For over a century, Chicago has played soccer. This work explains the early history of the game in the Second City, beginning with the 1887 formation of the Chicago Football Association, and concluding with the 1939 season and Chicago Sparta's National Open Cup win, which brought the trophy to the city for the first time. This study chronicles the early British immigrants who first transported and organized the game in Chicago. It documents the myriad ethnic groups and native born players that kicked in the city's many leagues, and examines the many championship tournaments, teams, and players that made Chicago one of the nation's early soccer powers.

The Miracle is the inside story of how Greece shocked the footballing world by winning the 2004 European Championship. This incredible underdog tale shows how these 150-1 outsiders went from a team given no chance to being crowned kings of Europe, defeating the host nation in the final. Vasilis Sambrakos retraces Greece's journey by meeting most of Otto Rehagel's squad 15 years after their momentous triumph. The book is both an enthralling football story of victory against the odds and an in-depth look at how a winning team is constructed from the bottom up. It examines the values and methods needed to create a sporting unit along with the roles of the team's key players. The Miracle brings you the untold story of one of the greatest sporting achievements in history.

Ever wondered which goal Frank Lampard is proudest of, who Jurgen Klopp thinks will manage Liverpool in the future, what Rio Ferdinand thinks of Man United in the post-Ferguson years or exactly how many grey cashmere jumpers Pep Guardiola owns? In this collection of frank and funny conversations between footballers and their biggest fans, these vital questions (and many more) are finally addressed. A Game of Two Halves shows a different side to some of the biggest names in football, reminding us of the common ground we all share. This project is published in partnership with UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, with the goal of raising both funds for and awareness of their work with child refugees. Featuring forewords by Raheem Sterling and Gary Lineker and interviews between Jurgen Klopp & John Bishop Pep Guardiola & Johnny Marr Lucy Bronze & Clare Balding Frank Lampard & Omid Djalili Rio Ferdinand & Rachel Riley Ian Wright & Wretch 32 Hector Bellerin & Romesh Ranganathan Steven Gerrard & David Morrissey Gary Lineker & Fahd Saleh Eric Dier & David Lammy John McGlynn & Val McDermid Vivianne Miedema & Amy Raphael

UPDATED TO INCLUDE THE 2021/22 SEASON THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER The behind-the-scenes story of the Marcelo Bielsa revolution at Leeds United and their first season back in the Premier League after sixteen years of hurt. FEATURING FRESH PERSONAL INSIGHT FROM MARCELO BIELSA On 27th February 2022, after 170 matches in charge, promotion to the Premier League and some of the most exhilarating football the English game has ever seen, Leeds United parted company with their most beloved and successful manager in a generation: Marcelo Bielsa. His parting gift was to embrace the crowds of adoring fans who turned up to say thank you as he left the club's training ground for the final time. In And it was Beautiful, The Athletic's Phil Hay chronicles Leeds United's glorious first season back in the top flight - which saw them finish ninth - after a chaotic sixteen-year absence. Phil pulls back the curtain on the hallmarks that now define the Marcelo Bielsa era, from his gruelling training schedule - including his infamous 'murderball' sessions - to innovative tactical methods that elevated Championship regulars into Premier League stars. Bielsa performed miracles, turning football into high art and making an extraordinary cultural impact on the city of Leeds. The result is a unique and fitting tribute to a Leeds United icon.

Xi Jinping's "Soccer Revolution" is unique: the most extensive politicization and geo-politicization of the Global Game. His purpose is to extend the global softpower projection of "the Middle Kingdom": an ancient Western imperial mantra ("bread and circuses") has been replaced by a modern Eastern "imperial" mantra ("rice and pitches"). The Asian Football Federation shares this "allopathic" vision of East Asian soccer: the future is Asia and it starts in China! Soccer is a talisman for a New Asia in a New Era. For China soccer is a hubristic instrument of softpower projection. Softpower, Soccer, Supremacy: The Chinese Dream makes this point forcefully. In East Asia soccer in now "much more than a game"!

THE PERFECT GIFT FOR FOOTBALL FANS There's no one quite like Klopp. Players love him, Liverpool fans love him - even those who should hate him, want a hug from him. He's charismatic, charming, a master tactician and his unrivalled passion for his team and the game has made him one of football's most beloved personalities. So, let's face it, in these uncertain times, we all could do with being a bit more like Klopp. The perfect gift for any football fan in your life; from how to make the perfect dinner-party klopptails to cultivating your Top of the Klopps playlist - this is a celebration of football's greatest manager and a guide to winning in your own life. 'All of us have to do whatever we can to protect one another. This should be the case all the time in life, but in this moment I think it matters more than ever.' - Jurgen Klopp

