World Cup 2010: The Indispensable Guide to Soccer and Geopolitics [Paperback]

Steven D. Stark (Author), Harrison Stark (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2010

The World Cup is the planet's biggest event. Yet no one on this side of the pond has ever set out to explain comprehensively why it matters and what's likely to happen this time around.

In this sharp, fun, and sassy guide, Stark & Stark lay it all out for both the casual and impassioned fan - the spectacle, the tradition, and the teams. Learn why Spain never wins, Brazil often does, and what the US and Mexico really need to do to win the Cup. Discover, too, what the first World Cup in Africa will mean - from Mandela to mythical spirits. Each team profile features a squad breakdown, players to watch, predictions, and an analysis of team tactics, tradition, coaching techniques, and even the national anthems that will be played before each match. Through it all, the book highlights the cultural politics that still make every England game resemble the Charge of the Light Brigade, as one writer put it, and every Italian team a cross between Machiavelli and Michelangelo.

You'll laugh out loud, you'll argue, but when it's all over, you'll know more about the World Cup and soccer than an ESPN analyst. This is not only the best introduction to the 2010 World Cup; it's a book about soccer you'll want to read and reread for years to come. (edited by author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"[R]efreshingly intelligent . . . .  with a combination of humility and wit that just hits the mark . . . this may be the first American book about soccer that lives and breathes the game." --John Rozehnal, Post Magazine, 4/15/10

"[T]his father-and-son team has produced [a guide] . . . that is many desirable things: comprehensive, insightful, good-humored, and quirky." --Mark Starr, Global Post

Named one of "this year's best books" on World Cup 2010 by the New York Times. --Jack Bell, New York Times

"One of the most indispensable resources . . . as I prepare for the World Cup (both as a fan and a journalist) . . . . [P]acked with historical insights . . . and (easily) some of the best team profiles."

--Charles Gooch, Kansas City Star

A "breezy and insightful guide to the tournament that is targeted to a country where many residents ignore the sport" --David Downs, Gelf Magazine

"[R]efreshingly intelligent . . . .  with a combination of humility and wit that just hits the mark . . . this may be the first American book about soccer that lives and breathes the game." --John Rozehnal, Post Magazine, 4/15/10 (edited by author)

"[T]his father-and-son team has produced [a guide] . . . that is many desirable things: comprehensive, insightful, good-humored, and quirky." --Mark Starr, Global Post (added by author)

Named one of "this year's best books" on World Cup 2010 by the New York Times. --Jack Bell, New York Times (added by author)

"One of the most indispensable resources . . . as I prepare for the World Cup (both as a fan and a journalist) . . . . [P]acked with historical insights . . . and (easily) some of the best team profiles."

--Charles Gooch, Kansas City Star (added by author)

A "breezy and insightful guide to the tournament that is targeted to a country where many residents ignore the sport" --David Downs, Gelf Magazine (added by author)

About the Author

Steven D. Stark, a former world sports columnist for the Montreal Gazette and the author of three previous books and one e-book, has been a commentator for CNN, National Public Radio, and the Voice of America, where his job was to try to interpret American culture to the rest of the world.

Harrison Stark, currently a student at Brown University, has been a ball boy for Fulham FC, where his claim to fame was that he was once hit by a bottle thrown by an opposing fan. (edited by author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 364 pages
• Publisher: Blue River Press (February 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0981928943
• ISBN-13: 978-0981928944
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #677,442 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Steven D. Stark is a former cultural commentator for CNN, National Public Radio, and the Voice of America, as well as the author of four books and one e-book. He has written frequently for the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, the Atlantic Monthly, and both the Boston Globe where he was an op-ed columnist and the Montreal Gazette where he was a world sports columnist. His work often appears on the websites Real Clear Sports and Real Clear Politics. A former Lecturer on Law at Harvard Law School, he is a graduate of Harvard College and Yale Law School. His website is at www.starkwriting.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pleasantly surprised..., April 10, 2010

By 

S. Aoun (New York , NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: World Cup 2010: The Indispensable Guide to Soccer and Geopolitics (Paperback)

I got this book not too long ago as a gift and I have to say I wasn't expecting anything great, especially given the fact that I had never heard of the authors before. But I was honestly pleasantly surprised b/c it was a lot more than just another regular, amateur-ish guide to soccer. It's different from other guides I've read in the sense that it doesn't simply list facts and figures of each national team. It kinda goes beyond that and explores the cultural phenomenon behind the single event that brings about half the planet together. I felt the book combined soccer and anthropology, which I thought was innovative.

Also really enjoyed the wittiness of the book, makes it so much more pleasurable to read than some other guides I have come across [yes i am a soccer fanatic..!]. I would recommend the book to anyone who has some sort of interest in soccer. It'll give you a great head start on getting to know the national teams and understanding the world cup.

18 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not a Well Written Book, May 20, 2010

By 

Sean Mccarthy - See all my reviews
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This review is from: World Cup 2010: The Indispensable Guide to Soccer and Geopolitics (Paperback)

I love soccer and politics and I got a good deal for this book on Amazon.com, but the content did not deliver. The two authors do give a comprehensive breakdown of the 32 tournament participants divided into eight groups. They definitely give some facts and figures on each team and also provide predictions and background information for the tournament as a whole. But the quality of writing is poor and the many factual and spelling errors tell me that the authors did not proofread and fact check their text which, with a published piece of work, must be an embarrassment. In publishing a book or a journal article, etc. it is never recommended, as the authors did more than a few times, to say "According to Wikipedia..." That is never an appropriate source of information for a book, let alone a term paper in college. The spelling and factual errors remind me of the slogan of voting in Chicago in the 1960 election: early and often. For example, did you know that Cameroon won the Confederations Cup in 2002 (Page 234)? No? That's because Cameroon not only has never won a Confederations Cup, no such tournament existed in 2002. Also, apparently according to the authors, Australia lost to Brazil 2-0 in the 2006 World Cup 2nd round (Page 210), except that is not true because Australia lost to Italy on a late penalty. Seriously, I could list at least ten more examples, it's that bad. Additionally, their analysis of the state of soccer in the USA chapter leaves a lot to be desired. One particularly terrible passage was (Page 166) because the US woman's soccer team is so good, soccer has become a "women's game" and thus, according to the authors, "has the unintended effect of making it unacceptable to a large part of middle (and male) America." Really? I guess that little fact of soccer being the most popular youth sport in the United States year after year, with millions of Americans from all backgrounds and states playing year after year, was missed by the two authors. Oops. As for the politics or geopolitics, it's a pretty light and superficial presentation. With the World Cup coming up there are many choices (and resources) to get your information for the big event. So pass on this 370 page volume and go for something that is more professionally put together. For the unsuspecting reader this book might impress, but make no mistake, there are so many errors of semantics, spelling, facts, and analysis that this book should NOT be on anybody's must read list for the upcoming World Cup.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great source, April 16, 2010

By 

Renocska "Renocska" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: World Cup 2010: The Indispensable Guide to Soccer and Geopolitics (Paperback)

My husband is a soccer fanatic and he loves this book!! It's well written, has a great description on the players, spiced with funny, goofy, sometimes ironic comments. It has description about the countries, what are their history, how they got this far. How do I know? I read it too!!

This books has everything for everybody. If you start to like soccer or if you a huge fan, you'll enjoy it I bet.