Playing on the left – football’s dalliance with politics
The existential contradictions between football and leftism make life as a leftist football fan a constant war with yourself. “If every rightwing thinktank came up with a scheme to distract the populace…
Manchester City: An Illustrated History
In Jules Verne’s 1874 novel, Around the World in 80 Days, protagonist Phileas Fogg wagers a hefty sum that he can traverse the globe, latitudinally, in 80 days or less. It’s a…
Russia’s World Cup: The Politics In Review, Two Years On
Nearly two years have passed since the 2018 World Cup, and establishing the overall outcome is a difficult task. Firstly, the tournament has reason to be remembered fondly by fans: exciting, attractive…
Panyee FC – When Football Challenges Nature
I was born and raised in a centuries-old slum in the heart of Cairo, Egypt, where young kids and youth did not stop playing football. I played football in a narrow alley,…
Football Fiction: Grudge Match – Part II
Read part 1 of this story here. “Winner stays.” Arun said, lounging on one of the chairs in the living room. Of course he’d say that, because he was better than the…
Andres Iniesta – El mago con la pelota
We know Andres Iniesta as Andres Iniesta, the diminutive artisan who made every match he took part in a glorified game of piggy-in-the-middle for the best part of a decade. He who…
Premier League 2019-20: The skirmish for top six
It wasn’t long ago when the position of the country’s biggest and best clubs seemed immutable. Even after Leicester’s unprecedented league win in 2016, there existed a collective feeling that the country…
Sani Haruna Kaita – The fool is us
My earliest memory of football was in 1998. I was five and must have been a very stubborn child. My mother, bless her soul, worn out and tired from the strain of…
Football Fiction: Grudge Match – Part I
Gully sports exist in a realm of their own. We devote ourselves to mimicking our idols, imagining the narrow driveway to be the field at the Bernabeu, and the teenager dribbling through…
Lir: A part of Boston where football holds a different meaning
A stone’s throw away from Hynes Convention Center sits Lir. Just one of the many Irish pubs in Boston’s Back Bay neighbourhood, it’s the type of place that blends into the scenery…
CONIFA, Gender Equity, and the National Team Giving Karen Athletes a Chance
A new football team is taking root in the all-too-often frozen soil of Minnesota. While the land of a thousand lakes is home to major NFL, MLB, NBA, and NHL franchises, the…
Real Madrid and their Brazilian vision
As a football club synonymous with the acquisition of marquee names and the assembly of superstar squads, Real Madrid’s latest recruitment policy has thrown something of a curveball when considering their traditional…
Santi Cazorla – The gift that keeps on giving
As a long-time football fan, I’m well-versed with turbulent emotions. As a long-time Arsenal fan, however, I have special expertise in dealing with a very particular heartbreak and betrayal associated with the…
Nagendra Prasad Sarbadhikari – The first visionary of Indian football
Two of Eastern India’s best known educational institutions, Hare School and Hindu College (present Presidency College) was established between 1816 and 1818. Both possess glittering lists of alumni and over two centuries…
We need to talk about the Granit Xhaka incident
There is a video on the internet, titled The horribly slow murderer with the extremely inefficient weapon, that shows a hooded assailant stalking, chasing, and beating an innocent man. He follows the…
Art and Football in Bilbao – Goal by Aduriz
On the first match of what is to be his final season in the Spanish top division, Aritz Aduriz was supposed to present a picture of a veteran who’ll soon bid his farewell. He chose to author a spectacle instead.
AC Milan and the unravelling of a season in one match
Gennaro Gattuso knew how difficult the 2018/19 season would be just 90 minutes into it. He had watched his Milan side take a two goal lead over Napoli in its season opener,…
Ajax and The Class of 2019
What if it was all a dream? The so-called Class of 2019. The summer visits to Vienna, Liege, and Kyiv. Failures in Almelo and Rotterdam, but an ultimate vengeance and triumph over…
This Time Will Be Different! – Chelsea Season Preview 2019/20
We are on the brink of another season. May seems like an era ago. Since then, clubs have sold and bought players. New, promising managers have arrived with a suitcase of visions,…
The rebuild déjà vu – Manchester United Season Preview 2019/20
European football’s annual reset button is upon us. New kits are being released and fantasy teams are getting built. Life seems to have picked up pace. For most clubs in England, the…
Analysis Paralysis – Football’s dying aspect of fun
The best way to ruin a movie is to watch it with someone who works in film production. I lived for a year with a flatmate who studied film at university and…
Analysing Venezuela’s Copa Campaign: A Missed Opportunity but Greater Times Await
“We’re in the middle of a ‘generational renovation,’” Ruben Villavicencio, executive president of the Venezuelan Premier League, told me as we discussed Venezuela’s Copa América performance. I thought that was a wonderful…
From Sapri with a False Name – A Tale of Football, Salerno, and Heritage
Salernitano Raimundo Bisogno was born and raised in a small fishing town in the Italian province of Salerno, called Sapri. He was one of the three brothers and one sister. His family…
The nice guy who could mess you up – Farewell, Aaron Ramsey
April and May 2019 saw the finales for Game of Thrones and Marvel Phase 3, two of the most significant pop-culture franchises from the past decade. If I wanted to be dramatic,…