Soccer is much more than a game, or even a way of life. It is a perfect window into the cross-currents of today's world, with all its joys and i... read full description
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Jun 05, 2010
miaaa
rated it: 
Warning: next writing is written under the state of cracking emotion. Any confusions and flaws it affects should not be taken for granted.
And it's not a review!
What is so special about football, that it pains so much when you lost and taking you so high when matches are won. And it kills you to see your beloved club is brought down by ignorant fools who know nothing about the game of passion.
Right now, when I'm writing this, I was torn in two out of madness. T More...
And it's not a review!
What is so special about football, that it pains so much when you lost and taking you so high when matches are won. And it kills you to see your beloved club is brought down by ignorant fools who know nothing about the game of passion.
Right now, when I'm writing this, I was torn in two out of madness. T More...
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Apr 07, 2008
Jim
rated it:
First of all, it's played with the feet, but I'll call it "soccer" even though it pains me to do so. Like the author, I too am a soccer geek and a mediocre player. (I was a much better coach.)
The title promises more than the book delivers, but titles are often the work of publishers' promotion departments. (It's a minor quibble.) The book does a good job of showing how soccer is intertwined with issues of ethnic and sectarian identity, class conflict, politics and culture. More...
The title promises more than the book delivers, but titles are often the work of publishers' promotion departments. (It's a minor quibble.) The book does a good job of showing how soccer is intertwined with issues of ethnic and sectarian identity, class conflict, politics and culture. More...
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Mar 18, 2007
Lilly
rated it:
Foer (brother of Jonathan Safran Foer, for those of you keeping track at home) puts his pen to the paper to explain world affairs to his american audience through the one lens they might identify with -- sports.
Unfortunately, the sport he chooses is soccer. Which American's don't give a shit about. But guess what? They don't give a shit about world affairs either, so it's a brilliant marriage.
(For you curious folk out there, he takes on major questions- racism, gender d More...
Unfortunately, the sport he chooses is soccer. Which American's don't give a shit about. But guess what? They don't give a shit about world affairs either, so it's a brilliant marriage.
(For you curious folk out there, he takes on major questions- racism, gender d More...
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Dec 22, 2008
selena
rated it: 
How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization has been on my shelf for years and it was the mention of soccer that kept me from reading it. Despite being from Eastern Europe, I am completely ambivalent toward soccer.
And yet Franklin Foer uses soccer as a brilliant example to discuss hooliganism within soccer, nationalism and corruption. He writes about specific soccer teams (mostly in Europe but also Brazil) and how team rivalries show themselves to be much more More...
And yet Franklin Foer uses soccer as a brilliant example to discuss hooliganism within soccer, nationalism and corruption. He writes about specific soccer teams (mostly in Europe but also Brazil) and how team rivalries show themselves to be much more More...
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May 18, 2010
HappyHippo
rated it:
It's ectasy, anguish, joy and despair.
It's part of our history.
It's part of our country.
And it will be part of our future.
It's theatre, art, war and love.
It should be predictable ... but NEVER is.
It's a feeling that can't be explained but we spend our lives explaining it.
It's OUR religion.
We DO NOT apologise for it.
We DO NOT deny it.
They're OUR team, OUR family and OUR life.
Football
................
We know h More...
It's part of our history.
It's part of our country.
And it will be part of our future.
It's theatre, art, war and love.
It should be predictable ... but NEVER is.
It's a feeling that can't be explained but we spend our lives explaining it.
It's OUR religion.
We DO NOT apologise for it.
We DO NOT deny it.
They're OUR team, OUR family and OUR life.
Football
................
We know h More...
94 comments
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(8 people liked it)
May 13, 2010
Alex
rated it: 
Alright, so anybody that knows me knows what a freak I am about the beautiful game. Having said that I have to admit that I was more than a bit disappointed by this book. Now, the reviews that it had received weren't entirely terrific, nonetheless, it was a quick and interesting read at work. I can't say I didn't learn anything, but the author's thesis was tenuous at best and he never really "proved" (for lack of a better term right now) how, exactly, soccer "explains the world."
