Introduction 1
About This Book 1
Foolish Assumptions 2
Icons Used in This Book 2
Beyond the Book 3
Where to Go from Here 3
Part 1: Kicking Off 5
Chapter 1: Introducing Planet Soccer 7
Nothing as Simple as Soccer 8
The basic aim: It really is that simple! 8
So why is soccer so popular around the world? 8
Where do people play soccer? 9
Explaining a Few Rules 10
The field 10
The players 11
General behavior 12
Goal! 12
Keeping score 13
and keeping time 13
Playing the Game 13
Playing solo 13
Playing with others 14
Watching Soccer and Supporting a Team 14
Following club and country 14
Winning trophies: The be-all and end-all? 15
Chapter 2: Getting the Ball Rolling: A Brief History of Soccer 17
Discovering the Ancestors of Modern Soccer 18
Anyone for Cuju? 18
Kemari, Marn Gook, and Calcio Fiorentino 19
Inventing Modern Soccer: How It All Began in Britain 19
The 1850s: Time to lay down some rules 20
Enter the FA 21
Step aside for the professionals! 21
Exporting Soccer Around The World 23
The game makes it in Europe 23
then South America 24
and finally the world 25
Becoming the World’s Biggest Game 26
Television switches on 26
Players become stars 26
Television changed everything 27
Establishing Soccer in America 28
An immigrant game 28
Shooting stars, the NASL-era 29
From indoor soccer to the 1994 World Cup 29
A future built to last: MLS and the NWSL 29
Chapter 3: Getting Your Game On: The Gear You Need 31
Having a Ball 31
Getting The Right Look 34
Jerseys 34
Shorts 35
Cleats 35
Shin guards 37
Goalkeeping gear 37
The referee 38
Additional garments 38
Approaching Equipment 39
Goals and nets 39
First-aid kits 40
Practice aids 40
Other gear and equipment 40
Meeting Up with Merchandise 41
Replica jerseys 41
Numbering and lettering 42
Retro jerseys 42
Scarves 42
Other official merchandise 43
Knowing Where to Get It All 43
Part 2: Playing the Game 45
Chapter 4: Laying Down the Laws 47
Living by the Laws 47
Law 1: The field of play 49
Law 2: The ball 50
Law 3: The number of players 51
Law 4: The players’ equipment 52
Law 5: The referee 53
Law 6: The assistant referees 54
Law 7: The duration of the game 55
Law 8: The start and restart of play 55
Law 9: The ball in and out of play 56
Law 10: The method of scoring 57
Law 11: Offside 57
Law 13: Free kicks 59
Law 12: Fouls and misconduct 61
Law 14: The penalty kick 63
Law 15: The throw in 64
Law 16: The goal kick 65
Law 17: The corner kick 65
Noting Other Points 65
Extra time 65
Penalty shootouts 66
Away goals 66
The technical area 67
Common sense 67
Chapter 5: Players, Positions, and Tactics 69
Positioning Players 69
The goalkeeper 70
Defenders 73
Midfielders 76
Forwards 78
Getting Tactical 80
Dribbling: The first tactic 80
The main styles of play 81
Formations 83
Deploying data 95
Measuring performance 95
Expected Goals (xG) 95
Tracking players 96
Chapter 6: Honing Your Skills 99
Mastering the Basics 99
Dribbling 100
Basic passing skills 101
Receiving the ball 102
Heading the ball 106
Shooting 107
Volleying 108
Keeping It Tight at the Back 109
Marking 109
Tackling 109
Key defensive principles 113
Sharpening Your Skills Up Front 113
Shielding the ball 113
Chip pass 114
Outside of the foot pass 114
Back heel 115
Bending the ball 115
Feinting 116
Free kicks 116
Taking penalties 117
Goalkeeping 117
Catching 118
Diving 118
One-on-one 119
Going for crosses 119
Punching 120
Parrying and tipping 120
Positioning 121
Distribution 121
Saving penalties 122
Chapter 7: Keeping in Shape for Soccer 125
Keeping Fit 126
Stretching those muscles 126
Running 129
Exercising aerobically 130
Training with weights 131
Sorting out your stomach 131
Cooling down 131
Balancing Your Diet 132
Investigating Injuries 133
Preventing injuries 133
Treating injuries 135
Chapter 8: Coaching For Success 141
A Brief History of Coaching 141
Coach or Manager or Boss? 142
What the role involves 142
Chess — or all-out war? 143
Kicking It with Kids 144
Picking a Team 145
Assessing your roster 145
Choosing a captain 147
Selecting a first XI 147
Deciding on tactics 148
Being Prepared 148
Practicing for success 149
Making in-game decisions 150
Chapter 9: Getting the Game On 153
