The first edition of The Price of Football quickly established itself as the go-to guide to understanding football club finance for the serious fan. Kieran Maguire, one of the UK's top football finance analysts, shows how professional clubs operate as businesses and explains, in non-technical language, how to read, understand and interrogate club accounts. As a clear-headed analysis and presentation of the financial imperatives and challenges facing football clubs across the English and Scottish Leagues, it has become a welcome resource not only for students of the industry, but by a wider constituency of supporters looking to understand their club's latest transfer deal, or season ticket price. This fully revised and updated edition includes analysis of the most recent club accounts, the latest legal rulings on club affairs, as well as the impact of Covid-19 on the game's finances.

***** THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER AND BBC RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK "Felix White's beautifully, elegantly and passionately written book reminds me why I love cricket so much. And reading, come to that." - Stephen Fry "The love of cricket is both communal and individual. Felix has a wonderful knack of evoking both in a book full of life, joy and resilience." - Gideon Haigh "Life beyond sport, love after loss, a soulful portrait of how play stops the rain." - Cariad Lloyd "This is an extraordinary first book ... funny, tragic, candid and heartfelt; it would be remarkable if he ever wrote a better one." - Wisden Almanack 2022 Felix White, for reasons often beyond him, has always been deeply in love with cricket. His passion for the game is at the fore on the BBC 's number one cricket podcast and 5Live show, Tailenders, which he co-presents with Greg James and Jimmy Anderson. It's Always Summer Somewhere is his funny, heartbreaking and endlessly engaging love letter to the game. Felix takes us through his life growing up in South West London and describes how his story is forever punctuated and given meaning by cricket. Through his own exploits as a slow left arm spinner of 'lovely loopy stuff', to the tragic illness of his mother, life with The Maccabees and his cricket redemption, Felix touches on both the comedic and the tragic in equal measure. Throughout, there's the ever-present roller coaster of following the England cricket team. The exploits of Tufnell (another bowler of 'lovely loopy stuff'), Atherton, Hussain et al, are given extra import through the eyes of a cricket-obsessed youth. Felix meets them at each signposted moment to find out what was really behind those moments that gave cricket fans everywhere sporting memories that would last forever, sending the book into an exploration of grief, transgenerational displacement and how the people we've known and things we've loved culminate and take expression in our lives. It's Always Summer Somewhere is an incredibly honest detail of a life lived with cricket. It offers a sense of genuine empathy and understanding not just with cricket fans, but sports and music fans across the world, in articulating our reasons for pouring so much meaning into something that we simply cannot control. Culminating in the heart-stopping World Cup Final in 2019, the book finally answers that question fans have so often asked... what is it about this game?

Seventeen Manchester United legends come together to tell the stories behind their favourite ever games for the club - enabling Red Devils fans of all ages to relive these magic moments through the eyes and emotions of the men who were there, playing their hearts out for the red shirt...Lee Martin recalls the 1990 FA Cup Final; hat-trick hero Alex Dawson describes the eight-goal semi-final thriller which landed United in the Cup Final so soon after the Munich air disaster. Ever the crowd pleaser, Dwight Yorke waxes lyrical on winning the Treble that unforgettable night in Barcelona - while Gary Pallister basks in the memory of sinking Liverpool at Anfield as United closed in on the 1997 Premier League title. Old Trafford greats Bryan Robson, Martin Buchan and Paul Scholes also turn in characteristic star performances, winding back the clock to relive treasured memories of the Match of Their Lives for United.

