The Naughty Nineties: Football's Coming Home?

by Martin King, Martin Knight, Irvine Welsh (Foreword)

Martin King, author of Hoolifan, his account of 30 years of being in and around the notorious Chelsea gangs of the 1960s, 70s and 80s, brings his story up-to-date in this book. Ironically, he finds that although football hooligans are now a minority, their maturity, experience, and dedication are higher than ever. The firms are smaller but far more dangerous. The style and character of the mobs have changed as has the author, who finds himself evolving from participant to observer as the decade wears on. Despite the picture painted by the media of soccer violence in previous decades, only in the 1990s is it truly highly organized. Most of the confrontations occur away from stadiums, sometimes on days when no matches are being played, so King questions whether "football hooliganism" is in fact the correct description for such activity.

Genres: Nonfiction

198 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1999

About the author

Emmy Award winning British Military Historian/Author/ Lecturer who's had the honor of reintroducing many US, British and German veterans to the WWII battlefields where they fought. He lives in Belgium near Antwerp where he spends his most of his time visiting European battlefields.

His voluntary work tracing individual histories has been a labor of love for almost 30 years. He speaks, and has a working knowledge of German Italian Dutch and French. Frequently in demand as a public speaker he has lectured at many British and US colleges, universities and military bases throughout the world. The History Channel hired Martin as a Historical Consultant on their series "Cities of the Underworld". In 2007 he began a new assignment working as a Historical consultant/writer on the hit series 'Greatest Tank Battles', currently the most watched military documentary in the US. Shortly thereafter he accepted an invitation to work as a Presenter/Historical Consultant on the series 'Narrow Escapes' with Bafta Award winning documentary makers WMR.

He is a frequent visitor to the prestigious West Point Military Academy. Widely regarded as a leading authority on European Military History, General Graham Hollands referred to him as the "Greatest living expert on the Battle of the Bulge". Steven Ambrose called him "Our expert in the Ardennes". Fellow writer and notable historian Professor Carlton Joyce said "He really is the best on the Ardennes". His campaigning work for World War Two veterans recently came to attention of some leading military personnel at the Pentagon who cordially invited him to present his latest work there. Awarded 'SERVICES TO EDUCATION' certificates by the USAF and NATO. In 2015 his documentary feature 'Searching for Augusta' received no less than 7 EMMY AWARDS for 'BEST HISTORICAL DOCUMENTARY'. In 2017 his book 'THe Fighting 30th Division - They called them Roosevelt's SS' was nominated in the USA for the 'Prestigious writer Award'. He's also an Honorary Citizen and chosen Cultural Ambassador

Reviews

[Alfred Nobile · Rating 4 out of 5]

Follow up to Hoolifan.