Synopsis

An excellent and well illustrated reference book on 20th Century football.

Largely filled with details on football in each individual country . . . very detailed.

Thousands of football statistics are brought to life with illustrations and special features in this text.

Every major league and international competition is covered, including the World Cups and the European Champions Leagues.

Details

• Format : Larger, Thick 2nd Hand Paperback
• Condition : Very Good
• Category : Non-Fiction - Sports & Pastimes
• Published : 2002 (DK)
• ISBN : 9780751338843
• SKU : B000420
• PPC : SP1040gm
• RRP : Unknown
• Quantity Available : 1 only.

External Reviews

"For the proper football nerds" - Ebay Review.

"I bought this book for $.50 at the Patchogue-Medford Library and I consider it the best $.50 I have ever spent. Ever. This book is a history of global soccer with unbelievable DK graphics guiding the way. There are gobs of lists, maps, and art. Soccer + DK = Great Book" - Goodreads Reviews.

"Do you seriously think you know how and where football was first invented? Think again. Do you really know the history of your own favourite club? You don't know half as much as the guy who wrote this book. Think you can talk sensibly about the greatest footballing nation in the world (ie Brazil) for longer than ten seconds? Exactly. But once you've started dipping into this awesome tome, you'll have the edge on all your mates - that is, until they realise they'd better go out and buy the book themselves. And whatever you do, don't be put off by the fact it's classed as a 'reference book'. To me, 'reference' sounds stuffy and dry. This book is like Aladdin's cave. Page after page is packed with colour and detail - wonderful photos, illustrations, maps, charts, meticulously researched yet lucid and concise.

This is as good as any 'reference' book on footie I can imagine. But as far as I'm concerned, it ought to be filed under 'action/adventure', because, believe me, it's a gripping read, from kick off right up until the final whistle. There's a storyteller's craft at work here, which draws you in with wit and wisdom, making you think twice about the stuff you thought you knew and firing up your curiosity for the stuff you've never heard of. The specific and bitter rivalries between the major clubs of (say) Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester, London - they've got all the makings of a major pot-boiler. And don't get me started on the politics of football in Buenos Aires or Brazil.

I've said more than enough. This book is the business. Now, I must stop writing and get back to read some more." - Amazon Review.

The Author

David Goldblatt is a sports writer, broadcaster, sociologist, journalist and author. Among his books are The Games: A Global History of the Olympics, The Game of Our Lives: The Meaning and Making of English Football, Futebol Nation: A Footballing History of Brazil, and The Ball Is Round: A Global History of Football.