This book assesses the transformation of football fan culture from a gender perspective. Referring to the notions of homosociality, hegemonic masculinity and performative perspectives on gender and fandom, it investigates the processes of women entering the world of football fandom. Drawing on multidimensional qualitative and quantitative research, the book analyses different aspects of female fandom, such as women's socialisation to be a fan, building their sense of fan identity, ways of performing fandom, and gender. Also, it explores the response of male fans by shedding light on the sense-making process of a growing number of female fans in the stands and its consequences for prevailingly male football culture. This study stands out for its richness and diversity of empirical material used in order to make a significant contribution to our understanding of social dynamics related to the changing nature of female football fandom. The book is fascinating reading for researchers and students in a broad range of areas, including gender studies, sociology of sport, football, women's studies and Central Eastern European studies. It is also a valuable resource for scholars, and football and club authorities who have an interest in understanding the development of female football fandom and its impact on the male fandom community.

Rise Together: Coventry City Under Mark Robins examines the rebirth of Coventry City FC from 2017 to 2020. Having sunk to the depths of English football's lowest professional division, the Sky Blues were a million miles from the FA Cup-winning heyday of 1987 and the glitz and glamour of Premier League football. After a decade of decline, a constant churn of managers, coaches and players, the arrival of Mark Robins for a second spell in charge would end all that. Backed by a fanbase desperate for success, winning the 2017 Football League Trophy was just the beginning. Robins would mould Coventry City into a side capable of something few at the club had achieved before - success. That first trophy at Wembley would be followed by two more - victory in the 2018 League Two play-off final, then the League One title in 2020. With off-the-field issues continuing to dog the club, including a second move out of Coventry, the story of Rise Together is one that every football fan will appreciate.

'Steeped in glory, loved by players for his light touch, he is probably the most coveted coach in the world.' - Financial Times 'a treasury of anecdote and insight' - The Guardian 'Quiet Leadership contains page upon page of insight into his methods from Cristiano Ronaldo, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, John Terry and more'. - Sport Magazine Carlo Ancelotti is one of the greatest managers of all time, with five Champions League titles to his name. Yet his approach could not be further from the aggressive theatricals favoured by many of his rivals. His understated style has earned him the fierce loyalty of players like David Beckham, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Cristiano Ronaldo. In Quiet Leadership, Ancelotti reveals the full, riveting story of his managerial career - his methods, mentors, mistakes and triumphs - and takes us inside the dressing room to trace the characters, challenges and decisions that have shaped him. The result is both a scintillating memoir and a rare insight into the business of leadership.

A Director's Tale is the story of Burnley Football Club in the early 1980s, a time of short-lived success and then turmoil. With special access to the diaries of director Derek Gill, Dave Thomas brings you the unvarnished inside story, revealing what went on behind the scenes amid conflict with chairman John Jackson and manager John Bond. These were torrid times involving, at first, a surprise promotion, then a relegation, then John Bond's departure and another relegation. This was a group of men who were all competent and professional in their own fields - Jackson was a barrister, Gill an accountant - but they became a toxic mix in the boardroom. The Bond season has gone into the Turf Moor history books as one of the most damaging. His name is much derided in Burnley today, but he was only a part of a bigger problem. The Gill diaries provide a unique opportunity to see - warts and all - the workings and machinations of boardroom politics. This is a story of failure and acrimony.

'Football matters, as poetry does to some people and alcohol does to others...Football is inherent in the people...There is more eccentricity in deliberately disregarding it than in devoting a life to it. The way we play the game, organize it and reward it reflects the kind of community we are' Written just two years after England's '66 triumph when the national game was at its zenith, Arthur Hopcraft's The Football Man is repeatedly quoted as the best book ever written about the sport. This definitive, magisterial study of football and society profiles includes interviews with all-time greats like Bobby Charlton, George Best, Alf Ramsay, Stanley Matthews, Matt Busby and Nat Lofthouse. It is a snapshot of a pivotal era in sporting history; changes and decisions were made in the sixties that would create the game we know today. For many who are disenchanted with the modern game - the grip of businesses and corporations, the dominance of advertising, the extortionate ticket prices and inaccessible matches, the fickleness of teenage millionaires - The Football Man takes the reader back to the heart and soul of the national game when pitches were muddy and the players were footballers not brands. Voted in May 2005 as one of Observer's top sports books of all time, this is a long-awaited reissue of the classic football 'bible'. 'Masterpiece among sports books' Guardian 'It remains one of my favourite football reads' Graham Taylor

Real Madrid On This Day revisits the most magical and memorable moments from the club's glorious past, mixing in a maelstrom of anecdotes and characters to produce an irresistibly dippable diary of one of the world's greatest football institutions - with an entry for every day of the year. From its foundation to the golden era of Di Stefano and Puskas, through the 'hippy years' to their ups and downs on the path to European Cup domination, the modern embodiment of Madridismo, the hard-fought El Clasico derbies against Barcelona and the Galacticos era - it's all here. Revisit 24 July 2000 when Luis Figo infamously joined the club from Barcelona, 4 January 1955 when the stadium changed its name in honour of club president Santiago Bernabeu, and 19 June 1943 when they annihilated Barcelona 11-1 in a Spanish Cup semi-final. With a treasure trove of club history, trivia and facts, this book is a 'must' for all Real Madrid fans.

