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31st out of 43 books
—
3 voters
The Game of Their Lives: The Untold Story of the World Cup's Biggest Upset
In the summer of 1950, a most unlikely group was assembled to represent its country in the first soccer World Cup since World War II. The Americans were outsiders to the sport, the underdogs of the event, a 500-to-1 long shot. But they were also proud and loyal men -- to one another, to their communities, and certainly to their country. Facing almost no time to prepare, op...more
Paperback, 146 pages
Published
April 12th 2005
by It Books
(first published September 1996)
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I picked this after seeing the film (made a couple of years ago.) This is one of the few where I enjoyed the movie more. The movie, for me, has a better flow - introducing the players in their homes/neighborhoods and then following them to the pivotal game and following it through (more linear.) The book jumps back and forth between the game, with it's known outcome, and filling in background of the players. I enjoyed it, but not quite a much.
About as good as it could possibly be. Reminded me at times of "The Boys of Summer," which is very good company to be in.
A nice, quick story about the US soccer team that unexpectedly beat England in the 1950 World Cup.
In 1950 the USA beat England 1-0 in a World Cup soccer game. The game is probably regarded as the biggest upset in international soccer history. It is probably a bigger upset than the "Miracle on Ice" at the 1980 Olympics. England was one of the favorites coming into the tournament, and the Americans were amateurs, of whom very little was expected.
The author focuses more on the players and their lives than he does on the game itself. It makes a good read also for people who are not sports fans....more
The author focuses more on the players and their lives than he does on the game itself. It makes a good read also for people who are not sports fans....more
"The Boys of Summer" meets the world's game. "The Boys of Soccer"?
If you love soccer and storytelling you should like this book. Fascinating to read about the lives of some of the team years after their victory over England.
Overall, I liked the book. The subject matter was fascinating. It's hard to believe that with such an upset game, and newspapers around the world talking about it, hardly any American paper even mentioned it. The only thing I found distracting was the author's going back and forth between different players' jobs, current families, and the game itself. I didn't find it to be very effective, and was at times confusing.
A must read for all US Soccer fans!
great sports yarn about the 1950 World cup victory of the US over Britain. Also shows how deep and old the US soccer(football) community really is - as old as the "beautiful game" itself
Not the greatest book I've read, but I nonetheless loved hearing the story about the greatest match in U.S. men's soccer history.
Reading this makes me wonder even more about how football (read soccer) never took America by storm.
May 24, 2013
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