political football

noun

: an issue that politicians argue about and try to use for their advantage

This issue is too important to be treated as a political football.

Examples of political football in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Now Good's death is set to be turned into another political football with the Land of 10,000 Lakes once again being the possible ground zero of civil unrest ahead of a critical election, political observers say. —Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 11 Jan. 2026

The Illinois Republican Party has sought to play political football with the Bears’ consideration of Indiana, using social media to blame the state and Chicago’s Democratic leadership. —Rick Pearson, Chicago Tribune, 10 Jan. 2026

Mike Mussina became the voters’ next political football. —Tony Blengino, Forbes.com, 7 Jan. 2026

Amid the prolonged government shutdown, which is now the longest in American history, SNAP benefits have become a political football. —Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 8 Nov. 2025

Rhymes for political football

• mercaptoethanol
• aerosol
• alcohol
• arbitral
• basketball
• butanol
• cannonball
• carbinol
• catarrhal
• cortisol
• ethanol
• fireball