***** Shortlisted for International Autobiography of the Year in the Telegraph Sports Book Awards 2021 WINNER OF 2019 DANISH SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR 'Brutally candid.' - The Guardian 'An extraordinary, granular depiction of a young football star's life.' - The Daily Mail 'One of the best books I've read about being a Premier League star.' - Piers Morgan 'An excellent read with some incredible stories.' - TalkSPORT Breakfast Show 'One of the best football books I've read for a very long time.' - Sam Pilger, FourFourTwo Magazine 'Explosive.' - The Mirror 'Candid and brilliant.' - Nick Wright, Sky Sports 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 was haunted by his rocky behaviour and tendency to self-sabotage. Very much a fable of the modern game, Bendtner talks with disarming honesty 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 what happens when you give a troubled, overconfident teen millions to spend. It's about fighting to reach the top in the worlds' toughest league but having no respect for hierarchy. It's about friendship, rivalry, and the constant quest for an adrenaline kick. It's about money - having too much of it - and 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...

Few footballers in history have commanded as much media attention as David Beckham. From the moment he announced himself to the world with a breathtaking goal from the halfway line against Wimbledon in 1996, he became public property. Over the next two years, as he embarked on a relationship with a Spice Girl and was sent off in a crucial World Cup game for England, he was loved and loathed in equal measure. The restoration of brand Beckham saw him installed as England captain and almost universally loved by the time he blazed a trail across the globe with stops in Madrid, Los Angeles, Milan and Paris. But what about the player behind the celebrity? What about the boy born to play for Manchester United - the midfielder who exemplified the idea that dedication and hard work can pay off? Isn't it time he was celebrated too? Drawing on exclusive interviews with former Beckham team-mates, acclaimed footballer writer Wayne Barton explores Beckham's contribution as one of the greatest players of his generation.

Updated with a new chapter, the story of Dalglish's epic love affair with Liverpool traces the highs and lows, the characters, the laughter, the triumphs, and the tears Kenny Dalglish's relationship with the Liverpool Football Club is one of the great love stories of sports. For football fans, this revealing book about one of the game's greatest players is a must, while for those fascinated by how a very private man suffered after very publicly supporting his community, Dalglish's emotional story makes compelling reading. From the moment he first set foot in the Anfield dressing room nervously asking for autographs while having a trial at the club, Dalglish felt a passion for Liverpool stir within him. After joining from Celtic in 1977, the supremely gifted striker was embraced by Liverpool fans, and the Kop's adoration of King Kenny has never ebbed--every game, they still sing his name. Fans have never forgotten how Dalglish held the club together through two tragedies, the first at the Heysel stadium in Brussels in 1985 and then at Hillsborough in 1989. Here, Dalglish explores both disasters at length and in emotional detail. Eventually, for the sake of his health and his family, Dalglish resigned and Liverpool has not won the title since. Although Dalglish walked alone, away from Anfield, in his heart he never really left and has now finally returned, playing a pivotal role in this turbulent period in the club's history.

Sir Alex Ferguson was one of the greatest managers to grace the stadiums of the world. He announced his retirement as manager of Manchester United in 2013 after 27 years in the role. He went out in a blaze of glory, with United winning the Premier League for the 13th time and he is widely considered to be the greatest manager in the history of English football. A constant element has been the quality of Alex Ferguson's league-winning squads and United's run of success, which included winning the Champions League twice in 1999 and 2008. This lavishly illustrated hardback book charts the enormous success of the club during Sir Alex Ferguson's 27-year reign at Manchester United with profiles of all the big matches and players that guided the Club to its myriad of trophies.

*** 'Essential reading for anyone wanting to achieve their dreams. Liv is an inspiration.' - Grant Cardone, New York Times bestselling author 'Liv's extraordinary ability and passion is admirable. A winning read.' - Gary Lineker In The Way To Win, Freestyle Football World Champion and TikTok sensation Liv Cooke opens up about her journey to becoming the best freestyler in the world. Drawing from experience Liv shares an easy-to-follow 10-step guide to achieving your dream - from correctly setting out your goals and forming good habits to handling nerves and maintaining success. With a positive attitude and holistic approach to productivity, Liv explores how you can find inspiration in your life... and of course, provides an insight into how she achieved incredible success at such a young age. The Way To Win is the ultimate guide to reaching the top of any industry and becoming your best self.

