No nation is as closely identified with the game of soccer as Brazil. For over a century, Brazil's people, politicians, and poets have found in soccer the finest expression of the nation's collective potential. Since the team's dazzling performance in 1938 at the World Cup in France, Brazilian soccer has been revered as an otherworldly blend of the effective and the aesthetic.
"Futebol Nation" is an extraordinary chronicle of a nation that has won the World Cup five times and produced players of miraculous skill, such as Pele, Garrincha, Rivaldo, Zico, Ronaldo, and Ronaldinho. It shows why the phrase "O Jogo Bonito"--the Beautiful Game--has justly entered the global lexicon. Yet there is another side to Brazil and its game, one that reflects the harsh sociological realities of the "futebol nation." David Goldblatt explores the grinding poverty that creates a vast pool of hungry players, Brazil's corrupt institutions exemplified by its soccer authorities, and the pervasive violence that has seeped onto the field and into the stands.
"Futebol Nation" illuminates both Brazilian soccer and Brazil itself; its brilliance, its magic, its style, and the fabulous myths that have been constructed around it; as well as its tragedies, its miseries, and its economic and political injustices. It is the story of Brazil told through its chosen national game.

This text explains how football has ended up where it is today. From the formation of the very first football club to the creation of Arsenal's Emirates stadium, it tells the story of the commercialisation of the game, in a tone and language the fans will welcome.

Autobiography of popular ex-Norwich and Scotland goalkeeper Bryan Gunn, one of the great heroes of the game who, since hanging up his gloves, has raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for leukaemia charities in memory of his daughter Francesca. Foreword by Sir Alex Ferguson.

Coventry City On This Day revisits all the most magical and memorable moments from the club's rollercoaster past, mixing in a maelstrom of quirky anecdotes and legendary characters to produce an irresistibly dippable Sky Blues diary - with an entry for every day of the year. From the club's formation on Monday 13th August 1883 through to the Premier League era, the City faithful have witnessed promotions and relegations, hard-fought derby matches, breathtaking Cup runs and triumphs - all featured here. Timeless greats such as Clarrie Bourton, Steve Ogrizovic and George Curtis, Tommy Hutchison, Gary McSheffrey and Dion Dublin all loom larger than life. Revisit 29th November 1961, the beginning of the club's revolution under Jimmy Hill. 3rd October 1970, when Willie Carr's backflick and Ernie Hunt's 'donkey kick' made history. Or Wednesday 13th May 1987, when the Sky Blues' Cup Final squad sang 'Go For It City!' live on Blue Peter.

A ball can start a revolution. Born in Kabul, Awista Ayub escaped with her family to Connecticut in 1981, when she was two years old, but her connection to her heritage remained strong. An athlete her whole life, she was inspired to start the Afghan Youth Sports Exchange after September 11, 2001, as a way of uniting girls of Afghanistan and giving them hope for their future. She chose soccer because little more than a ball and a field is needed to play; however, the courage it would take for girls in Afghanistan to do this would have to be tremendous--and the social change it could bring about by making a loud and clear statement for Afghan women was enough to convince Awista that it was possible, and even necessary. Under Taliban rule, girls in Afghanistan couldn't play outside of their homes, let alone participate in a sport on a team. So, Awista brought eight girls from Afghanistan to the United States for a soccer clinic, in the hope of not only teaching them the sport, but also instilling confidence and a belief in their self-worth. They returned to Afghanistan and spread their interest in playing soccer; when Awista traveled there to host another clinic, hundreds of girls turned out to participate--and the numbers of players and teams keep growing. What began with eight young women has now exploded into something of a phenomenon. Fifteen teams now compete in the Afghanistan Football Federation, with hundreds of girls participating. Against all odds and fear, these girls decided to come together and play a sport that has reintroduced the very traits that decades of war had cruelly stripped away from them--confidence and self-worth. In However Tall the Mountain, Awista tells both her own story and the deeply moving stories of the eight original girls, describing their daily lives back in Afghanistan, and how they found strength in each other, in teamwork, and in themselves--taking impossible risks to obtain freedoms we take for granted. This is a story about hope, about what home is, and in the end, about determination. As the Afghan proverb says, However tall the mountain, there's always a road.