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Dec 17, 2009
Caroline
rated it:
As a recent college graduate, unemployed, and slightly depressed during the summer of 2006, the World Cup in Germany was my saving grace. Hours upon hours of soccer games helped pass the idle days spent in bed fretting about the future.
Thus, by no means am I an expert of soccer. I've come to really enjoy the build up and release of tension that punctuates the games course of action. Not any less important is my fervent appreciation of very fit foreign men in shorts.
Whe More...
Thus, by no means am I an expert of soccer. I've come to really enjoy the build up and release of tension that punctuates the games course of action. Not any less important is my fervent appreciation of very fit foreign men in shorts.
Whe More...
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Apr 10, 2011
William
rated it: 
Reprinted from my website Secure Immaturity:
Hello mates!
I gave this book a quick read. The cover’s title and the gravitas the book gives off makes you feel like you really are reading something amazing here. Think about the oppurtunities in a book that examines the world’s greatest game in such a massive way! But the dubious length (a paltry 250-ish pages) and the rather broad approach quickly shot down my joy. Foer’s greatest strength here will be an ignorant audience. T More...
Hello mates!
I gave this book a quick read. The cover’s title and the gravitas the book gives off makes you feel like you really are reading something amazing here. Think about the oppurtunities in a book that examines the world’s greatest game in such a massive way! But the dubious length (a paltry 250-ish pages) and the rather broad approach quickly shot down my joy. Foer’s greatest strength here will be an ignorant audience. T More...
Feb 13, 2011
Chris
rated it:
I'm a sucker for books with this premise: using X as a lens, explain world history or sociology in a way I'd never really thought about it before. Some of these books leave indelible marks, and others overreach, never really living up to their premise. For the most part, I thought How Soccer Explains the World overreached. Franklin Foer is an engaging writer, but many chapters had difficulty moving beyond the pitch to truly address a society at large. Still, at its best--in exploring the role so
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Jan 23, 2011
Ian
rated it:
I read this book at the beginning of 2011. It's outdated beyond belief. Most of the references now seem so archaic that the whole tenuous premise of the book is utterly undermined.
The broad-stroke and simplistic portraits painted of English football would have had me annoyed in 2004 as they were outdated then, but now they really are things of the past.
I did learn things from the book, and in that respect it must be applauded - the chapter on anti-Semitism n football an More...
The broad-stroke and simplistic portraits painted of English football would have had me annoyed in 2004 as they were outdated then, but now they really are things of the past.
I did learn things from the book, and in that respect it must be applauded - the chapter on anti-Semitism n football an More...
Oct 27, 2010
Philip
rated it:
I am really into soccer I still keep in my trunk a bag with ball, pads and shoes just in case. Now about the book: It could have been called "Soccer and Scandal" and although I really did enjoy reading the book, it was not censored at all. So I got more than my annual fill of uncouth language. Bottom line a lot of soccer fans have no class. Ethnic hatred, religious hatred...
If you have ever held: Real Madrid, Vasco de Gama, AC Milan or Juventus on a pedestal, well put away More...
If you have ever held: Real Madrid, Vasco de Gama, AC Milan or Juventus on a pedestal, well put away More...