Imagine if your club, the love of your life, was about to play its last ever game. This is the story of the Heart of Midlothian - Edinburgh's oldest football club first formed in 1874 - and its heroic 8000 fans, or Jambos as they're affectionately known, who in 2014 donated their own money to help save Hearts from ruin. Ian Murray chronicles how in 2014 after a 13 month turmoil for fans and a media firestorm, Heart of Midlothian F.C. was finally saved from liquidation. Murray's new title commemorates Hearts fans and their sheer determination - unprecedented in footballing history - to rescue their beloved club from disaster and raise it up to the top of Scottish football.

West Ham United: From East End Family to Globalised Fandom is the story of the evolution of West Ham. It charts how a works football team was transformed into a club that represented east London's working classes, only to be transformed again in the late 20th and early 21st centuries into a global brand with supporters in every habitable place on Earth. Starting as the Thames Ironworks Ltd works team, they changed their name to West Ham United in 1900, shortly before moving to the Boleyn Ground in Upton Park. For nearly a century they were supported by local working-class men from across the East End of London until a series of economic, social, cultural, geographical and technological changes brought the club a global fanbase. Through surveying West Ham United fan groups across the world, this book attempts to explain this phenomenon and to get a sense of what the club means to those who originally came from the East End, as well as to those who have no biographical connection to the area.

Discover everything about football - from the laws and tactics to the science and art of the "beautiful game". With profiles of more than 65 of the world's best footballing nations, and the biggest names in club football and other key competitions, this is the ultimate visual guide to the world's greatest sport. Inside the pages of this comprehensive and highly illustrated guide to football, you'll find: - A fresh graphic style that illustrates everything from beach football to block tackles - Stats and fact boxes that profile players, managers, fans, football trivia, national teams, and clubs - Special features that highlight great football matches, stadiums, and football culture - "Top 5" boxes that provide an alternative look at the best and worst of the game It's a GOAL with The Football Book! From the history of football and the story behind the game to the football World Cup and the delayed Euro 2020 championships, this sports book reveals a fascinating story page after page. Keen player, lifelong club supporter, or armchair football manager? It is the perfect book for die-hard football fans - old or new. The book's eye-catching, step-by-step artwork and jargon-free text profiles everything football-related from players' roles, equipment, team formations, strategies, and individual football skills. Even more so, maps, quotes, and statistics give you all the key facts on national teams, famous club sides, and iconic football players, as well as the greatest competitions around the world and of all time.

Football Biomechanics explores the latest knowledge of this core discipline in sport science across all codes of the sport. Encompassing a variety of styles, including original scientific studies, syntheses of the latest research, and position statements, the text offers readers the most up-to-date and comprehensive reference of the underlying mechanics of high-level football performance. The book is divided into five parts, covering fundamental football actions, the biomechanics of direct free kicks, footwear, biomechanical considerations in skill acquisition and training, and artificial turf. It bridges the gap between theory and practice in a variety of key areas such as: ball kicking mechanics (in soccer and other football codes) ball impact dynamics aerodynamics of ball flight special techniques (such as the 'knuckle ball shot') by world-famous players the efficacy and development of footwear biomechanical and motor performance differences between female and male soccer players artificial turf from an injury and a performance perspective. Made up of contributions from leading experts from around the world, Football Biomechanics is a vital resource for researchers and practitioners working in all football codes, and useful applied reading for any sport science student with an interest in football.

The rapid global growth of the sport industry has prompted the need for a more commercial approach to the management of sport clubs. This book is the first study of its kind to focus on the management of professional football clubs, providing a real-world insight into management principles and their practical application. The international commercialisation of football has led to a fundamental transformation of the industry's management practices, given the financial rewards of success and the high price of failure. This book presents a critical examination of this transformation, questioning why clubs are increasingly adopting management strategies from other industries. Each chapter analyses the role played by a key leadership figure within a club, such as the owner, chief executive officer (CEO), chief financial officer (CFO), chief operating officer (COO), director of football (DoF), and head coach. Full of exclusive interviews, case studies and examples of best practice, this book sheds new light on the challenges of working in this extraordinarily high-pressure environment. Football Club Management: Insights from the Field is fascinating reading for all those working in or studying the management, marketing or administration of football.

