime to create the Hitler Youth organization for minors to learn combat and survivalism skills under the guise of self-improvement and nationalist pride. Ever since, modern neofascists and Nazis like active clubs, have always placed particular emphasis on securing the next generation of white supremacy.
“You will grow up to be men,” Hitler once said at one of his German rallies for his young acolytes.
YOUNGSTOWN — After 75 years of spreading joy wherever he went, Walter Eugene “Bebe” Payne left behind a legacy of laughter when he passed on Sunday, May 11, 2025. A down-to-earth, charismatic and jovial figure, Bebe still charmed family and friends even as his health declined in his final years. Born July 6, 1949, Bebe […]
YOUNGSTOWN — After 75 years of spreading joy wherever he went, Walter Eugene “Bebe” Payne left behind a legacy of laughter when he passed on Sunday, May 11, 2025. A down-to-earth, charismatic and jovial figure, Bebe still charmed family and friends even as his health declined in his final years.
Born July 6, 1949, Bebe was the youngest child of Mildred and Walter “Uncle Dudley” Payne, and the constant companion of his older brother, Wilford. He attended Thorn Hill and John White elementary schools, as well as East Junior High and East High School during Youngstown’s post-World War II heyday.
After high school and a brief stint at Youngstown State University, Bebe enlisted in the United States Air Force and was initially stationed at a Strategic Air Command Base in Great Falls, Montana. He was then deployed to Cam Ranh Bay during the Vietnam War, saw combat during the Tet Offensive and was exposed to chemicals such as Agent Orange that contributed to the illness that eventually took his life.
Following his tour in Vietnam, Bebe continued his service at Bolling Air Force Base in Washington, D.C. He then received an honorable discharge from the Air Force and remained in the Washington, D.C., area, eventually settling across the Potomac River in Alexandria, Virginia, but remaining fiercely proud of his Sharon Line roots.
As a child, Bebe used to wear his baseball cap to bed and his youth was characterized by a love of sports, music and dancing, passions he carried throughout his life. He starred in Little League baseball for Andy’s Auto Glass, on the East Jr. High and Price Memorial A.M.E. Zion Church basketball teams, and in the band and on the track team at East Sr. High. He also participated in the Youth Choir and Youth Usher Board at Price Memorial and was a member of McGuffey Centre Boy Scout Troop 18, where he achieved the rank of Life Scout.
A veteran, telecommunications technician, athlete, music lover, movie buff and fisherman, Bebe was rarely seen without a hat or a smile. He was beloved by all the children in the family for his eagerness to engage with them and amuse them. An avid golfer, youth basketball coach and local DJ, he delighted in traveling with his wife and the love of his life, Elaine, to whom he was married for 34 years.
In his civilian career, Bebe worked as a telecommunications technician troubleshooting and repairing data communications circuitry and related hardware before retiring from Verizon with 37 years of service. In his golden years, Bebe honed his golf game and took frequent trips to Las Vegas and Sunset Beach, North Carolina, with Elaine, in addition to regularly attending sporting events and organizing fantasy sports leagues.
Even as he aged, Bebe made a point of staying in touch with youth culture, and his dapper wardrobe and massive hat collection were two of his trademarks, along with his zest for life and his talent for entertaining others. He will be remembered as a loving husband, a doting father and grandfather, and a “cool uncle” to many nieces and nephews.
Bebe is survived by his wife, Elaine Gates Payne; son, Michael Mangum (Mandy); granddaughter, Mika Mangum of Cumberland, Maryland; grandson, Isiah Bishop of Frostburg, Maryland; stepgrandsons, Markel Spencer of Alexandria, Virginia, and Avery Spencer of Cumberland, Maryland; goddaughter, Chloe Gardiner of West Hartford, Connecticut; mother-in-law, Lola Gates of Cumberland, Maryland; sisters-in-law, Carole (Clint) Gardiner of West Hartford, Connecticut, and Sylvia “Loodie” Gates of Hagerstown, Maryland; and brothers-in-law, John (Sukhvinder) Gates of Cumberland, Maryland, and Steve Gates of Gettysburg, Pa.
Bebe also is survived by his aunts, Emma Gatewood (Arlette Gatewood, deceased) and Lynn Williams Phillips, both of Youngstown; as well as a host of cousins and countless friends.
Bebe was preceded in death by his parents, Mildred Louise Gatewood Payne and Walter A. Payne; his brother, Wilford A. “Wil” Payne; his paternal grandparents, Richard E. and Nannie Jones Payne; and maternal grandparents, Mayhue and Ella Current Jackson Gatewood.