Jun 18, 2010
Laylah
rated it:
I'm not a football (soccer) fan. Or I should say, I really didn't know very much about it. My best friend played when we were kids. Another close friend played it for several years. As an adult it's something I was vaguely aware of and had many stereotypical images of rough crowds, fast complicated footwork, and movie characters in European films mad for the game. World Cup fever has hit my social network and I became curious. When I'm curious, I read up. I picked up "How Soccer Expl
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Feb 28, 2010
Ben
rated it:
As for an (unlikely) theory of globalization – I must have missed that part, but Franklin Foer does a decent job of helping explain the relationship between soccer and self & national identity. The style is light and readable; I finished this in an amazingly short period of time, and it is mostly full of interesting characters, histories and anecdotes. Occasionally Foer wanders off into some sociological analysis that seemed less plausible to the facts presented. And, like a true fan but no
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Nov 15, 2009
Rhys
rated it: 
In the book How How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization by Franklin Foer is an amazing book! Off the bat it shows how soccer effects a country and how it affects people and players. On on part of the book it describes why there is a rivalry between Celtic and Rangers, and it is really interesting to learn that they have a rivalry because celtic is a Catholic and plays in green and white and Rangers is protistan and play in Blue and white. Back in the day they would hav
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Jan 07, 2011
David
rated it:
The title is completely misleading. There is no theory about globalization and soccer is not explaining the world at all. That out of the way, what Foer does is provide a series of vignettes or showing examples of how globalization has impacted the game in a few specific examples (ranging from the Glasgow Rangers and FC Barcelona to the Iranian and American national teams) focusing on changes in the culture of those teams over that last 60ish years. He provides anecdotes in each chapter that
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Nov 23, 2009
Bunga Mawar
rated it:
Saya ini orang awam dalam sepakbola, karena itu buku ini musti menarik.
Membaca buku ini tentu dari depan, ya, bagian pengantar. Lanjut Bab 1, Bab2... mulai deg2an... Bab3... makin deg2an, tercengang, terperangah... baru tahu nih... ya ampun... ya ampuuun... ooh... gitu ya?... aaaah.... tidak... jangan sampai!!!... amit2... adduuuh, kalau ternyata juga.... kalau benar begitu, gimana nih...???? aaahh... takuuut!!!!
Ampoooooonnn!!!
Lalu saya tutup dulu waktu Angu More...
Membaca buku ini tentu dari depan, ya, bagian pengantar. Lanjut Bab 1, Bab2... mulai deg2an... Bab3... makin deg2an, tercengang, terperangah... baru tahu nih... ya ampun... ya ampuuun... ooh... gitu ya?... aaaah.... tidak... jangan sampai!!!... amit2... adduuuh, kalau ternyata juga.... kalau benar begitu, gimana nih...???? aaahh... takuuut!!!!
Ampoooooonnn!!!
Lalu saya tutup dulu waktu Angu More...
Apr 03, 2011
an
rated it:
giring, giring, tendang. umpan, terobosan dan tendangan ke gawang. siapa sangka ternyata sepak bola tidak sekedar permainan di lapangan. banyak hal yang bermain di balik na.
seperti yang diungkap frank dalam buku ini. berbagai negara dia singgahi, beberapa klub dia datangi. beberapa sporter dia wawancara. dan hasil na... sungguh. saat banyak kepentingan mendompleng dan memanfaatkan sepak bola. perang antar negara, kejatuhan ras, agama bahkan juga harga diri. di atas logo tim dan konstum More...
seperti yang diungkap frank dalam buku ini. berbagai negara dia singgahi, beberapa klub dia datangi. beberapa sporter dia wawancara. dan hasil na... sungguh. saat banyak kepentingan mendompleng dan memanfaatkan sepak bola. perang antar negara, kejatuhan ras, agama bahkan juga harga diri. di atas logo tim dan konstum More...
Jun 15, 2010
Tyler
rated it:
Getting ready for World Cup 2010 w/ this one.
And Americans think they are crazy about football! This book goes into some wild (and honestly quite pathetic at times) stories about futbol enthusiasts, fanatics, and hooligans the world over. The author covered a variety of soccer-saturated cultures and made the connection between the sport and the culture itself. They are very interrelated almost everywhere besides the USA (although the last chapter the author did follow suit for Uncle More...
