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Soccer is much more than just the most popular game in the world. It is a matter of life and death for millions around the world, an international lingua franca. Simon Kuper traveled to twenty-two countries to discover the sometimes bizarre effect soccer can have on politics... Read Full Overview

Published to coincide with the 1994 World Cup, this book is the record of a journey through Europe, Africa and the Americas looking at the often surprising relations between politics, culture and football.

"Some people believe football is a matter of life and death," the legendary Liverpool manager Bill Shankly once remarked. "I am very disappointed with that attitude. I can assure you it is much, much more important than that." In this, one of the seminal books on soccer, award-winning... Read Full Overview