In 2018, the Belgian national football team finished third in the FIFA World Cup and reached number one in the FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's Rankings. With a squad boasting the likes of Eden Hazard, Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku they possess some of the world's best players. However, such success is more than a flash in the pan. This generation is just the latest wave of talent the nation has produced. The first book of its kind in English, Golden: Why Belgian Football is More Than One Generation is the definitive story of football in Belgium. It relives the sport's growth and the European glories of Belgian clubs, charting their untold triumphs against the biggest names. It dives into the recent production of world-class players in its academies, amid the murkiness of financial irregularities and match-fixing. It tells the tale of how a nation with a population of under 12 million has continued to make its mark on world football.

Major League Baseball, alone among industries of its size in the United States, operates as an unregulated monopoly. This 20th-century regulatory anomaly has become known as the baseball anomaly. Major League Baseball developed into a major commercial enterprise without being subject to antitrust liability. Long after the interstate commercial character of baseball had been established and even recognized by the Supreme Court, baseball's monopoly remained free from federal regulation. Duquette explains the baseball anomaly by connecting baseball's regulatory status to the larger political environment, tracing the game's fate through four different regulatory regimes. The constellation of institutional, ideological, and political factors within each regulatory regime provides the context for the survival of the baseball anomaly.

Duquette shows baseball's unregulated monopoly persists because of the confluence of institutional, ideological, and political factors which have prevented the repeal of baseball's antitrust exemption to date. However, both the institutional and ideological factors are fading fast. Baseball's owners can no longer claim special cultural significance in defense of their exemption. Nor can they credibly claim that the commissioner system approximates government regulation effectively. Both of these strategies have been discredited by the labor unrest of the 1980s and 1990s. Duquette provides a unique perspective on American regulatory politics, and by explaining a complicated story in comprehensive prose, he has given researchers, policy makers, and fans a fascinating look at the business of baseball.

The lost memoir from Lou Gehrig--"a compelling rumination by a baseball icon and a tragic hero" (Sports Illustrated) and "a fitting tribute to an inspiring baseball legend" (Publishers Weekly). At the tender age of twenty-four, Lou Gehrig decided to tell the remarkable story of his life and career. He was one of the most famous athletes in the country, in the midst of a record-breaking season with the legendary 1927 World Series-winning Yankees. In an effort to grow Lou's star, pioneering sports agent Christy Walsh arranged for Lou's tale of baseball greatness to syndicate in newspapers across the country. Those columns were largely forgotten and lost to history--until now. Lou comes alive in this "must-read" (Tyler Kepner, The New York Times) memoir. It is an inspiring, heartfelt rags-to-riches tale about a poor kid from New York who became one of the most revered baseball players of all time. Fourteen years after his account, Lou would tragically die from ALS, a neuromuscular disorder now known as Lou Gherig's Disease. His poignant autobiography is followed by an insightful biographical essay by historian Alan D. Gaff. Here is Lou--Hall of Famer, All Star, MVP, an "athlete who epitomized the American dream" (Christian Science Monitor)--back at bat.

The "Premiership in Focus" celebrates 15 years that have changed the face of football. When "Football Focus" began life on BBC1 in 1968 as "Football Preview", football in England was about old wooden terraces, grounds that were ankle deep in mud or covered in snow and a Bovril at half time. In 1992 came the Premier League and the sport changed forever. The Premier League was established as one of the most exciting, cosmopolitan and widely watched national sporting leagues in the world and fans are now able to watch hundreds of Premiership matches live as football has seemingly taken over much of national life. Why has this happened? How has it affected the clubs, fans, players and managers? How long can it be sustained? This book aims to examine these questions as well as celebrate 15 amazing years of football. It will look back at the great moments, outstanding matches, stunning goals, incredible saves, controversial decisions and the sheer excitement that has been the Premiership.

With a new introduction, Phil Jackson's modern classic of motivation, teamwork, and Zen insight is updated for a whole new readership"Not only is there more to life than basketball, there's a lot more to basketball than basketball." --Phil Jackson Eleven years ago, when Phil Jackson first wrote these words in Sacred Hoops, he was the triumphant head coach of the Chicago Bulls, known for his Zen approach to the game. He hadnt yet moved to the Los Angeles Lakers, with whom he would bring his total to an astounding nine NBA titles. In his thought-provoking memoir, he revealed how he directs his players to act with a clear mind--not thinking, just doing; to respect the enemy and be aggressive without anger or violence; to live in the moment and stay calmly focused in the midst of chaos; to put the "me" in service of the "we"--all lessons applicable to any person's life, not just a professional basketball player's. This inspiring book went on to sell more than 400,000 copies. In his new introduction, Jackson explains how the concepts in Sacred Hoops are relevant to the issues facing his current team--and today's reader.