Beginning with the Cleveland Indians' hard luck during World War II, this thrilling history follows the team through its historic role in racial integration and its legendary postwar comeback. Rich with player photographs and stories, this book is sure to excite American history buffs and baseball fans alike. In early 1942, baseball team owners across the country scrambled to assemble makeshift rosters from the remaining ballplayers who had not left the sport for the armed forces. The Cleveland Indians suffered a tremendous loss when star pitcher Bob Feller became the first Major Leaguer to enlist, taking his twenty-plus wins per year with him. To make matters worse, the Indians' new player-manager, Lou Boudreau, had no coaching or managing experience. The resulting team was mediocre, and players struggled to keep up morale. Feller's return in late 1945 sparked a spectacular comeback. A year later Bill Veeck bought the franchise and, over the next two years, signed the first American League players to break the color barrier: Larry Doby and Satchel Paige. The 1948 season ended with the Indians and Boston Red Sox tied, resulting in the American League's first playoff game. Thanks in part to rookie Gene Bearden's outstanding pitching, the Indians went on to beat the National League's Boston Braves for their second World Series title.

This is the first book on the all-star championship black baseball team, the Page Fence Giants, who graced the diamond in the 1890s. The team was formed through a unique business partnership between black and white baseball boosters, with the support of an Adrian, Michigan fencing company. This book examines how a dynamic baseball team was founded in a small Michigan community and the cultural challenges the players, owners and boosters encountered during the team's successful four-year run. This book is a much broader than simple game recaps, but rather an examination of our country as it stood at the close of the 19th Century. The era's expanding Jim Crow sentiment blocked the Giants' best players from the reaching the major leagues. Despite the societal roadblock, one of the Giants has been selected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and he was nowhere near their best player. This book's goal is to tell a fascinating tale about long ignored star ball players on a long-ignored team, whose story offered a glimpse of American at a time when baseball integration was phased out until the debut of Jackie Robinson in 1947.

Berwick Rangers, England's only expatriate football club, have been ploughing a lone furrow in the Scottish league for more than a century. In The Lone Rangers, journalist and lifelong Berwick fan Tom Maxwell explores the confused national identity of Berwick-upon-Tweed and its unique football team - a side for whom every fixture is an international. With a foreword by Jim Jefferies and featuring exclusive interviews with a host of Berwick legends, as well as former international stars such as Gary Lineker, Ally McCoist and Trevor Steven, The Lone Rangers is one of a kind.

How much do you really know about Spurs? Put your knowledge to the test with this bumper book of brainteaser quizzes and fascinating facts, beautifully illustrated by one of the world's leading sports artists. It's packed with trivia on all the great Lilywhites sides and players - from goal-getter Greaves to goal-king Kane, from the pioneering double winners of the 1960s to the Champions League finalists of 2019 - providing hours of highly dippable fun and entertainment. Who scored five goals in one game for England, three of them in just over three minutes, a record that stood for 62 years as the fastest hat-trick in international history? In which 1981 movie did Ossie Ardiles appear alongside Sylvester Stallone? Whose gold medal at the 2018 Asian Games earned him exemption from military service? What was the title of the 1987 single by Glenn Hoddle and Chris Waddle that reached number 12 in the UK charts? Which striker is nicknamed 'Coco'? Trivquiz Tottenham Hotspur holds the answers to all these questions and hundreds more.

Perhaps even more than the Boston Red Sox, the New England Patriots are the team of the entire northeast from Rhode Island to Canada. Here, sports historian Robert W. Cohen ranks the 50 best players to ever take the field for the Patriots. Who can forget Wes Welker, Troy Brown, Jim Nance, Ted Bruschi, and Tom Brady. They're all here in this fascinating collection of bios, stats, quotes from opposing players and former teammates, photographs, and recaps of memorable performances and seasons. This book is a must-read not only for Patriots fans, but for all fans of professional football.

In the 1980s Manchester United was the footballing byword for underachievement. The club had struggled to rediscover its identity after the shock dismissal of Tommy Docherty in 1977 and a four-year spell under Dave Sexton, a highly respected coach but the polar opposite of his predecessor. Ron Atkinson brought the thrills back to Old Trafford and won two FA Cups before being dismissed in November 1986. 'Big Ron' was the latest in a long line of managers who tried but failed to win the prize United wanted most - the First Division championship. Yet contrary to his reputation for glorious failure, Que Sera, Sera reveals how Atkinson's footballing ideals made him the perfect man to lead the biggest club in the country. Drawing on meticulous research and exclusive interviews, Wayne Barton shines a guiding light on a greatly neglected period of Manchester United history that was filled with big characters and big controversy. Here, for the first time, are the unbridled views of the players, chairman Martin Edwards and 'Big Ron' himself.