Visitation for Bebe will be 10 a.m. Friday, May 30, 2025, at L.E. Black Phillips & Holden Funeral Home, 951 McGuffey Road, Youngstown, OH 44505, followed by a celebration of life at 11 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America or any nonprofit that supports families affected by Alzheimer’s or funds research for a cure or better treatment of the condition.
Celebrities for a Cause returns to Cody for fifth annual charity event
CODY — Dreaming of a chance to meet NFL and Major League Baseball stars while supporting a good cause? The fifth annual Celebrities for a Cause kicks off in Cody June 19-21, providing a unique opportunity for fans and benefiting families in need. “Cancer is so expensive, and it takes a lot,” said Ryan Brown, […]
CODY — Dreaming of a chance to meet NFL and Major League Baseball stars while supporting a good cause? The fifth annual Celebrities for a Cause kicks off in Cody June 19-21, providing a unique opportunity for fans and benefiting families in need.
“Cancer is so expensive, and it takes a lot,” said Ryan Brown, founder of Celebrities for a Cause, whose father lost his battle with cancer 15 years ago. “He was an awesome man and my hero.”
Watch the story here:
Celebrities for a Cause returns to Cody for fifth annual charity event
During his father’s struggle with the disease, the Cody community rallied around the family to help cover medical expenses. Inspired by that outpouring of support, Brown created the event to give back and provide assistance to others facing similar challenges.
Ryan Brown
“I’ve always just wanted to give back,” Brown said.
Celebrities for a Cause brings notable figures to Cody for a series of events. This year includes a youth basketball camp, trivia night, golf tournament and a celebrities in the park event.
Around 35 celebrities will join the festivities in June, with notable names confirmed, including former Denver Broncos running back Terrell Davis. Others include Major League Baseball players, wrestlers and actors.
“I’m very honored to be part of it,” said Michael Megerth, the general manager of Olive Glenn Golf Course. “This year will be really big too with some bigger names coming in. So people are really excited. This is Bronco country, Bills’ country now with Josh Allen as well.”
Every year, Celebrities for a Cause picks a new cause to donate to. This year, they will put $5,000 toward the Greg Senitte Memorial Scholarship at Northwest Community College and the rest will go to a fund benefiting patients at Big Horn Basin Cancer Center.
“It’s going to be set up in a fund to go directly to patients that will pay for their out-of-pocket expenses. So, it doesn’t go directly to the hospital. It’s just set up in a fund where if they need prescriptions or co-pay stuff like that,” Brown said. “Cancer affects everyone. It doesn’t matter, it could be someone you know, family member. It affects everyone. Everyone has had to deal with it one time or another. This is just a way to help families out while they’re dealing with it.”
Since its inception, Celebrities for a Cause has donated a total of $180,000. Prices for the tickets vary per event, click here to view more information and for a full list of celebrities attending this year.
1 sport or 2? High schools encourage athletes to branch out
How to nominate for Detroit Free Press Athlete of the Week Understanding our Athlete of the Week nomination process, submission method and deadlines. Forty five percent of high school student-athletes are playing multiple sports, according to MHSAA study, Schools across metro Detroit have been recognized as “high achievers” for encouraging student-athletes to play more than […]
How to nominate for Detroit Free Press Athlete of the Week
Understanding our Athlete of the Week nomination process, submission method and deadlines.
Forty five percent of high school student-athletes are playing multiple sports, according to MHSAA study,
Schools across metro Detroit have been recognized as “high achievers” for encouraging student-athletes to play more than one sport.
At 17, Drew Sikora signed a letter of intent to play college football, fulfilling a childhood dream. What helped him get there?
Playing basketball and running track and field.
Hitting the court helped Sikora’s hand-eye coordination and running track helped him with his speed on the gridiron. Those who lead the governing body for high school sports in Michigan want to see more student-athletes like Sikora.
Since 2016, the Michigan High School Athletic Association has surveyed hundreds of schools to learn how many athletes are choosing to play more than one sport. Turns out the percentage of athletes who are making that decision is growing steadily.
MHSAA’s annual survey reported that 45% of all student-athletes played more than one sponsored sport during the 2023-24 school year, compared with 43% during the 2017-18 season when the association started the survey.
The MHSAA started the survey as part of its effort to encourage athletes to play more than one sport to “prevent burnout and overuse injuries.”
It also strengthens athletic programs, said Geoff Kimmerly, the association’s director of communication.
“I think it’s helped athletic programs to thrive. You need help across programs, especially at smaller schools where you just don’t have as many athletes,” Kimmerly said. “But I think that at some schools, there has to be a philosophical move toward that. I think that’s what we’ve seen.”
High achievers
Sikora’s school, Gibraltar Carlson is among the survey’s high achievers — defined as “schools that exceed participation norms” — in metro Detroit, along with Hamtramck, Livonia Franklin, Warren Fitzgerald and Detroit Douglass. All have been in the top 10% in three different school years. Michigan Collegiate has been ranked in the top 10% for four years and Detroit Cody has been the most consistent for five of the six years.