Impressively researched and well written, this valuable study by a business professor at the Universiy of North Florida. . . traces the erosion of the reserve clause and the rise of arbitration in salary disputes, examining the participants in negotiations--players, owners, managers, agents, even commissoners--and showing the stake each has in the money game. Many striking points are made, i.e., there is no discrimination in salaries of minority players and there is little relationship between pay and performance. "Publishers Weekly"

Jennings . . . gives a detailed account of collective bargaining in baseball during the last 25 years, leading up to the owners' lockout this year. He discusses the participants on both sides and how disunity among the club owners has contributed to the union's ability to achieve large bargaining gains. He also deals with salary arbitration and how it has been used to settle pay disputes, noting that it can resemble 'a high-stakes crapshoot' that leaves management incapable of controlling a teaM's payroll costs. For aficionados of the sport, this book provides clarifying insight into the complicated issues of baseball's labor relations and offers fascinating anecdotes and a shrewd commentary on the diverse and colorful personalities involved.

"New York Times Book RevieW"

Kenneth M. Jennings examines union-management relations in professional baseball, bringing together all the information the sports fan needs to follow the issues surrounding player-management arbitration in this unique industry. Covering the history of collective bargaining action in baseball from 1869 to the 1990 season, this book examines the issues that influence those high-profile player-management-owner negotiations. "Balls and StrikeS" reveals: how in recent years the Major League Baseball Players' Association (MLBPA) has successfully parlayed owner disunity into substantial gains for its members; that baseball, in a statistical sense, surprisingly exhibits little discrimination against black and Hispanic players; how there is very little relationship between pay and performance in professional baseball. Baseball fans and sports journalists as well as professionals in management and labor relations, will find "Balls and StrikeS" a fresh and exciting look at America's favorite pastime.

"Balls and StrikeS" presents the confrontations and relationships between players and management from the perspective of several hundred collective bargaining participants--the union and management officials who negotiate the labor agreement and the players who must approve and live with it. Kenneth M. Jennings derives his perspective from a variety of media sources, related biographies, autobiographies, and articles. The result is a highly readable book about owners, commissioners, agents, the media, manager-player relations, player pressures including drug and alcohol problems, race and ethnic issues, and player mobility and salaries. The book discusses the history of collective bargaining action in baseball from 1869 to 1966; the year Marvin Miller became president of the MLBPA, through the 1970s and Miller's successful bargaining efforts, into the 1980s and the opening of the 1990 season. "Balls and StrikeS" discusses key participants in the collective bargaining process--owners, agents, the media, managers, and players--and concludes with a look at contemporary industrial relations issues in professional baseball: drug and alcohol abuse; racial discrimination; and the relationship between pay and performance.

This book addresses the most important judicial aspects in relation to the FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber (DRC), as well as the different categories of disputes, inter alia, the termination of player contracts, the amount of compensation, sporting sanctions, training compensation and the solidarity mechanism. The DRC was established in 2001 by FIFA for the purpose of resolving disputes regarding the international status and transfer of players. Since then the DRC has developed into a major and influential alternative resolution body, with an impressive and everincreasing caseload. In this updated and revised Second Edition the most important decisions of the DRC as of the date of its establishment in 2001 until 2016 are analysed. It is a reference work for those with a legal and financial interest in professional football, such as lawyers, agents, managers and administrators, but is also aimed at researchers and academics. Michele Bernasconi, Attorney-at-law in Zurich, Switzerland, Arbitrator at CAS and President of the Swiss Sports Law Association provided a foreword for the book. Frans M. de Weger is senior legal counsel working for the Dutch Federation of Professional Football Clubs (FBO). In 2015 he was, at the proposal of the European Club Association (ECA), appointed as an arbitrator for the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). As a legal counsel and a CAS arbitrator he is involved in several national and international football-related legal disputes. This book appears in the ASSER International Sports Law Series, under the editorship of Prof. Dr. Ben Van Rompuy and Dr. Antoine Duval. "Frans de Weger's work on the jurisprudence of the DRC is a "must-have" for anybody dealing with sports law and, in particular, dealing with football issues under the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players." Massimo Coccia Professor of International Law and Attorney-at-Law in Rome and CAS Arbitrator "Where to go when trying to understand the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players? Now Frans de Weger has the answer with his new version of the much-awaited and needed Jurisprudence of the FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber." Juan de Dios Crespo Perez Sports Lawyer "The second edition of this book, which is systematic and practical at the same time, will surely be of great interest to both specialists active in the world of "football law" and aspiring individuals." Wouter Lambrecht Attorney-at-law, Head of Legal at the European Club Association, FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber Member and Mediator at the CAS

Football managers have to deal with a number of unique pressures, yet the challenges of the football manager are similar to those of managers in other sectors. This book examines the management of football and looks at ways that managers and leaders in other industries can use tools and techniques from the sporting world within their own sector.