Between 1979 and 1937, Hall of Fame coach Jock Sutherland took the championship program at the University of Pittsburgh that was built by his mentor Glenn ""Pop"" Warner, and won five of the nine national championships the school now claims. While a successful period, it was also controversial: Sutherland employed the help of wealthy boosters named the Golden Panthers, who helped him secure the services of the best players western Pennsylvania had to offer. While they made sure the players had what they needed, the school also made sure the players had enough money to be comfortable. Critics accused Pitt of employing what amounted to professional athletes in a college sport. These accusations not only embarrassed the school administration, but led to the end of their dynasty and its coach. This book tells the exciting tale of their championship run, and describes how their downfall began what has since been a continual academics-versus athletics tug-of-war at the school.

Got, Not Got: The Lost World of Leicester City is an Aladdin's cave of memories and memorabilia, guaranteed to whisk you back to Filbert Street's fondly remembered 'Golden Age' of mud and magic - as well as a City-mad childhood of miniature tabletop games and imaginary, comic-fuelled worlds. The book recalls a more innocent era of football, lingering longingly over relics from the good old days - Foxes stickers and petrol freebies, league ladders, big-match programmes and much more - revisiting lost football culture, treasures and pleasures that are 100 per cent Leicester City. If you were a Junior Fox, one of the army of obsessive soccer kids at any time from Gordon Banks lifting the World Cup to the early days of the Premier League, then this is the book to recall the mavericks - Worthington, Weller and Walsh, Lineker, McAllister and Shilton - and the marvels of the Lost World of Football.

When the Leeds United players celebrated winning the championship in April 1992, they had no idea how momentous the occasion was. Manchester United, losers at Liverpool that Sunday afternoon, had now gone 25 years without winning the league. Howard Wilkinson's side, promoted just two seasons ago, could bring back the glory days to Leeds. But Wilkinson would prove to be the last English manager to win the league. In 1992, football changed beyond all recognition. The Last Champions explores the roots of that success and the amazing cast of characters who came together to fashion the triumph. As in his acclaimed book The Fallen, Dave Simpson's quest to catch up with the protagonists of the era, from the visionary Sergeant Wilko, top scorer Lee Chapman and unsung heroes like Mike Whitlow and Carl Shutt (not forgetting Eric Cantona), sees him unearth some extraordinary untold stories. And he finds that The Last Champions were also the last ordinary people to win the league, before the Premier League saw skyrocketing wages, billionaire foreign owners and the dictates of television taking the game away from the fans. It is the brilliantly told story of the end of an era.

According to the National Football League, the 1972 Miami Dolphins are the only undefeated, untied Super Bowl champions. But pro football's first undefeated championship team was crowned in 1948, when the Cleveland Browns won their third straight All-America Football Conference title with a record of 15 victories, no losses and no ties. They were led by Hall of Fame head coach Paul Brown, whose methods revolutionized the game and influenced every coach who followed. On the field, the '48 Browns' roster featured six future Hall of Famers, including Marion Motley and Bill Willis, who broke pro football's color barrier with the first snap of the 1946 season.

Manchester City: The Official Illustrated History celebrates the illustrious history and modern dominance of one of English football's most storied teams. Few clubs can boast a story as dramatic and fascinating as Manchester City. This officially endorsed book, with the Foreword written by manager Pep Guardiola, traces the club's history from its formation in 1880, the trials and tribulation of growth, the name change to Manchester City 125 years ago, the battle to emerge from the shadow of Manchester United, the glory years of the 1930s and late 1960s, and the difficult period of relegation and promotion that followed, right through to the takeover by Sheikh Mansour that has helped turn the team into a super power of world football. Written in a lively and informative style and illustrated with 150 dramatic action images and rare behind-the-scenes photographs, it includes profiles of the club's legendary players and important figures. Manchester City: The Official Illustrated History gives a unique insight into one of the world's greatest football clubs.