“I think down here, it’s kind of a cultural thing to be involved,” Carlson athletic director Dan Kalbfleisch said. “My principal, my superintendent, really encourage our students to get involved in some way while they’re here. And so, once they get involved in one thing, they have fun and want to try other stuff.”
At Detroit Douglass, the state’s only all-boys public school, with an enrollment of 70, athletic director Pierre Brooks credits the students for their school’s success.
“I’m aware of that ranking, but I’m not surprised because being in such a small school, to me, it’s a true brotherhood,” Brooks said.
‘I believe that’s the culture we’ve built here …’
Over 68,000 student-athletes were accounted for in the survey. Fifty-five percent reported playing one sport and 32% played two at their school.
The combinations of sports varies but there are some trends. For boys, it’s football and basketball. Other sports include track and field, cross-country and wrestling. Girls tend to play volleyball and basketball, along with track and field, according to athletic directors.
Detroit Cody has nearly 600 students and offers 13 sponsored sports with the overall roster growing. The school started an Esports team in 2023 that has seven players and Cody is one of 18 schools that joined the Detroit Lions Girls High School Flag Football program this spring.
Antonio Baker, the school’s athletic director, said that “a large percent” of the student-athletes at his school are playing three sports throughout the school year to stay in shape, and that students play additional sports, in part, because of their coaches.
“Some of the coaches, they coach multiple sports, so the athletes move with the coaches from those sports, ” Baker said.
At Gibraltar Carlson, coaches serve as teachers, hall monitors and other roles for roughly 1,050 students.
“Can you build an environment at a high school where coaches collaborate and coaches support each other’s successes and coaches believe that a student-athlete can play multiple sports?” asked Kalbfleisch. “I believe that’s the culture we’ve built here in this building.”
A parent’s view
For Sikora, playing basketball and running track was really all about football.
“I know a lot of the skills and different sports transfer over,” Drew Sikora said. “Like, I know playing basketball is really helpful for a receiver of football. And then track helps a lot with explosive ability and all that stuff; and, obviously, helps with speed. So mostly, I’ve just been enjoying myself and supplementing for football.”
Sikora’s parents, Kent and Melissa, said all of that hard work added up to the moment he signed his commitment letter.
“It’s an opportunity for him to go be the best version of himself and go chase dreams that hopefully surpass everything that Melissa and I have ever done,” said Kent Sikora, 52, of Gibraltar.
It’s common for young athletes to specialize in one sport. Drew Sikora’s parents credit their son’s participation in football, basketball and track with making him a more well-rounded athlete.
“It helps him learn how to be a part of the team,” Kent Sikora said. Melissa Sikora added that her son avoided “pigeon-holing” himself.
That’s what DeMarko Thurman, a former Division 2 athlete, said he experienced when he played high school ball.
“I played basketball and I put all my eggs in one basket,” Thurman, 52, of Detroit, said. “But looking back on it … I totally regret not playing football. I kinda let my mom, (talk) me out of it, and then so it just kinda (became) tunnel vision with me.”
Thurman advised his 17-year-old son Jeremiah, who plays basketball, to branch out.
Jeremiah Thurman played a bit of football in middle school but focused on basketball. He didn’t get involved in another sport in high school until students at Detroit Douglass recruited him to participate in track and field. He was inspired by three seniors on the team who competed in the state championships.
“I saw an opportunity to learn from those guys because they were all really, really athletic,” Jeremiah Thurman said. He learned breathing techniques and leg exercises that he says improved his basketball skills. “I could definitely tell it was a difference. I actually felt a lot more athletic when I was playing track.”
But sports aren’t cheap. DeMarko Thurman, who works for the Ann Arbor school district, said he works multiple side jobs to cover the costs of in-season basketball and track and Amateur Athletic Union basketball.
“I have to work harder, too, in a different way to be able to support these things and at the same time, not set our family back,” he said.
Student-athletes will always specialize, athletic directors say, in hopes of getting noticed and playing at the next level. But the chances of becoming a professional athlete are slim, and playing different sports offers lessons.
“Play as much as you can and try as much as you can. Because you’re going to be coached by different people. You’re going to meet different kids. You’re going to be exposed to different backgrounds, and I think all of that is just so valuable to a kid growing up. … You’re gonna have to get along with different bosses,” Kent Sikora said. “You’re gonna have to get along with different employees and colleagues throughout your life. So I think that is the greatest lesson that you can learn by playing along.”
Eric Guzmán covers youth sports culture at the Free Press as a corps member for Report for America, an initiative of The GroundTruth Project. Make a tax-deductible contribution to support this work.