'Folklore and Fables' is a collection of articles on his beloved Blades, by Sheffield United supporters' liaison officer, club historian and 'encyclopedia of Blades knowledge', John Garrett. A lifelong Blade, whose grandfather first watched the Blades in 1892, John has worked at Bramall Lane for over two decades and began writing his popular, and award-winning, 'Folklore and Fables' feature for United's matchday programme almost 10 years ago. This book is a compilation of his best work, giving his inimitable take on life at Bramall Lane - featuring his family history, music, holidays abroad, club legends and, rather occasionally, football...

David 'Bumble' Lloyd is one of cricket's great characters - hilarious, informative and insightful, and filled with boundless enthusiasm for the game. Now, in Cricket Characters, he tells the stories of the most important, influential, talented and entertaining characters he has come across in sixty years in the game. Following on from the bestselling successes of Last in the Tin Bath and Around the World in 80 Pints, in his new book Bumble looks back at the cricketers who have had the greatest impact on him throughout his career. From the gnarly veterans he first played against as a teenager in the Lancashire League, through the old pros he met on the county circuit while at Lancashire on to a revealing insight into life alongside Mike Atherton, Ian Botham, Nasser Hussain and Shane Warne in the commentary box, this book reveals Bumble at his best: telling great stories about his favourite people. Along the way, the reader not only learns who have been the funniest or most dangerous players to be around, but also gets an insight into what makes a team gel and players to perform at their very peak. It's the perfect gift for any cricket fan who loves the game and needs something to keep them amused as the autumn draws in and winter takes over.

Despite many negative expectations of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Russia delivered one of the best World Cups in living memory. This book brings together leading scholars working in Russian studies, sociology and political science to analyse the 2018 World Cup and assess its significance for sport, Russia and the world. The book explores the connections between sport, soft power, populism, protest, and international politics, and investigates topics including security, surveillance, social media and patriotic mobilization, shining new light on key contemporary themes in the social sciences. It reflects upon the importance of sporting mega-events for public diplomacy, and considers what the 2018 World Cup can tell us about the current condition of Russian society and the Russian state. This is fascinating reading for anybody with an interest in soccer, sport and society, Russia, international politics, events, or post-Soviet societies.

This book is available as open access through the Bloomsbury Open Access programme and is available on www.bloomsburycollections.com. Football has undergone a period of transformation over the last thirty years. Despite these global processes, different national leagues have adapted in different ways. After an initial period of success directly after Italia '90, Italian football has gone through a period of sustained crisis. It has been blighted by financial mismanagement, corruption scandals and fan violence. This has impacted Italy's ability to compete on a global stage. Football Italia accounts for the development of Italian football in relation to the wider global transformations impacting football and addresses the reasons for Serie A's initial success and current malaise. Theoretically, this book locates Italian football within the wider power network of the state and how this has impacted political engagement. After an historical overview of the Italian political economy, Football Italia highlights how football is part of the wider political network. Football clubs are owned by powerful businessmen (and they are all men) who are also politicians. This centralisation of power within a small hegemonic group inhibits change. Within this broader structure, wider corruption scandals continue; from regular match-fixing scandals to doping. Meanwhile, stadiums are crumbling and police over-aggressive. It is within this context that we must place the fans. Both the ultras and supporters who attend official supporters' clubs are disaffected and without the power to change the status quo. Consequently, Italian football has been in decline throughout the 21st century.

This is a book about young men who learned to play baseball during the 1930s and 1940s, and then went on to play for one of the most exciting major-league ball clubs ever fielded, the team that broke the color barrier with Jackie Robinson. It is a book by and about a sportswriter who grew up near Ebbets Field, and who had the good fortune in the 1950s to cover the Dodgers for the Herald Tribune. This is a book about what happened to Jackie, Carl Erskine, Pee Wee Reese, and the others when their glory days were behind them. In short, it is a book about America, about fathers and sons, prejudice and courage, triumph and disaster, and told with warmth, humor, wit, candor, and love.

In 1933, America was in the midst of the Great Depression. The depth of despair created in the American people earned the panic a singular place in the history of the nation's economic turmoil. Football, a uniquely American game, weathered these hard times, adapted, and made some of the pain a little easier to endure. In "1933, " author Mark C. Bodanza examines the important role football played in the midst of the nation's historic crisis.Bodanza recounts this dramatic year both on and off the field of the professional and college gridirons and analyzes it in the context of the times. He tells the story of a momentous season shared by the high schools of Fitchburg and Leominster, Massachusetts, a rivalry dating back to 1894. In the prior thirty-nine seasons, the teams had played each other forty-nine times. But, 1933 was different; the game had never had such significance.More than ever, Depression-wary Americans needed a reprieve from their cares and concerns. Football provided a welcome relief. Including period photos, "1933" narrates how the sport of football-which has created some of the nation's most magical moments in sports-was impacted by the Great Depression in a variety of ways, some with lasting consequences.