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.

The history of Cairo's football fans is one of the most poignant narratives of the 25 January 2011 Egyptian uprising. The Ultras Al-Ahly and the Ultras White Knights fans, belonging to the two main teams, Al-Ahly F.C. and Zamalek F.C respectively, became embroiled in the street protests that brought down the Mubarak regime. In the violent turmoil since, the Ultras have been locked in a bitter conflict with the Egyptian security state. Tracing these social movements to explore their role in the uprising and the political dimension of soccer in Egypt, Ronnie Close provides a vivid, intimate sense of the Ultras' unique subculture. Cairo's Ultras: Resistance and Revolution in Egypt's Football Culture explores how football communities offer ways of belonging and instill meaning in everyday life. Close asks us to rethink the labels 'fans' or 'hooligans' and what such terms might really mean. He argues that the role of the body is essential to understanding the cultural practices of the Cairo Ultras, and that the physicality of the stadium rituals and acerbic chants were key expressions that resonated with many Egyptians. Along the way, the book skewers media cliches and retraces revolutionary politics and social networks to consider the capacity of sport to emancipate through performances on the football terraces.

""Nobody ever beats Wales at rugby. They just score more points." --Graham Mourie, former New Zealand captain"
In the 1970s, an age long before World Cups, rugby union to the British public meant Bill McLaren, rude songs, and, most of all, Wales. Between 1969 and 1979, the men in red shirts won or shared eight Five Nations Championships, including three Grand Slams and six Triple Crowns. But the mere facts resonate less than the enduring images of the precision of Gareth Edwards, the sublime touch of Barry John, the sidesteps of Gerald Davies and Phil Bennett, the courage and extravagant sideburns of J.P.R. Williams, and the forward power of the Pontypool Front Row and "Merv the Swerve" Davies. To the land of their fathers, these Welsh heroes represented pride and conquest at a time when the decline of the province's traditional coal and steel industries was sending thousands to the dole queue and threatening the fabric of local communities. Yet the achievements of those players transcended their homeland and extended beyond mere rugby fans. With the help of comedian Max Boyce, the culture of Welsh rugby and valley life permeated Britain's living rooms at the height of prime time, reinforcing the sporting brilliance that lit up winter Saturday afternoons. In "Nobody Beats Us," David Tossell, who spent the 1970s as a schoolboy scrum-half trying to perfect the Gareth Edwards reverse pass, interviews many of the key figures of a golden age of Welsh rugby and vividly recreates an unforgettable sporting era.

Hibernian FC On This Day revisits the most memorable moments from the club's rollercoaster past, mixing in a maelstrom of quirky anecdotes and legendary characters to produce an irresistibly dippable Hibernian diary - with entries for every day of the year. From Hibernian's foundation as a club for Edinburgh's Irish community, through to the SPFL era, the Hibs faithful have witnessed triumphs, promotions and relegations, breathtaking cup runs and European nights - all featured here. Timeless greats such as Joe Baker, Eddie Turnbull and Pat Stanton, Gordon Rae, Franck Sauzee and Derek Riordan loom larger than life. Revisit 18th March 2007 when Hibs won the League Cup at Hampden. 27th September 1972: The 6-1 demolition of Sporting Lisbon at Easter Road! Recall 1st January 1996, when Hibs beat Hearts in the derby days after being mauled by Rangers at Ibrox - and the unforgettable 4-3 Scottish Cup win against Celtic on 8th March 1986!