In this unique book, one of football's greatest cult players reflects on the travails of the sport and draws upon his own experience to offer an honest assessment on one of its final remaining taboos: mental health. The most difficult position in football? Being a goalkeeper. That's what they say, right? You must be mad to stand between those posts and bat away shots and crosses all game long. Neville Southall should know. He was the goalkeeper for one of the best teams of the 1980s and became an icon of the game during his 20-year career between the sticks. But what did it take to prepare himself mentally for the difficulties of the position? How did he dig so deep on the biggest occasions and in the highest-pressured moments? What scars were left at the end of his long career - a tenure that saw the highs of winning trophies, but also the lows of losing games, making mistakes and feeling the full weight of club and country on your shoulders. And how has he used his post-playing career to campaign for a better future for the next generation? In this unique book, one of football's greatest cult players reflects on the travails of the modern game, how some of society's problems are reflected within it and draws upon his own experience to tackle one of its final remaining taboos: mental health. On fear of failure, confidence, sexuality and homophobia, suicide, social media and many other talking points - Neville doesn't hold back on the biggest subjects and gets stuck in to some of the most important topics surrounding the beautiful game.

Kylian Mbappe: The Ultimate Fan Book takes you into the young French superstar's world like no other book. Just to look at the records Kylian has broken, equalled or come close to breaking shows just what a special star he is. When he breaks Thierry Henry's record, or matches Pele, you realise he is moving in exalted company. When the FIFA World Cup 2018 ended, Kylian was still five months short of his 20th birthday and he had a resume and medal/honours collection that would be coveted by successful players in their 30s. Written in a lively, buzzing style and filled with fun features, fantastic photographs and enlightening quotes, Kylian Mbappe: The Ultimate Fan Book celebrates his greatest moments and most famous goals, including the goals which have made him one of the world's most watchable superstars.

'If you were expecting to read Razor's views on politics then you're going to be disappointed. Anybody who wants to read that needs help! This is yours truly talking about some of the experiences that have helped to create the absolute legend that is moi. Some of the tales involve a bit of mischief and most involve a drink or two. Most importantly, though, they're all a bit of a laugh so I'd settle down and have yourself a nice little read' The two things Razor Ruddock can't resist in life are a pint and a dare. That and seventeen years as a professional footballer under his belt means he's got a story or two to tell. Chickening out of a fight with Eric Cantona, robbing Alan Shearer's minibar, cinema trips with Gazza, becoming mates with Ian Wright - Razor has seen and done it all. Packed full of hilarious anecdotes, Razor gives us his take on the beautiful game, sharing his tactics (good banter is a defender's duty), red mist (and red cards) on the pitch, run-ins with the FA and his theory as to why Ingerland never do as well as we'd like, as well as his best ever goal and the greatest night of his sporting life. Razor also lifts the lid on his bad reputation and reveals his regrets, his heroes, his greatest fears (notably upsetting the missus) and what it takes to make Britain's hardest footballer cry. Poignantly, he shares his views on the importance of family and his concerns over footballers' mental health. And the biggest surprise of all: that he was a shy and retiring young lad (and that his love of swearing comes from his mum). Cameo appearances include: Bobby Robson, Diego Maradona, Eric Cantona, Dennis Bergkamp, Harry Redknapp, David Beckham, Alan Shearer, Gazza, Jimmy Case, Phil 'The Power' Taylor, Robbie Williams and Nelson Mandela ('Nelse'). With his trademark sense of humour and foot-in-mouth disease, The World According to Razor is like having a pint down the pub with Razor himself.

What is talent? How do you get the best out of yourself? What are the secrets of leadership? In Edge, Ben Lyttleton gets unprecedented access to some of the world's top football clubs to discover their innovative methods for developing talent - and reveals how we can use them in our everyday lives. Elite teams now look for an edge by improving the intangible skills of their players `above the shoulder'. Liverpool's approach to talent will make you more creative. Chelsea's culture will improve your resilience. Didier Deschamps will improve your leadership skills. Xavi Hernandez will help you make better decisions. But how? Football is the most hot-housed, intense, financially profitable talent factory on the planet. It's time we woke up to the lessons it can provide. We all want to have an edge. This is your chance to find one...

The study of football fandom is a fast-growing area of research in the sociology of sport. The first work of its kind, this book explores football fan activism and its impact on contemporary football culture in England, Italy and the Czech Republic. Presenting a comparative study of fan activism in national and transnational contexts, it explores the characteristics of each country's football fan culture as well as the varying and at times volatile dynamics between fans, authorities and the mass media. Its chapters address key themes and issues including: fans' reactions to policing and security measures in football stadiums; the socio-cultural significance of symbols and rituals for fans at football games; and fans' critical engagement with football club ownership and management. Offering original insights into the power of fan activism to influence social change, this book has wider implications for understanding social movements in other cultural and political spheres beyond Europe. Football Fans, Activism and Social Change is fascinating reading for all students, scholars and football fans with an interest in sport studies, fan culture, politics and society.