That football is the world’s most popular sport is a fact few can argue against. Oakley states in his book “Football Delirium” that in a secular age, football has filled for many that enormous vacuum that has been left by organised religion. John Bale writing in “Temples of the Earthbound Gods” likens the soccer stadium to the church; a place of congregation and worship. According to the authors of “With God on their side: Sport in the service of religion”, Magdalinski and Chandler, modern athletes signal their respect for divine intervention in athletic outcomes by invoking a higher power on the playing field.
Though a contentious matter, society generally expects professional athletes to recognise their obligations as role models for younger players and fans. The reason top athletes get huge endorsements is perhaps less contentious. There are people especially the young and impressionable who will take the cue and buy a certain shampoo or drink just because they use it.
The ultimate goal at the elite level of sports - and football is no exception - is winning. Despite all pretences to fair play, the temptation to cut corners is ever present. Whether it is what Graham Mcfee in “Sport, rules and values” refers to as “legal cheating” or outright illegal activity such as match fixing cheating is part and parcel of the modern game. Getting kids to carry “fair play” banners before every FIFA sanctioned match will not change this reality.
This short book provides real life narratives of footballers whose rise to the top of the game when all odds were stacked against them, has been phenomenal. Without delving into the merits and demerits thereof, the book also gives accounts from the real world illustrating how players are confronted with issues of faith and ethics in the game. This book does not attempt to provide solutions rather seeks to sustain discussion on these important topics that the “beautiful game” finds itself having to reckon with, time and again.
Eat football, sleep football, drink Coca Cola. This was a slogan used in a global advertising campaign by the Coca Cola Company in the late 1990’s. It aptly captures the ecstatic devotion with which hundreds of millions if not billions, follow the sport worldwide.
Football also known as soccer is a game that evokes passion more than any other. Soccer fans rioting and damaging property or tears rolling down the cheeks of an ardent soccer fan after a loss, are no rare sights. Soccer is a crowd puller. The game more than any
Verlag: BookRix GmbH & Co. KG
Tag der Veröffentlichung: 25.08.2020
ISBN: 978-3-7487-5498-5
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Widmung:
This book is dedicated to:
Marc Vivien Foe and Cheikh Ishmael Tiote; two football giants who died while playing the game they loved. Their careers though so abruptly and tragically ended, have and will continue to inspire millions of up and coming players in Africa and the world.