The Long Golden Afternoon tells the story of the transformative generation of golf that followed the rise of Young Tom Morris - an era of sweeping change that saw Scotland's national pastime become one of the rare games played around the world. It begins with the first epochal performance after Tommy - John Ball's victory at Prestwick in 1890 as the first Englishman and the first amateur to win the Open Championship - and continues through the outbreak of the Great War. If Tommy ignited the flame of golf in England, Ball's breakthrough turned that smoldering fire into a conflagration. The generation that followed would witness the game's coming of age. It would see an explosion in golf's popularity, the invention of revolutionary new balls and clubs, the emergence of professional tours, the organization of the game and its rules, a renaissance in writing and thinking about golf, and the decision that the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews must always remain the sport's guiding light.

ESPN and the Changing Sports Media Landscape considers the ways the network is reinventing itself as it enters its fifth decade. In their previous book, The ESPN Effect (2015), the editors made the observation that ESPN was a pervasive branded-content provider across multiple media platforms, delivering programs and information 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, to influence how sports fans think and feel about the people who play and control these games. ESPN and the Changing Sports Media Landscape asks whether that will hold true in the 2020s and beyond. The past decade has seen momentous changes in the sports media landscape, among them the massive proliferation of mobile platforms as a major source of sports content, astronomical growth in fantasy sport and esport industries, and the increasing entanglement of sports media in contentious sociopolitical debates. The contributors to this book analyze how ESPN has navigated the shifting playing field and speculate on what the next decade might bring for ESPN and the global sports media industry.

Fulham FC is the oldest professional club in London and an established Premiership side. This book offers a look at the club's history until 1970, including the time they played in the First Division, and players such as England captain Johnny Haynes, Bobby Robson and World Cup winner George Cohen.

ESPN and the Changing Sports Media Landscape considers the ways the network is reinventing itself as it enters its fifth decade. In their previous book, The ESPN Effect (2015), the editors made the observation that ESPN was a pervasive branded-content provider across multiple media platforms, delivering programs and information 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, to influence how sports fans think and feel about the people who play and control these games. ESPN and the Changing Sports Media Landscape asks whether that will hold true in the 2020s and beyond. The past decade has seen momentous changes in the sports media landscape, among them the massive proliferation of mobile platforms as a major source of sports content, astronomical growth in fantasy sport and esport industries, and the increasing entanglement of sports media in contentious sociopolitical debates. The contributors to this book analyze how ESPN has navigated the shifting playing field and speculate on what the next decade might bring for ESPN and the global sports media industry.

This book tells the fascinating story of West Ham United Football Club during the First World War, charting the relationship between war and football by following the pursuits of West Ham from 1913/14 to 1918/19. In many ways, it was their success in wartime competitions that led to them being accepted into the Football League in 1919, paving the way for subsequent FA Cup and League success. As well as a football story, this book is about the impact of the war on Britain. It documents the social implications of war on Londoners and the social and political influence of football, the armed forces and civilians alike. Looking closely at the 13th Service Battalion, also known as the 'West Ham Pals', the book includes such players as George Kay, Ted Hufton, and their manager and coach, Syd King and Charlie Paynter respectively.

Sir Alex Ferguson said that his brief as Manchester United manager was to "knock Liverpool off their f*****g perch". After over 2,000 games and 25 seasons, this year he finally succeeded. Following an endless supply of trophies, none meant more to United's global legion of fans than their 19th league title - simply because it finally put Liverpool in their place. It has taken Sir Alex 25 years to establish United as the leader of the championship pack. When Alan Hansen captained Liverpool to their most recent championship in 1990, the tally read 18-7 in Liverpool's favour and few would have given the Scot a prayer of capturing one championship, never mind 12. In "19", award-winning journalist Harry Harris looks back at all the title winning seasons and analyses each one from the viewpoint of a player who distinguished himself in that title year, building up to the record title and an in-depth analysis of the 2010-11 season and how United finally surpassed Liverpool. The book looks at the record through the eyes of those who took part in each of them, or who observed them from close quarters. "19" features exclusive interviews with Arthur Albiston, Alan Brazil, Steve Bruce, Garth Crooks, Gary Pallister, Paul Parker, Lee Sharpe, Gordon Taylor, Dave Whelan, Ray Wilkins.