New Delhi, Jul 18 (PTI) At a time when the footballing world is all set to witness the crowning of a new World Cup champion, a book traces the incredible history of the game, its glories and tragedies, and how it has created an international community unlike any other.
“The Shortest History of Football”, published by Pan Macmillan, is a concise but comprehensive guide to the evolution of football by Brian D Bunk, who teaches a course in global soccer history at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
From the origins of football to how it became a global game, the book also looks at aspects like the dark side of the sport, football as big business and a political game.
It examines major aspects of the game’s history, both on and off the field, exploring football’s roots and early development in Britain. It then traces how the game travelled across the globe and eventually, top-level players became professionals, and the game itself grew more structured and more commercialised.
According to Bunk, although many people see football as an escape from everyday life, the sport has never been divorced from the realities of violence and power.
“Football’s past includes both glories and tragedies, and understanding this history gives insight into how it became the world’s most popular sport,” he writes.
“Competitions between nations and clubs turned into some of the most followed sporting events across the world. Over time, as we will discover, the game on the pitch became more complex, and the training and management of players emerged as an important factor in determining a team’s success or failure,” the book says.
“Fans grew strong attachments to certain clubs and players, and created interesting ways of demonstrating their allegiances,” it adds.
On politics and corruption affecting the game, Bunk says for all the glitz and glamour of the 2022 World Cup final, it also showcased the game’s dark side.
“Thousands of immigrant workers died helping Qatar prepare for the World Cup. The fact that it was held there at all reveals the corruption at the heart of the sport’s governing body FIFA. Qatar was awarded the right to host the World Cup even though it had to be moved from its usual summer schedule because it would have been too hot to play.
“Hosting the competition positioned the country as an important player in the global diplomatic order. Qatar basked in the reflected glow of sport and its best players. For FIFA, it was an opportunity to pocket billions of dollars in revenue,” he writes.
Talking about sportswashing or how political leaders use sport to accomplish both domestic and international goals, the author says they hope to legitimise their regime internationally, stoke nationalist sentiment at home, and distract citizens from concerns.
“Football can also be used to show political or economic strength. The term has usually been applied to efforts made by autocratic regimes such as Abu Dhabi, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. They do so by purchasing globally recognized teams, including Newcastle United (Saudi Arabia) and Manchester City (Abu Dhabi), and hosting important tournaments, including the World Cup – Russia in 2018 and Qatar in 2022,” Bunk says.
“FIFA has already awarded the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia. The bidding process for these events has been marred by corruption,” he adds.
According to Bunk, nations like Saudi Arabia believe that associating with a Premier League club will encourage some fans to see the kingdom in a more positive light.
“They have also tried to boost the competitiveness and international visibility of their domestic league by signing foreign players, including stars like Cristiano Ronaldo and former Liverpool attackers Sadio Mane and Darwin Nunez,” he writes.
Ronaldo and Mane play in the Saudi League for Al Nassr while Nunez represents Al Hilal.
The author also says that schools have played a key role in spreading the game across the globe, and football is still a part of people’s educational experience the world over. He says these students play during recess, in intramural leagues, or for the school team and a rare few may join the academy of a professional club, but most will not.
“Many of them are played only for the joy of being with friends, neighbours, or classmates. In many ways, this echoes the way the game started out in the unheralded and chaotic world of folk football. People played for a variety of reasons for gain, for a sense of belonging, for the thrill of winning, or simply for fun. This has been football’s past, its present, and its future,” Bunk writes. PTI ZMN MAH MAH
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