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How Soccer Explains the World | 
 enlarge | Manufacturer: HarperCollins e-books
Category: EBooks
List Price: $10.95
Buy New: $8.76
You Save: $2.19 (20%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  80 reviews
Sales Rank: 2230
Format: Kindle Book
Media: Kindle Edition
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 272
Dewey Decimal Number: 327.1
ASIN: B0013M31GE
Publication Date: February 19, 2008
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
The global power of soccer might be a little hard for Americans, living in a country that views the game with the same skepticism used for the metric system and the threat of killer bees, to grasp fully. But in Europe, South America, and elsewhere, soccer is not merely a pastime but often an expression of the social, economic, political, and racial composition of the communities that host both the teams and their throngs of enthusiastic fans. New Republic editor Franklin Foer, a lifelong devotee of soccer dating from his own inept youth playing days to an adulthood of obsessive fandom, examines soccer's role in various cultures as a means of examining the reach of globalization. Foer's approach is long on soccer reportage, providing extensive history and fascinating interviews on the Rangers-Celtic rivalry and the inner workings of AC Milan, and light on direct discussion of issues like world trade and the exportation of Western culture. But by creating such a compelling narrative of soccer around the planet, Foer draws the reader into these sport-mad societies, and subtly provides the explanations he promises in chapters with titles like "How Soccer Explains the New Oligarchs", "How Soccer Explains Islam's Hope", and "How Soccer Explains the Sentimental Hooligan." Foer's own passion for the game gives his book an infectious energy but still pales in comparison to the religious fervor of his subjects. His portraits of legendary hooligans in Serbia and Britain, in particular, make the most die-hard roughneck New York Yankees fan look like a choirboy in comparison. Beyond the thugs, Foer also profiles Nigerian players living in the Ukraine, Iranian women struggling against strict edicts to attend matches, and the parallel worlds of Brazilian soccer and politics from which Pele emerged and returned. Foer posits that globalization has eliminated neither local cultural identities nor violent hatred among fans of rival teams, and it has not washed out local businesses in a sea of corporate wealth nor has it quelled rampant local corruption. Readers with an interest in international economics are sure to like How Soccer Explains the World, but soccer fans will love it. --John Moe
Product Description
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 its sorrows. In this remarkably insightful, wide-ranging work of reportage, Franklin Foer takes us on a surprising tour through the world of soccer, shining a spotlight on the clash of civilizations, the international economy, and just about everything in between. How Soccer Explains the World is an utterly original book that makes sense of our troubled times.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 75 more reviews...
 Foer makes a huge stretch; still and interesting read June 25, 2008
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
_How Soccer Explains the World_ is an unfortunately misleading title; rather than explain the world, Foer uses soccer as a metaphor for globalization and the various reactions of parts of the world to it. He is only partially successful in this.
Evidentially the opposite of globalism isn't nationalism, but what Foer referrs to as "tribalism", as demonstrated by English (and Serbian) "soccer hooligans." How this has developed and been used by the likes of Slobodan Milosevic was an interesting premise, if a bit of a stretch. The global recruitment of soccer players - Nigerians playing for Ukraine, Brazilians playing for anybody, Dutch coaches working in the Near East - are cited as evidence of how soccer has become a "global marketplace" - with mixed results. The metaphor fits on one level (yes, it IS global - how 'bout that?) but fails horribly on another. (How can one make generalizations about the way a "nation" plays soccer?)
Foer also goes into great detail about the politics of the sport - I think he was on to something here, but the idea was only one of several that he persued, to its detriment. (In addition to the "national styles" of coaching and playing, Foer also discussed the sociology of the sport and its appeal - or lack of - in the United States, and its role as a social safety valve in Spain and Iran.) His would have been a stronger case had he pursued only one idea, rather than several.
As a soccer fan, I enjoyed his detailing the stadiums, the chants between rival teams, and (especially) his thoughts on soccer in America. Given his thesis, though, it only warrants 3 stars. An interesting book and there is much to like here - but the central idea, sadly, is very thin.
 how soccer explains the world June 7, 2008
This was a well written book regarding soccer in the global community. I would encourage anyone who enjoys the game to read this interesting perspective on how soccer is influenced by religion and race and vice versa.
 A Book Not Yet Written June 6, 2008
Franklin Foer is definitely onto something. Indeed soccer might ultimately explain the world. Unfortunately the National Best Seller he has written, "How Soccer Explains the World", does not. Yet Foer is a good writer. His chapters are nice introductory essays on the culture of soccer in it's many forms throughout the world. He stops well short of linking the many disparate aspects of multi-cultural supporter rivalry, prejudice, and greed into why the beautiful game is, in fact, such a phenomenon throughout the world. Soccer fans will enjoy this book for the insight into leagues they do not follow and for some historical trivia. Others might enjoy it just so that can laugh at the absolute freaks who show up to support their passion and sadly for the crimes against humanity committed in its name. But he does not explain, to the uninitiated, why soccer is the world wide beautiful game. Those of us who play or follow the sport, might think we know how soccer explains the world because we live it, it's a part of our lives, we feel it everyday. But the same is true for any other passionate human endeavor. If you are passionate about it, it is the undisputed answer to the world and holds the key to the meaning of life -- serious stuff. So a book claiming to actually know why, not just locally but globally, must stand up to it's title. There's a lot of competition out there and Foer fails to bring anything else to the table for a comparison -- but he could. Further, he does not link the fundamental building blocks of society into the game -- he touches on them, but does not link them into society -- I guess that's because he is an economist and not a sociologist or a theologist. However as an economist he really misses the big business that is soccer. Without a chapter devoted to the business of soccer he has ignored a very important link. If soccer explains the world than FIFA must be running the world, for example. There is no chapter on FIFA. And if soccer is akin to religion, while he did write a chapter about the King, he failed to mention God. Where is Diego Maradona? And if soccer is a social building block -- while he does mention yuppies in America, where soccer is the least stringent of societal glue, he does not mention the societies where soccer is one of the very few but incredibly binding influences. So to recap -- no elements of the beautiful game itself, no comparisons to other global influences, and no expansion into other phenomenon directly attributable to a functioning society. Foer wrote some nice essays after taking the opportunity to travel the world. I am envious to say the least. But he failed miserably to live up to the title of the book. Perhaps he should write a sequel and call it -- "How Soccer Really Explains the World". For now we must continue to wait for the explanation of what we already know.
 A different way of looking at thing May 17, 2008
Overall a pretty interesting look at the world. The author looks at how different countries treat soccer, and what that says about their culture. Due to the fact that soccer is a pretty much universal sport, it does act as an interesting way to compare cultures. In fact one could make the argument that he actually leaves a lot of material on the table in examining cultures and economies through sport.
My biggest complaint is that it often becomes way too travel essay like. I am glad he likes the game and all, but frankly his enjoyment of the sport isn't interesting enough, I had never even heard of the author previously. Stick to the game.
The world in 90 minutes--and a great read to boot! May 16, 2008
My only real complaint about this one is the title, and it's hard to hold such a thing against the author since authors often don't title their own works. Foer does an admirable job using soccer to expand on such topics as the inherent racism of the European game, the effects of globalization that has weakened the Brazilian leagues into a feeder for the "real" clubs in the work, and a primer on the Italian game and why they dive so *(@#&$*(#@ much. The book is a quick read and gives exactly as much information as needed to catch many of the nuances of complex systems. Worth a read even if you're not a footy fan.
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