Why read The Ball is Round?

Book cover of The Ball is Round: A Global History of Soccer

Book description

In this extraordinary tour de force of a book, David Goldblatt describes the rise of football, from a chaotic folk ritual to a sector of the global-entertainment industry. It's the story of players and managers, fans and owners, clubs and national teams; a chronicle of who won and who lost.…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked The Ball is Round as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Gavin H. MacPhee

Author

At 1,012 pages, this is certainly not for the faint-hearted, but it remains the most amazing football book I’ve ever read. It is unrivaled in its scope, with chapters focusing on every continent, even those for which soccer may not have fully won the public over (like the USA).

Much more than a chronicle of who scored where and when, it is also a book about politics and society and the wider forces that shape football. The Ball is Round can be dipped into with the chapters you find more interesting, but I find it more rewarding to tackle from…

From Gavin's list on The best books to understand the amazing global history of men's soccer.

Tim Harcourt

Author

The rise of Association Football or Soccer is a global phenomenon touching most of the world.

Goldblatt writes a unique social history of the sport covering economics, society, and geopolitics with a gripping narrative.

He also explores why soccer is so popular in the UK, Europe, Latin America and Africa, and parts of Asia but has not been the dominant game in some significant English-speaking democracies such as Australia, Canada, India, and the US.

From Tim's list on The best books from around the world on economic and social history.