Contact Eric Guzmán: eguzman@freepress.com; 313-222-1850. Follow him on X: @EricGuzman90.
SPOKANE, Wash. — One of the nation’s top high school basketball recruits in the class of 2026 will make a trip to Gonzaga in June as he continues his college recruiting process. Ikenna Alozie, a five-star recruit ranked No. 9 overall and the No. 2 shooting guard in the class of 2026 by ESPN, told […]
SPOKANE, Wash. — One of the nation’s top high school basketball recruits in the class of 2026 will make a trip to Gonzaga in June as he continues his college recruiting process.
Ikenna Alozie, a five-star recruit ranked No. 9 overall and the No. 2 shooting guard in the class of 2026 by ESPN, told Joe Tipton of On3 Sports that he plans to visit Gonzaga next month. The 6-foot-2 Glendale, Arizona, native is navigating a new recruiting relationship with the Zags.
“I still don’t know much yet because they started recruiting me late,” Alozie told On3.com. “So it’s a new program and new recruitment process for me.”
Alozie holds offers from several programs, including Kansas, Alabama, Arizona, LSU, Tennessee, Washington, Creighton, BYU, Bryant and Cincinnati. He is also reportedly looking to visit Kentucky, Louisville and Houston.
Alozie will enter his senior year at Dream City Christian next season, an elite prep school in Glendale.
In late April, he earned First Team honors at the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League after averaging 21.7 points per game on 62.2% shooting, along with 5.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.
Report on participating in the Ibaraki City “Kids Sports Festival” on May 25th (Sunday)｜ GAMBA OSAKA Official Site
On Sunday, May 25th, we participated in the ” Kids Sports Festival ” sponsored by Ibaraki City, held at the North Ground of Ibaraki City Central Park. Ibaraki City held the “Kids Sports Festival” again this year with the aim of providing children with an opportunity to try out a variety of sports so that […]
On Sunday, May 25th, we participated in the ” Kids Sports Festival ” sponsored by Ibaraki City, held at the North Ground of Ibaraki City Central Park.
Ibaraki City held the “Kids Sports Festival” again this year with the aim of providing children with an opportunity to try out a variety of sports so that they can find the sport that suits them best, and of fostering children who will continue to play sports. Due to the rain that had been falling until the morning of the day, the event started two hours late, but about 150 children, from preschoolers to sixth graders, participated in the soccer class and enjoyed playing soccer with the GAMBA OSAKA school coaches.
We would like to thank Ibaraki City and the Ibaraki City Youth Sports Club for hosting this soccer class, and to all the children and parents who participated. GAMBA OSAKA will continue to work towards becoming a club that is rooted in the community and loved by everyone in its hometown.
AS Roma say ‘intoxicated’ Nicolo Zaniolo urinated in dressing room before assaulting two youth players
AS Roma have accused former club player and current Fiorentina striker Nicolo Zaniolo of showing up to the club’s capital facilities intoxicated, urinating in the dressing room and assaulting two youth players, sending both of them to the hospital on Monday. Roma released the following statement on Tuesday: “On the evening of May 26, following […]
AS Roma have accused former club player and current Fiorentina striker Nicolo Zaniolo of showing up to the club’s capital facilities intoxicated, urinating in the dressing room and assaulting two youth players, sending both of them to the hospital on Monday.
Roma released the following statement on Tuesday:
“On the evening of May 26, following the Primavera semi-final match Fiorentina vs AS Roma at Viola Park, Nicolò Zaniolo (Fiorentina first team) unlawfully entered the Roma dressing room area accompanied by an associate, despite lacking accreditation,” Roma said in a statement.
“Witnesses report Zaniolo appeared visibly intoxicated. He urinated in Roma facilities, provoked players, and, without verbal exchange, physically struck Mattia Almaviva and violently pushed Marco Litti against a bench. Litti had recently undergone shoulder surgery. Both players required hospitalization: Almaviva received a 10-day recovery prognosis, Litti 21 days.”
Zaniolo has denied this, saying he walked away after being insulted.
“At the end of the match I went down to the locker room to congratulate the Fiorentina boys and then I went to the Roma locker room to say hello and congratulate them on the season, but at a certain point they started insulting me so, at that point, to avoid the situation degenerating, I preferred to leave,” he said.
Zaniolo played for AS Roma from 2018 to 2023 before moving to Galatasaray. After that, he played on loan to Aston Villa, Atalanta and for Fiorentina in the last six months, playing 13 games in all competitions.
Next steps
Given the complexity of this situation, it’s tough to tell what’s next but in Roma’s statement, they include backing their players and hoping that institutions will act to ensure accountability and protect the values of Italian soccer.