Playing Pickup Soccer 153
Finding Out about Teams and Leagues 154
Running a Team 156
Choosing a league 156
Finding players 157
Paying for it 157
Keeping to a schedule 157
Game officials 158
Getting serious 158
Taking the Game Indoors 158
Getting Your Kid Playing 159
Levels of play 159
Starting out with a team 159
Camping out 160
High school soccer 160
Making it in the academy 160
Challenging the gifted player 161
Playing in College 161
The elite level 161
Lower-level NCAA play 162
Other competitive levels 162
Taking Up Coaching 162
First steps 162
Getting qualified 163
Moving up the ladder 163
The top level 164
Becoming a Referee 164
Volunteering 165
Part 3: Exploring the World of Soccer 167
Chapter 10: The Men’s World Cup 169
The Biggest Show on Earth 170
The long and winding road begins 170
The shape of things to come 171
The finals countdown 171
From Montevideo to Moscow: Eighty-Eight Years of Top-Class Drama 172
Uruguay and Italy set the template 173
Brazilian brilliance 174
Germany and Argentina take center stage 175
European dominance 177
America on the World Stage 180
And so to 2022 181
Teams to look out for 181
Players to watch 182
And On to 2026 183
Chapter 11: Surveying the International Scene 185
Understanding the Point of Exhibition Games 186
Playing for North American Pride 186
The CONCACAF Championship years 187
Onto the Gold Cup 187
Winning European Prestige 188
The early years 188
The Euros go large and even larger 189
The Euros in the new millennium 190
Ruling the Roost in South America 192
How it’s organized 192
The oldest — and the best? 192
An erratic history 193
The Copa’s revival 194
Taking the African Title 194
The ACN: A slow burner 195
The cup catches fire 195
Winning Elsewhere 196
Asian Cup 196
OFC Nations Cup 196
Olympic Games 197
Looking at the Game All Over the World 198
United States 199
Canada 199
Mexico 200
Brazil 200
England 200
Italy 201
Germany 201
France 201
Spain 201
Argentina 202
Uruguay 202
Chapter 12: Playing Together: Clubs and Leagues Around The World 203
Clubbing Together 203
The very first clubs 204
The rise of the super clubs 204
The smaller clubs 205
Organizing Clubs Today 207
The players 207
The head coach 207
Technical staff 208
Ownership 209
Competing in Club Competitions 211
Seasons 211
Leagues 211
Cups 214
Playing in the Big Leagues 215
USA and Canada: Major League Soccer 215
Canada: The Canadian Premier League 217
Mexico: Liga MX 217
England: The Premier League 217
Italy: Serie A 218
Spain: La Liga 219
Germany: Bundesliga 220
Brazil: Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A 220
Knocking Out a Winner 220
FA Cup 221
The U.S Open Cup 221
Other famous cups 222
Competing on the International Stage 222
European Cup/UEFA Champions League 222
CONCACAF Champions League 225
Copa Libertadores 225
Intercontinental Cup/FIFA Club World Cup 226
Chapter 13: Focusing on Famous Clubs 227
Shooting Stars in North America 228
Chivas de Guadalajara 228
Club America 228
DC United 229
LA Galaxy 229
New York Cosmos 229
Seattle Sounders 230
Banding Together In Europe 230
AC Milan 231
Ajax Amsterdam 231
Arsenal 232
Barcelona 233
Bayern Munich 234
Benfica 234
Borussia Dortmund 235
Chelsea 235
Internazionale 236
Juventus 236
Liverpool 237
Manchester City 238
Manchester United 239
Marseille 239
Paris Saint-Germain 240
Real Madrid 241
Tottenham Hotspur 242
Making It in South America 243
Boca Juniors 243
Flamengo 244
Fluminense 244
Independiente 244
Millonarios 245
Nacional 245
Penarol 246
River Plate 246
Santos 246
Looking at Some of the Best of the Rest 247
Al-Ahly and Zamalek 247
Al Hilal 248
Asante Kotoko and Hearts of Oak 249
Raja Casablanca 249
Urawa Red Diamonds 249
Chapter 14: Exploring Women’s Soccer 251
From Beijing to London: How It All Began 251
Dick, Kerr Ladies get popular 252
and the Establishment gets sexist 253
The women fight back 254
America raises the game — and FIFA gets serious 255
The Game Today 255
The United States 255
Rest of the world 256
The Women’s World Cup 257
1991: The First World Cup 258
The tournament comes of age 258
Germany and Japan take control 258
America dominates again 259