*WINNER OF THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR* Fever Pitch is Nick Hornby's million-copy-selling, award-winnning football classic 'A spanking 7-0 away win of a football book. . . inventive, honest, funny, heroic, charming' Independent For many people watching football is mere entertainment, to some it's more like a ritual; but to others, its highs and lows provide a narrative to life itself. But, for Nick Hornby, his devotion to the game has provided one of few constants in a life where the meaningful things - like growing up, leaving home and forming relationships, both parental and romantic - have rarely been as simple or as uncomplicated as his love for Arsenal. Brimming with wit and honesty, Fever Pitch, catches perfectly what it really means to be a football fan - and in doing so, what it means to be a man. 'Hornby has put his finger on truths that have been unspoken for generations' Irish Times 'Funny, wise and true' Roddy Doyle

The Untouchables: Anfield's Band of Brothers chronicles the rise and fall of one of the greatest Liverpool teams ever. In 1918 an enlisted man, Tom Bromilow, stepped off the streets of Liverpool and straight into the team. Still in uniform, he was one of tens of thousands of Liverpudlians who fought in World War One. His signing completed a jigsaw that eventually revealed an image of footballing perfection, a team so great they were called 'The Untouchables'. The book brings to life a host of incredible characters, uncovers friendships and rivalries and reveals amazing backstories. Meet men like Bootle-born Walter Wadsworth, tough-talking Irishman Elisha Scott, champion boxer Jock McNab and many other fascinating figures. The Untouchables reveals previously unknown detail and sheds new light on old controversies, including the real reason behind the departure of the club's manager, Dave Ashworth. Meticulously researched and lovingly told, the book breathes new life into a fascinating and long-forgotten story.

Explore the complete history of The FA Cup in this definitive illustrated book. The FA Cup is the oldest national football competition in the world, and one of the most beloved and popular tournaments in football. In 2022, it will be 150 years since the inaugural Football Association Challenge Cup was clinched by Wanderers Football Club at Kennington Oval. Since then, 'The Cup' has become one of the premier tournaments in the sport, and an iconic mainstay of the English game. The Official History of The FA Cup, produced in partnership with The Football Association, is a lavish, illustrated tribute to this iconic competition. Filled with stunning photographs spanning the full history of the Cup, this book celebrates the most exciting, significant and memorable goals, games and upsets in English football history. Featuring insightful commentary on The FA Cup's development and evolution, details of every FA Cup-winning side, and an exclusive foreword by Arsene Wenger, this is an essential companion for anyone with a love of the competition - which is to say, fans of football everywhere.

Susie Petruccelli grew up in a sports-mad, male-dominated family in California, fighting to find her own identity and path. And she did. She won a place on the soccer programme at Harvard University and felt on top of the world - talented, strong, loved and worthy. Less than a year later, however, it had all slipped away. The prize-winning RAISED A WARRIOR is Susie's honest, human and cathartic story of how she, as player and mother, rediscovered herself and the love of a game that almost broke her. Alongside, she examines the growth of the women's game and the issues still confronting the sport as it fights for the equalities it deserves. WINNER OF THE VIKKI ORVICE PRIZE.

London's Fields: An Intimate History of London Football Fandom celebrates the turbulent rivalries, local antagonisms and even, on occasion, the fraternal harmonies held in common by the supporters of the capital's many professional football teams. The us and them dichotomy of a local derby is told here through the voices of us, the fans. In a one-club town or city your choice of team would appear to be simple. However, in a city with a dozen clubs the choice is less straightforward. London is a place of constant flux and change; it's diasporic nature may have taken people far from their ancestral heartlands but the football clubs that remain there have, in a sense, travelled with them - local bragging rights and capital gains remain just as important. The author's upbringing was steeped in football, he has played and coached the game; written on it and worked in it. His less than conventional path to choosing his own team forms the foundation upon which the stories of other fans are richly rendered.

This short book provides a concise study of the mechanics of head impact in a soccer heading manoeuvre. It describes the development and validation of finite element models of soccer ball and human head, as well as the simulation of brain dynamics after ball-to-head impact. In addition, it also presents a computational study of the efficacy of wearing protective headgear in mitigating the risk of concussion due to heading in soccer.

Celtic's Cult Heroes is devoted to 20 players who, over the years, have won a special place in the hearts of the Parkhead faithful - not necessarily the greatest footballers, but a unique brotherhood of mavericks and stalwarts, local lads and big signings. The cast list alone is enough to stir up the memories and tug at the heartstrings of any Hoops fan - Stein, Johnstone and Nicholas, Larsson, McInally and Aitken - recalling how these charismatic personalities used to ignite passion on the terraces. Find out which Celtic icon scored direct from a corner, was made to retake it and promptly scored again. Who celebrated his Scottish Cup Final hat-trick with a somersault, and which heroes were affectionately known as 'Yogi Bear' and 'The Golden Crust'. Discover and delight in the magical qualities of these 20 mere mortals elevated to cult status by the green half of Glasgow.