The story of two men who almost single-handedly saved their football club from extinction. In the early 80s David Kilpatrick and Graham Morris spied architects' plans to turn Spotland, the home of their beloved, beleaguered Rochdale AFC, into a housing estate. They set about saving the club but first had to take on the alleged 'enemy within'. They worked tirelessly, persuading companies to write off debts while securing loans and donations, a tricky proposition when your club is bottom of the Football League. Meanwhile, the town of Rochdale was on its knees, the last of the cotton mills closing down. The limit of most fans' investment in their club is routinely the price of a season ticket. Directors often risk their houses and businesses, sometimes forfeiting marriages, families and their health in the name of their club. People such as Kilpatrick and Morris - moderately wealthy local businessmen - who serve on football club boards are the unseen, unsung heroes of football, even in the modern age.

Join official club historian Don Wright as he commemorates 150 years of the Reds, charting the lives of the players, officials and fans who have made this a world-famous club. In 2015, the same year that Nottingham was crowned England's first City of Football, Nottingham Forest Football Club celebrated its 150th anniversary. Forest is the second oldest football league club in the world (after Notts County, which began in 1862) and Don Wright tells its unique story largely through the exceptional individuals who formed and shaped it. Inspired by Italian freedom fighter Garibaldi's redshirts, the young founders of the Forest Football Club, who played on the Forest recreation ground near the centre of Nottingham, decided that Garibaldi red would be their colour and so it has remained ever since. Forest are the original Reds of world soccer. Featuring little known facts about players, managers and tactics, Forever Forest proves that the Forest story truly is the stuff of legends.

Sports Book Awards Autobiography of the Year Shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award The Sunday Times Sports Book of the Year The Times Sports Book of the Year Telegraph Football Book of the Year 'Ferris's wonderful memoir represents a twin triumph. He has endured every kind of setback in life but has invariably reinvented himself; and his writing is a pure pleasure.' The Sunday Times 'Enough depth and humanity to make your average football autobiography look like a Ladybird book.' Telegraph 'A masterpiece of the genre' Brian McNally 'Football memoirs rarely produce great literature but Ferris's The Boy on the Shed is a glistening exception.' Guardian 'Fascinating and stylishly told.' David Walsh, The Sunday Times The Boy on the Shed is a story of love and fate. At 16, Paul Ferris becomes Newcastle United's youngest-ever first-teamer. Like many a tricky winger from Northern Ireland, he is hailed as 'the new George Best'. As a player and later a physio and member of the Magpies' managerial team, Paul's career acquaints him not only with Kevin Keegan, Kenny Dalglish and Bobby Robson, Ruud Gullit, Paul Gascoigne and Alan Shearer but also with injury, insecurity and disappointment. Yet this autobiography is more than a tale of the vagaries of sporting fortune. It begins during 'The Troubles' in a working-class Catholic family in the Protestant town of Lisburn, near Belfast. After a childhood scarred by his mother's illness and sectarian hatred, Paul meets the love of his life, his future wife Geraldine. Talented and carefree on the pitch, shy and anxious off it, he earns a tilt at stardom. His first spell at Newcastle turns sour, as does his return as a physio, although obtaining a Masters degree shows him what he could achieve away from football. When Paul qualifies as a barrister, a career in Law beckons. Instead, a craving to prove himself in the game draws him back to St James' Park as part of Shearer's management triumvirate - with unfortunate consequences. Written with brutal candour, dark humour and consummate style, The Boy on the Shed is a riveting and moving account of a life less ordinary.

*** SHORTLISTED FOR THE TELEGRAPH'S 2021 SPORTS BOOK AWARDS - INTERNATIONAL AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF THE YEAR 'One of the best football books I've read for a very long time.' - Sam Pilger, FourFourTwo Magazine 'An extraordinary, granular depiction of a young football star's life.' - The Daily Mail 'An excellent read with some incredible stories.' - TalkSPORT Breakfast Show Known as 'Lord Bendtner' to his fans and haters alike, Nicklas Bendtner has been lauded for his football skills at super clubs like Arsenal and Juventus. But his career has been haunted by his rocky behaviour and tendency to self-sabotage. In this disarmingly honest memoir, Bendtner talks about the darker side of football and his own difficult fall from grace; about what it's like to have so much promise that you lose touch with reality altogether. It's is about growing up in a working-class neighbourhood and fighting to reach the top in the worlds' toughest league. It's about friendship, rivalry, and the constant quest for an adrenaline kick. It's about money and what happens when you give a troubled, overconfident teen millions to spend. It's about an industry that has lost sight of what really matters. A modern footballing fable, it's a story of decline, temper, talent, great football and ultimately the tragedy of unfulfilled potential. Not since the days of Paul McGrath's Back From The Brink have we seen such honesty on the page of a footballer's memoir. Fans of Paul Merson, George Best and Tony Adam's autobiographies will also find pure fascination here in a story that has gripped international readers...