And Americans think they are crazy about football! This book goes into some wild (and honestly quite pathetic at times) stories about futbol enthusiasts, fanatics, and hooligans the world over. The author covered a variety of soccer-saturated cultures and made the connection between the sport and the culture itself. They are very interrelated almost everywhere besides the USA (although the last chapter the author did follow suit for Uncle More...
Jan 27, 2010
Chris
rated it:
Warning: Depsite the fact that I am a Yank, I might refer to soccer as football in this review. The term football makes more sense.
In 2000, I was making my way back from Copenhagen (Ah Wonderful Copenhagen, Beautiful Copenhagen, where I lived down the street from a waffle factory. I would get hungery just stepping outside the building), I had a lay over in Paris. The only time I have ever been to Paris. (Do you have any idea how long it took to me find something affordable to eat More...
In 2000, I was making my way back from Copenhagen (Ah Wonderful Copenhagen, Beautiful Copenhagen, where I lived down the street from a waffle factory. I would get hungery just stepping outside the building), I had a lay over in Paris. The only time I have ever been to Paris. (Do you have any idea how long it took to me find something affordable to eat More...
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Apr 15, 2011
Scott
rated it:
I'm not sure that I can see where this book "explains the world", but it was definitely a lively and entertaining read. I felt it read more as an extended series of investigative magazine articles that were stitched together in a book, but don't take that as a negatative!
The book dives into unique circumstances at football clubs from around the world. I don't have it with me to double-check, but from memory a couple weeks after finishing the book, I recall Scotland, the f More...
The book dives into unique circumstances at football clubs from around the world. I don't have it with me to double-check, but from memory a couple weeks after finishing the book, I recall Scotland, the f More...
Jun 25, 2010
Curtis
rated it:
(My review for Variance Magazine)
In light of the World Cup season, I recently picked up Franklin Foer’s How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization. While sport-themed tomes often fail in their tendency toward clichéd “go-get-um” mantras or tell-all personal indulgences, this book is a stirring success. Foer, a journalist by trade, travels to ten different “soccer-rich” nations and interviews locals about the sport and its cultural nuances in their region. The More...
In light of the World Cup season, I recently picked up Franklin Foer’s How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of Globalization. While sport-themed tomes often fail in their tendency toward clichéd “go-get-um” mantras or tell-all personal indulgences, this book is a stirring success. Foer, a journalist by trade, travels to ten different “soccer-rich” nations and interviews locals about the sport and its cultural nuances in their region. The More...
Jan 15, 2012
Jamie
rated it:
This is a travelogue more than an actual comprehensive theory of globalization as the cover suggests, but it is just so much fun that its tenuous hold on a thesis hardly matters. I can imagine that those who care little about soccer will not garner nearly as much enjoyment, but with Ajax pride pulsing in my blood, it kept me fascinated and smiling throughout.
Without going into each chapter, Foer leaves two of his best for near the end - humorously fusing his passion for FC Barcelona wi More...
Without going into each chapter, Foer leaves two of his best for near the end - humorously fusing his passion for FC Barcelona wi More...
Apr 12, 2010
Mark
rated it:
I thought it fitting to take this book on in preparation for this summer's world cup and in appreciation for returning to a futbol crazed nation. I really thought the book would be better than it was and shine this wonderful light on how the world's game really is so much more than simply a game. I thought it delivered a lot of really interesting parallels and examples the world over but i found that it lacked a strong conclusions to really tie together what was being said in the book. Indivi
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Feb 11, 2010
Adam
rated it:
An enticing title that I've noticed for a while but passed over as my interest in soccer really extends no further than the field itself. Despite my love for playing the game, I've never been a big 'fan' as it is, well, difficult to care when you live in a place that broadcasts probably a dozen games a year. . . and that's if there are World Cup qualifiers on!
Despite my lack of knowledge about the sport on a world stage, I greatly enjoyed Foer's account of futbol as a means for expl More...
Despite my lack of knowledge about the sport on a world stage, I greatly enjoyed Foer's account of futbol as a means for expl More...