Other International Tournaments 259
Olympic Games 260
Continental competitions 260
Top International Teams 261
United States 261
Germany 261
Japan 262
Sweden 262
Canada 262
Netherlands 263
Brazil 263
Norway 263
Part 4: The Fans’ Enclosure: Following the Game 265
Chapter 15: Going to the Game 267
Gearing Up for the Game 267
Season tickets 268
Choosing where to sit 268
Buying a single ticket in advance 268
Going on the road 269
Sitting pretty 269
Attending international games 269
Making Your Way to the Game 270
Obtaining your tickets 270
Making travel arrangements 270
Dressing for the occasion 271
Taking a look round the city 272
Checking out the stadium 272
Spending (time or money) in the club store 272
Tailgating 272
Refreshing yourself inside the stadium 273
Watching the Game 274
Kickoff 274
Shouting, screaming, and other matters of general etiquette 275
Supporter groups 275
Half-time 275
Full-time 276
Chapter 16: Diving Into Global Soccer 277
Watching Live on Screen 277
Mainstream platforms 278
24/7 soccer streams 279
En Espanol 280
Quick hits 280
Listening to Audio 281
Live commentary 281
Podcasts 282
Focusing on Movies and Shows 283
Bend It Like Beckham 283
Next Goal Wins 283
Once In a Lifetime 283
Pelada 284
Ted Lasso 284
The Two Escobars 284
Victory 284
Exploring the Video Vault 285
General history 285
Club documentaries 285
International competition 286
Player stories 286
Branching Out into Books 287
General history 287
Books about players 289
Club-specific books 290
Country-specific books 291
Reference 292
Literature 294
Making the Most of Magazines 294
The Blizzard 295
FourFourTwo 295
France Football 295
Soccer America 295
When Saturday Comes 296
World Soccer 296
Chapter 17: Following Online 297
Keeping Up with the Game 297
What you’ll find in media coverage 297
Finding live scores and the latest news 299
Following soccer news 299
Analyzing the game 301
Finding the Official View 303
Club websites and apps 303
Governing body websites and apps 303
Social media 304
Hearing from Fans 304
YouTube and podcasts 305
Fan Blogs 305
Discussing the game 306
Chapter 18: Finding Other Soccer-Based Pastimes 307
Taking Control with Fantasy Soccer 307
The rules 308
How to choose your players 308
Scoring points 309
Collecting Memorabilia 309
Trading cards 310
Stickers 310
Programs 310
Retro jerseys 310
Autographs 311
Scarves 311
Visiting Stadiums 311
Playing Video Games 312
FIFA 312
Football Manager and other strategy games 312
Joining Supporters’ Groups 313
National groups 313
Local club groups 314
Displays of support 314
Supporter group memorabilia 315
Owning Your Own Club 315
Part 5: The Part of Tens 317
Chapter 19: Ten Great Male Players 319
Pele 319
Diego Maradona 320
Franz Beckenbauer 322
Johan Cruyff 323
Zinedine Zidane 324
Alfredo di Stefano 325
Ferenc Puskas 326
George Best 327
Cristiano Ronaldo 328
Lionel Messi 328
Chapter 20: Ten Great Female Players 331
Lily Parr (England) 331
Mia Hamm (United States) 332
Michelle Akers (United States) 333
Hege Riise (Norway) 334
Sun Wen (China) 334
Homare Sawa (Japan) 335
Birgit Prinz (Germany) 336
Marta (Brazil) 336
Christine Sinclair (Canada) 337
Abby Wombach (United States) 338
Chapter 21: The Ten Greatest Teams of All Time 339
Preston North End (1881–1890) 339
Austria (1931–1934) 340
Torino (1943–1949) 341
Hungary (1950–1954) 342
Real Madrid (1955–1960) 343
Brazil (1970) 343
Netherlands (1974–1978) 344
Barcelona (2009) 345
Lyon (2011–2020) 346
United States Women’s National Team (2015–2019) 346
Chapter 22: Ten Great Games 349
Dick, Kerr Ladies 4, St Helens Ladies 0 (Friendly, 1920) 349
United States 1, England 0 (Men’s World Cup, 1950) 350
Brazil 1, Uruguay 2 (Men’s World Cup, 1950) 351
England 3, Hungary 6 (Friendly, 1953) 352
Real Madrid 7, Eintracht Frankfurt 3 (European Cup, 1960) 352
Manchester United 4, Benfica 1 (European Cup, 1968) 353
Brazil 4, Italy 1 (Men’s World Cup, 1970) 354
Nigeria 3, Argentina 2 (Olympics, 1996) 355
United States 0, China 0 (Women’s World Cup, 1999) 355
Japan 2, United States 2 (Women’s World Cup, 2011) 356
Appendix A: Roll of Honor 357
Appendix B: Glossary 379
Index 387