Founded in 1904 by representatives of the sporting organisations of six European nations then expanding into the Americas, Asia and Africa FIFA has developed to become one of the most high profile and lucrative businesses in the global consumer and cultural industry. Recent years however have been characterised by a series of crises leaving the organisation open to critique and exposure, and creating a soap operatic narrative of increasing interest to the global media.
In this critical new account of one of the world s most important sporting institutions, Professor Alan Tomlinson investigates the history of FIFA and the underlying political dynamics characterising its growth. The book explores the influence of the men who have led FIFA, the emergence of the World Cup as FIFA s exclusive product, FIFA s relationships with other federations and associations, the crises that have shaped its recent history, and the issues and challenges that are likely to shape its future. Particular focus is given to selected moments in the post- Havelange administration and the way in which FIFA, its current president Joseph Blatter and some key close colleagues have responded to and survived successive scandals. The book provides a foundation for understanding the growth and development of what is widely accepted as the world s most popular sport; sheds light on the shifting politics of nationalism in the post-colonial period; and reveals the opportunistic forms of personal aggrandizement shaping an increasingly media-influenced and globalizing world in which international sport was both a harbinger and an early reflection of these trends and forces.

Fascinating and provocative, this is essential reading for anybody with an interest in soccer, sport and society, sports governance, or global organisations.
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The cult SkySports Soccer Saturday anchorman delivers a Sunday Times bestseller - a volley of entertaining and informative anecdotes about life in front of the videprinter. Jeff Stelling is a legend amongst football fans. To the millions unable to get to their teams' games on Saturday afternoons, the next best thing is undoubtedly the pleasurable company of Jeff and the Sky Sports videprinter for a cosy marathon on the sofa. If someone's got to reveal that your beloved team have just gone 3-0 down away from home and had a man sent off, it's best if it's consummate professional Jeff who breaks the news to you. Avid Hartlepool fan Jeff knows our pain and shares our joy...but mostly he knows our pain. The long-time host of SkySports' iconic Soccer Saturday show has become a cult figure, universally admired for his encyclopaedic knowledge of the game, his genuine and unlimited enthusiasm for ALL levels of football, and his wicked sense of humour which makes the six-hour long show simply whiz by. Jellyman's Thrown a Wobbly is a deliciously chaotic, hugely entertaining, anecdote-ridden, humorous taste of life in the Soccer Saturday studio. Hear what Jeff has to say about some of the show's legendary pundits over the years - ex-players such as George Best, Rodney Marsh, Chris Kamara, Charlie Nicholas and Matt Le Tissier. Be a fly on the wall of the hotel bar on Friday nights as Jeff and his guests gather for a natter and few drinks. Get the inside track on all those great one-liners: * "Mansfield Town's Gareth Jellyman has been shown the red card for dissent. Looks like Jellyman's thrown a wobbly." * "Darlington's equaliser has been scored by Guyain Ndumbu-Nsungu. Very much a case of local boy makes good." (He's from Congo.) * "They'll be dancing in the streets of Total Network Solutions tonight." * "James Brown's grabbed a second for Hartlepool. I feel good!" Jellyman's Thrown a Wobbly goes a long way to demonstrate how a six-hour long, studio-based show with no live action pictures and featuring men gazing into TV monitors which the viewer can't see, can hold a huge audience enthralled every Saturday afternoon between August and May.

Norwich City On This Day revisits all the most magical and memorable moments from the Canaries' rollercoaster past, mixing in a maelstrom of quirky anecdotes and legendary characters to produce an irresistibly dippable diary - with an entry for every day of the year. From the club's formation in 1902 to the Premier League era, City fans have witnessed promotions and relegations, European adventures and Cup runs, hard times and hard-fought local derbies - all featured here. Timeless greats such as Duncan Forbes and Martin Peters, Ron Ashman, Kevin Keelan, Darren Huckerby and Mark Bowen all loom larger than life. Revisit 9th February 1980, when Justin Fashanu volleyed home the Goal of the Season against champions Liverpool. 18th March 1959: an FA Cup semi for the Third Division giantkillers of Man U and Spurs. Or 20th October 1993: City become the first and only British team to win away at Bayern Munich.