Jul 12, 2010
Amar
rated it:
This book is laid out in narrow columns of text, with irritatingly wide margins and 1 1/2 spacing. It feels like you're reading a school paper that's been padded for length.
As for its contents, it's a collection of essays vaguely revolving around the topics of soccer, politics and culture. It would be a stretch to say they explain much of anything; the pieces are mostly breezy travelogues, or else meandering discussions of trivia like "Soccer & Jews."
One pi More...
As for its contents, it's a collection of essays vaguely revolving around the topics of soccer, politics and culture. It would be a stretch to say they explain much of anything; the pieces are mostly breezy travelogues, or else meandering discussions of trivia like "Soccer & Jews."
One pi More...
Jul 28, 2010
Varoon
rated it:
I wanted to like this book more than I actually did.
It's well written, interesting, and often funny. The problem, however, probably starts with the title - the book claims to be much more than it actually is. If Foer had approached it as more of a travelogue, it would have been perfect. Unfortunately, he bites off way more than he can chew. Yes, I know he's an editor at TNR - but 250 pages may not be enough to cover soccer, globalization, and several centuries of European history.
More...
It's well written, interesting, and often funny. The problem, however, probably starts with the title - the book claims to be much more than it actually is. If Foer had approached it as more of a travelogue, it would have been perfect. Unfortunately, he bites off way more than he can chew. Yes, I know he's an editor at TNR - but 250 pages may not be enough to cover soccer, globalization, and several centuries of European history.
More...
Jan 11, 2009
Ryan Patrick
rated it:
I enjoyed this book, probably because, like Foer, I like soccer. I learned something new about world soccerdom in each chapter. The title of the book, however, is a bit overstated. Since each chapter is related to the others only in the largest thematic ways, Foer fails to really present any kind of "theory" of globalization - in other words, the book lacks a central thesis. What he offers instead is a series of pastiches illuminating the impact of globalization upon soccer, and More...
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Feb 08, 2009
Yofish
rated it:
It's sort of tongue-in-cheek about 'explains the world.' But he goes around the world, one country per chapter, and exlains (some of) the soccer culture in that country. I certainly learned a lot about soccer---especially the history of hooliganism. One can (if one chooses), make broad assertions about how the particular passions or corruptions that happen in soccer says something about the culture of a country. Supposedly the hooligans from a particular Serbian soccer team helped a particul
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May 21, 2010
gonk bukan pahlawan berwajah tampan
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Memahami Sepakbola ? : Sebuah Coretan Tak Lazim
wis suwe aku ngenteni kowe
rina wengi ora nyambut gawe
persebaya kudu dimenangke
arek bonek mendem rame-rame
terj.
telah lama kumenantimu
siang malam tak ada kerjaan
persebaya harus dimenankan
arek bonek mabuk rame-rame
Riuh rendah terdengar nyanyian dari para bonek setiap Persebaya, kesebelasan asal kota Surabaya menjamu lawan-lawan mereka di St More...
wis suwe aku ngenteni kowe
rina wengi ora nyambut gawe
persebaya kudu dimenangke
arek bonek mendem rame-rame
terj.
telah lama kumenantimu
siang malam tak ada kerjaan
persebaya harus dimenankan
arek bonek mabuk rame-rame
Riuh rendah terdengar nyanyian dari para bonek setiap Persebaya, kesebelasan asal kota Surabaya menjamu lawan-lawan mereka di St More...
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Oct 11, 2009
Steven
rated it:
This is a quirky work; it ends up proving more satisfying than one might have imagined. The subtitle:"An Unlikely Theory of Globalization." That subtitle provides a takeoff point for the book. The author notes that (Page 5): "On my travels, I tried to use soccer--its fans, its players, and strategies--as a way fo thinking about how people would identify themselves in this new era."
He explores the role of soccer by a series of case studies of teams--in Serbia, Sco More...
He explores the role of soccer by a series of case studies of teams--in Serbia, Sco More...
