One book on the list:How Soccer Explains the World: An Unlikely Theory of GlobalizationHow Soccer Explains the World also appears on Sports Illustrated's list of the most influential sports books of the last decade.
by Franklin Foer
If the World Cup is living proof of anything, it’s that soccer always means far more than just soccer. And as Franklin Foer smartly explains, even at the local level, soccer encapsulates broader tensions all over the world. Race, religion, and politics begin right where the field ends. In Glasgow, the Celtic-Rangers rivalry is a matter of Catholics and Protestants. In Serbia, controlling soccer means commanding power. And in Iran, the game has become an unexpected force for modernization. So before anyone writes off the World Cup as a month-long party, broken up by a few games, it’s important to remember the words of George Orwell, “At the international level sport is frankly mimic warfare.”
Read about another book on the list.
--Marshal Zeringue
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