Jimmy Greaves was England's most prodigious goalscorer of the 1950s and 1960s. In his autobiography, Greavsie, he writes that the 1959/60 English football season was the final year of football's age of innocence. He saw the open, attacking football of the 1950s give way to a much more defensively minded game. It was an era which also saw the advent of the tracksuit manager and specialist coaches. An End of Innocence examines English football in the 1950s and a transition through the 1960s; looking at the international and domestic landscape, through the lens of a selection of teams. It considers different managerial styles, team formations, coaching and training methods, and the developments in tactics, diet and health care; as well as a significant change in footballers' lifestyles, that came after the abolition of the maximum wage in 1961. Set against a backdrop of social and political change, An End of Innocence reflects a changing nation and a game that was evolving, and the lasting impact that has had upon English football, its players and supporters.

Wayne Rooney, England's record goal scorer, is one of the most feared and respected strikers to have graced the Premier League in the last decade. He is certainly its most famous icon, appearing on the front pages of the newspapers nearly as often as on the back. Wayne started his glittering career as a teenage wonder at Everton, the club he had staunchly supported as a boy. A self-confessed and fiercely passionate blue-blood, Rooney was raised in Croxteth, a product of the rough district just outside the shadow of Goodison Park. After a white-hot start, the teenager joined regional rivals, Manchester United, in a seismic transfer and, in his deeply successful time at Old Trafford, won sixteen major honours, played in three World Cups, married his childhood sweetheart and began a young family, throwing off his reputation as the gifted 'wild-child' of English football. Yet, in the summer of 2017, the prodigal son returned to his first club, providing Evertonians with a sense of pride and football fans everywhere with a classic narrative. His warm reception made it clear that Rooney still has a special place in the hearts of Toffees fans, and the saga embodies the pride and passion that has propelled the Premier League to become the most exciting - and profitable - in the world. Told by veteran football writer Ian MacLeay, this is the definitive story of Rooney's explosive, emotive and turbulent return to Everton Football Club, and the historic season which followed.

Rochdale AFC had occupied the fourth tier of English football for so long that the division was unofficially named after them. In 2006, manager Keith Hill took charge and transformed the unfashionable, cash-strapped club into a side known for flowing football and overachievement. But what about the other Rochdale bosses? Those who sought to rid The Dale of its tiresome fourth-tier anchor? The Rochdale Division is told by the managers and players, who reveal the struggles and joys of life at an out-of-step club in the modern football age. It features managers such as Hill himself, Mick Docherty, Graham Barrow, Paul Simpson, Steve Parkin, Steve Eyre and John Coleman, plus the players they led. The book shares insights from cultured centre-half Alan Reeves, Rochdale's sons Craig Dawson and Matt Gilks, prolific strikers Rickie Lambert and Adam Le Fondre, fleet-footed Will Buckley and Paddy McCourt, plus powerhouse Glenn Murray. Alongside them are cult heroes Steve Whitehall, Shaun Reid, Gary Jones, Calvin Andrew and Ian Henderson.

A vivid and lively account of the personal and professional life of the much-admired Liverpool manager who led his team to an astounding victory in the Champions League, the pinnacle of European football.

There are few football clubs in the world that attract as much interest in the modern game as Chelsea. Whether it is the latest observations from former coach Maurizio Sarri, his successor Frank Lampard, big-money transfer targets, the style of play or results in Europe, everybody thinks they know what's happening – or at least has an opinion on it. The arrival in 2003 of Russian billionaire tycoon Roman Abramovich as owner turned a glamorous club with a long history of under-achievement, into an international powerhouse. After one championship in 99 years, the Blues have, in a dozen years, won five Premier League titles, plus the UEFA Champions League, two UEFA Europa League titles, five FA Cups and three Football League Cups. The club always was a magnet for well-known names – vaudeville legend George Robey played for the Pensioners in the club's earliest days – and, in the modern era, Stamford Bridge has become home to a dazzling array of world stars. From Ron 'Chopper' Harris and Ken Bates through Ruud Gullit, Roberto Di Matteo and Glenn Hoddle to Jose Mourinho, John Terry, Zola, Diego Costa and Eden Hazard, there is no lack of characters to draw on for quotes.

