Early on in the easy to read guide World Cup 2010, The Indispensable Guide to Soccer and Geopolitics, authors Steven D. Stark and Harrison Stark paint a clear and vivid picture on what the reader is to expect. “Because of this link between soccer and affairs of state, geopolitics can actually affect the outcomes of games” an early passage reads.
Written from an American perspective, (trust me, they rate England’s chances very slim) the Father and Son duo’s work will ultimately benefit the more causal American sports fan who looks to take in this summer’s tournament as it descends upon the world from it’s four year hibernation. Stark & Stark together have crafted a sort of “catch up” on the last few years in world football and a preview on what’s to come.
More a page by page and country by country guide than say something similar to Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski’s Soccernomics, World Cup 2010 isn’t an altogether bad way to start your summer holiday or June in preparation for the biggest sporting tournament in the world.
Destination
After a brief history of the World Cup, the opening chapters of the book attempt an introspective look into the country of South Africa. From potential player burnout, climate and altitude facts to tips on predicting the winner, the early sections make for clear and informative reading.
The potential South Africa has as a nation in hosting this tournament has never been as massive for any other nation who’s done the same. So much is riding on the success of the hosts, as the events that will unfold, positive or negative, will be seen across the world as the first African country hosts the World Cup.
Interestingly, a chapter on the rampant witchcraft and black magic still practiced across the continent of Africa was among the early highlights of the book. From urinating on match balls for luck, to witch-hunts, to medicine men or “juju men”, it’s all still very much apart of life on the continent of Africa and all there to be read whether you believe it or not.
The 32
The meat and most informative section of the book is the breakdown of the 32 nations competing in the tournament. The thorough analysis of the eight groups of four countries feature a brief political and socioeconomic background before in-depth sections on tournament pedigree, qualification, offense, defense, players to watch, manager, tactics and predictions round out the chapters.
Whether or not this will be the Cup where non soccer-loving Americans finally appreciate soccer’s global significance is yet to be seen. However, books like this one can go a long way in educating the American public on just how important the tournament is. If it doesn’t convert the majority of Americans themselves, then hopefully this country can gain a better understanding of the world’s obsession that could ultimately turn into respect the soccer community can use to build on in the future.
“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“, reads the book’s back cover. Although I’m unsure if I laughed or if the last one is true, World Cup 2010: The Indispensable Guide to Soccer and Geopolitics may not be a bad place to start.
ISBN – 0981928943
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Nice review. Click on my name to go to a site with a good intro to the world cup with some good links
The authors should be ashamed of the huge number of typos, errors, and omissions. At least once, this website URL is wrong! I can’t understand why reviews don’t mention how bad the proofreading is; the errors cause distraction and questions about the accuracy of the infromation.