West Ham United's move to the new Olympic Stadium ended a 114-year stay at the Boleyn Ground. The spiritual home of some of football's greatest heroes: Bobby Moore, Billy Bonds, Trevor Brooking and Frank Lampard were just a few who made their name there, and revelled in its close-knit east London atmosphere. With the club anthem 'Bubbles' ringing around the stands, the Boleyn Ground had a raw flavour of its own. There were unforgettable afternoons fashioned by the club's two greatest managers, Ron Greenwood and John Lyall; fabulous nights under the lights, as the tightly-packed confines of the ground made it the most intense of stadiums; wonderful evenings competing against the best in Europe, such as beating Eintracht Frankfurt on a mud-heap of a pitch. Now it is gone, but the magic, the fervour, the triumphs, the disappointments and the special brand of humour which flourished there is captured here in all its glory. With full access to The Times archives and stunning photographic collection, lifelong Hammers fan John Dillon has penned the definitive history of the Home of the Hammers.

'He is skilful. He is outspoken. He is Zlatan' New York Times 'He is an amazing talent, one of the best around' Pep Guardiola Football's most prolific and controversial goalscorer has nothing left to prove on the pitch. There is only one Zlatan. In the decade since his megaselling memoir I am Zlatan Ibrahimovic, he has played at Paris Saint-Germain (2012-2016), Manchester United (2016-2018), LA Galaxy (2018-2019) and Milan (2020-). This outrageous and hilarious follow-up is bursting with personal confessions and revealing anecdotes about the world's best players and managers. Packed with revelations, in Adrenaline we hear for the first time what Zlatan really thinks about his time in the Premier League and what it was like to score that glorious bicycle kick against England. We hear about the club he very nearly signed for, and see his hilarious run-ins with the French media - and the French in general, really. Plus so much more. Zlatan transports you into the world of top-flight football like no one else. Filled with revelations - including Zlatan's life lessons on happiness, friendship and love - you'll be talking about this book a long time after finishing it.

Between 1974 and 1997 Frits Barend and Henk van Dorp have conducted numerous interviews with Johan Cruyff, one of the greatest footballers the world has ever seen. In these extraordinarily candid interviews, Cruyff talks about how he learnt his trade, going on to play football for Barcelona and Ajax, two of the world's greatest club side. He also talks about the philosophy behind 'total football', the driving force behind the great Dutch side of the seventies, and a style of football many top teams attempt to emulate today. Then there was the eight years of success as manager of Barcelona, one of the most stressful jobs in the game, and back to Ajax, where with his emphasis on youth and home-grown talent, he put together another team of fantastic ability.

The brutal 2010 murders of promising footballer Eddie Moussa and his brother were a harbinger of the gang violence now laying siege to Sweden. Written by crime reporter Ann Tornkvist, Follow Fucking Orders captures the freefall of a quaint town, known for its sports-crazed community and top-league football team, into a bloody turf war. After the biggest police investigation into organised crime in Swedish history, the local mob boss was sentenced to life for ordering the hit on Eddie. Author Ann Tornkvist followed the gripping story for five years, securing unique access to families who had fled into the witness protection programme. In 2016, the mob boss tried to derail this book's publication by threatening to have her killed. Undeterred, Tornkvist published Follow Fucking Orders in Sweden in 2018. The first edition sold out within a week and soon became the most popular book in the country's maximum-security prisons. Ultimately, the book offers a chilling reminder that true crime has no last chapter.

Shortlisted for the Telegraph Sports Book Awards Biography of the Year.Nat Lofthouse is a name that rings through the annals of English football history like few others. He was a pivotal figure in one of the true golden ages of the beautiful game, ending his career as the leading goal scorer for both his club and his country, with a reputation as one of the game's true greats. His retirement coincided almost exactly with the abolition of the maximum wage, and ensured that his name would forever be identified with a time before money flooded the game and changed it inexorably. Lofty explores not only Lofthouse's life and career in detail never done before, but also delves into his personality and motivation through various key points of his life. Matt Clough uses interviews with those who knew him best and played alongside him, extensive research into newspaper archives and, of course, the words of the man himself to breathe life into one of football's most legendary figures.

11th edition of this popular, bright and quirky annual soccer records book. Crammed with records, facts, stats and amazing feats from the world's greatest game, The Vision Book of Football Records 2020 is the perfect Christmas present for football fans of all ages. It includes an entry on every English Premier League and Football League team and all the Scottish SPL clubs plus the major European and world clubs from AC Milan to Real Madrid and an all-star squad of current and former soccer legends. On top of that there are a whole wealth of fun and quirky entries which celebrate the more bizarre soccer facts and records, like the team relegated four times in succession, the FA Cup tie that required six replays and the goalkeeper who refused to be substituted!

Enjoy an activity packed advent calendar with this fantastic football themed advent calendar featuring 24 individually wrapped books