The true and remarkable story of the English double agent who ended up playing for Spartak Moscow. Like many working class children growing up in the war, the young Jim Riordan would fantasise his way out of his devastated surroundings with dreams of Wembley and FA Cup glory for his local team, Portsmouth FC. Spartak Moscow, the team he would end up playing for, wasn't even on his radar. Taught Russian and trained as a spy in the same institution that nurtured the likes of Alan Bennett and Michael Frayn, he was posted to Berlin as part of his National Service to listen in on Soviet military communiques. But, unbeknownst to his seniors, he began mixing with Russian servicemen, mostly through informal kick-abouts, and the passion of these idealistic young men would cultivate his interest in Russian culture, and especially communism, until it blossomed into a full-grown love affair. From the shambolic outfit that was the British Communist Party in the 1950s, to Cold War Moscow at its coldest, to his friendship with the Cambridge Five and meetings with Brezhnev and Gregarin, and his eventual debut in front of 50,000 Spartak fans at the Lenin Stadium, 'Comrade Jim' is the remarkable true story of the only Englishman to have played - and survived - Russian league football, told with grace, humour and lashings of vodka. An incredible journey of an ordinary man living through extraordinary times.

Uruguay remains a curious case in world football. Early Olympic and World Cup triumphs made it the game's first global power, and the small country has punched above its weight ever since. But the story behind its success is untold. In this first English-language history of Uruguayan football, Martin da Cruz maps the game's journey from exclusive British pastime to Uruguayan national passion, bringing to life the teams, players and personalities who helped create one of the world's most intense sporting cultures. From the start, football was intimately tied to Uruguay's national story. Wedged between giants Argentina and Brazil and lacking a cohesive national identity, Uruguay used the game to create unified and educated citizens, to put an end to civil war and become an advanced social democracy. Yet football also drove counter-narratives of class and race, challenging Uruguay's self-identification as a peaceful, 'white' nation. From Beauty to Duty is the story of a little country made big.

Aberdeen FC On This Day revisits all the most magical and memorable moments from the Dons' distinguished past, mixing in a maelstrom of quirky anecdotes and legendary characters to produce an irresistibly dippable diary of Reds history - with an entry for every day of the year. From the club's Edwardian formation through to the SPL era, the Pittodrie faithful have witnessed Scottish League, Cup and League Cup triumphs, unforgettable European nights and American summers - all featured here. All-time greats including Willie Miller and Jim Leighton, Joe Harper, Gordon Strachan and Lachlan McMillan(!) all loom larger than life. Revisit 11 April 1970: The Dons claim their second Scottish Cup with a shock 3-1 win over Celtic. 18 November 1931: 'The Great Mystery' betting scandal sees five first-teamers axed. Or 11 May 1983: The European Cup Winners' Cup is won in rainy Gothenburg with a sensational 2-1 victory over Real Madrid.

FULLY UPDATED WITH JOSE MOURINHO'S SENSATIONAL RETURN TO CHELSEA When Jose Mourinho realised as a teenager that he was never going to be a great player, he decided he was going to become the best coach in the world. From translator and assistant to Sir Bobby Robson at Barcelona to multiple league and Champions League-winning manager at Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and now Chelsea once again, Jose Mourinho's ascent has been rapid. FURTHER ANATOMY OF A WINNER is the definitive account of the life and psychology of one of the greatest football managers of all time.

The outspoken anonymous author is back with the ultimate book to challenge conventional footballing wisdom. With his trademark wit, intelligence and candour, the Secret Footballer will guide you through formations, tactics, mind games and everything else you need to know about what it takes to be a pro. Includes: in-depth analysis of modern tactics; insight into the psychology of players on and off the pitch; tips on nutrition and fitness; how to deal with fans (including what it's like to play in each Premier League ground in England); a guide to modern footballing language; and a remarkable expose of the finances involved in the commercial game. If you want to know how to stop a player like Cristiano Ronaldo, or why exactly Rooney is worth GBP300,000 a week, or who the greatest player of all time is, you will find it all here. Fully illustrated with line drawings showing the technical aspects of the game, this will be the perfect Christmas gift for aspiring football stars and armchair pundits alike.

'Striking . . . extraordinarily ambitious' JONATHAN WILSON, NEW STATESMAN 'A compelling account of how football became a force in Latin America with an impact far beyond the pitch, helping forge national identity and fuelling regional rivalries' INDEPENDENT !Golazo! recounts the story of Latin American football: the extravagantly talented players; pistol-toting referees; bloody coup d'etats; breathtaking goals; invidious conspiracies; strikers with matinee idol looks and a taste for tango dancers; alcoholism; suicide and some of the most exhilarating teams ever to take the field. And yet it is gripping social history. Andreas Campomar shows how the sport that started as the eccentric pastime of a few expat cricket players has become a defining force, the architect of national identity and a reflection of the region's soul. Including not only the well-known heroes of 'the beautiful game', but also the numerous forgotten gems of Latin American football, !Golazo! is the extraordinary tale of how football came to define a continent.