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Saturday Afternoon Fever: The Autobiography
A profoundly personal, warmly nostalgic and deliciously funny memoir by the legendary Sky Sports anchorman Jeff Stelling, chronicling a life spent obsessing about 'The Beautiful Game' ever since he was a little boy, and underpinned by a deeply rooted love of football and of people.
For a quarter of a century the iconic Sky Sports football presenter Jeff Stelling was the face and voice of football television. As the host of Soccer Saturday, a results show with National Treasure status, he expertly presided over a live panel of former footballers watching the most exciting sporting chapter of the weekend, on the telly, in front of a transfixed audience of millions, watching, unbelievably... on the telly.
Beginning at midday and wrapping just after the Premier League's players had showered and changed, the show's popularity stitched Stelling into the fabric of match-day rituals up and down the country. For fans, the weekend didn't exist without an hour or four of Soccer Saturday.
Saturday Afternoon Fever is Stelling's moving and fascinating a love letter to the game that has shaped and defined him, as it has millions of other football fans across the UK. This is the passionate, engaging tale of one fan's journey from the terraces at Hartlepool's rainy Victoria Park in the 1960s to the sleek and salubrious confines of the Sky Sports studios, an adventure that spans well over half a century and some of the most fast-changing, exciting periods in football's history.
For a quarter of a century the iconic Sky Sports football presenter Jeff Stelling was the face and voice of football television. As the host of Soccer Saturday, a results show with National Treasure status, he expertly presided over a live panel of former footballers watching the most exciting sporting chapter of the weekend, on the telly, in front of a transfixed audience of millions, watching, unbelievably... on the telly.
Beginning at midday and wrapping just after the Premier League's players had showered and changed, the show's popularity stitched Stelling into the fabric of match-day rituals up and down the country. For fans, the weekend didn't exist without an hour or four of Soccer Saturday.
Saturday Afternoon Fever is Stelling's moving and fascinating a love letter to the game that has shaped and defined him, as it has millions of other football fans across the UK. This is the passionate, engaging tale of one fan's journey from the terraces at Hartlepool's rainy Victoria Park in the 1960s to the sleek and salubrious confines of the Sky Sports studios, an adventure that spans well over half a century and some of the most fast-changing, exciting periods in football's history.
258 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 7, 2024
About the author
Jeff Stelling
6 books4 followersRobert Jeffrey "Jeff" Stelling is an English sports journalist and sport television presenter, of Gillette Soccer Saturday for Sky Sports and other programming for the satellite broadcaster. In January 2009 he took over as host of the Channel 4 quiz show Countdown.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
December 3, 2024
Enjoyed this autobiography about his early career and time on soccer Saturday
January 16, 2025
This was phenomenal.
Made me laugh (which is rare for a book). I felt like I had gone back in time to what was a great part of every football fans weekend and it made me gutted when I realised how much I miss it.
There was never any ‘my life was was hard’, there’s genuine struggle Jeff has faced and you appreciate him more than ever for it, even the people bad in his life, he never has a bad word to say which is beyond admirable on a human level. What the man has done not only for himself but for others is remarkable.
The pinnacle of an autobiography!
Made me laugh (which is rare for a book). I felt like I had gone back in time to what was a great part of every football fans weekend and it made me gutted when I realised how much I miss it.
There was never any ‘my life was was hard’, there’s genuine struggle Jeff has faced and you appreciate him more than ever for it, even the people bad in his life, he never has a bad word to say which is beyond admirable on a human level. What the man has done not only for himself but for others is remarkable.
The pinnacle of an autobiography!
March 31, 2025
Read this book in 2 days,a easy going book to read ,Jeff talks about how tv shows work and the going ons behind it,also talks about his family life and some of his favourite football matches
August 4, 2025
If you know who Jeff Stelling is you cannot fail to enjoy his stories from years of developing his career to the successful levels he is still at.
What many people wouldn’t know, including me, is the personal sadness he experienced during his time on SKY.
Tears and laughter throughout a book that keeps you entertained with his life without the boring factual method that so many autobiographies follow.
It has to be said, Unbelievable Jeff!
What many people wouldn’t know, including me, is the personal sadness he experienced during his time on SKY.
Tears and laughter throughout a book that keeps you entertained with his life without the boring factual method that so many autobiographies follow.
It has to be said, Unbelievable Jeff!
May 13, 2025
Jeff seems a great chap- very humble. I read a previous book of his about soccer saturday so some of this was a repeat. It just felt disjointed as it went back and forth between his life/chronology and favourite matches. 7/10
December 29, 2024
This book is a laugh a minute from the insights of Soccer Saturdays to the bromance with Kammy absolutely a must read and unputdownable
August 4, 2025
I rarely read books on football as over the years there is only one that is anyway near being very good & that's Eamon Dunphy's "Only a game" which is probably very dated now. After reading this the wait goes on. I gave it 3 stars as I enjoyed about 50% of it ...related mainly to Soccer Saturday. I was not that interested in Jeff's opinion on traveling to other games with Kammy or anyone else. I was hoping to read a lot about Soccer Saturday, The interaction between the team & the politics of the whole thing, especially at the end when it all fell apart. In fairness to Jeff he did cover much of that & didn't always hold back even though he didn't always mention names....& I see the reasoning there to avoid any legal fall-out. I'm not sure why I expected more actually as I only really watch Soccer Saturday from 4.30pm onwards to get the scores at the end. I wasn't ever really interested in the banter between the guys. I do think though that it had probably gone beyond its sell-by date. I can understand Jeff thinking it was as good as ever but it did need a shake-up. Here in Ireland we had Giles/ Dunphy & Brady on RTE for 50 years it seems with the same old stuff all the time...Giles repeating during every game that the ball had to go through midfield...yawn...yawn. Soccer Saturday now is probably lacking the entertainment of old ( the last 30 mins anyway ) but hopefully over time this will come again.....hopefully DEI & entertainment can compliment each other.
August 25, 2025
Only recently getting back into reading, and this was a great place to start.
An easy read that takes you down memory lane through his early days coming into the media and the fantastic 30 years spent on Soccer Saturday.
The book also talks about his years of fundraising for causes such as prostate cancer UK as well as his own personal struggles.
Jeff’s passion for football can be felt throughout, through his anecdotes and his love of the game itself as well as the pain of how him and the soccer Saturday gang eventually left sky.
As Kammy would say it’s…. “Unbelievable Jeff”!
An easy read that takes you down memory lane through his early days coming into the media and the fantastic 30 years spent on Soccer Saturday.
The book also talks about his years of fundraising for causes such as prostate cancer UK as well as his own personal struggles.
Jeff’s passion for football can be felt throughout, through his anecdotes and his love of the game itself as well as the pain of how him and the soccer Saturday gang eventually left sky.
As Kammy would say it’s…. “Unbelievable Jeff”!
December 29, 2024
Good book, easy to read, love Jeff and miss him on soccer Saturday! Love the awareness of topics like ED’s and prostrate cancer being spread in this book
April 14, 2025
Nice easy read, good mix of opinions and stories
August 26, 2026
Jeff Stelling's autobiography is a great book and is definitely one of the greatest I've read this year so far. It was very funny and charming and felt like it was really his words jumping out of the page. It is filled with fascinating stories, interesting anecdotes and quite a few rants as well. He discusses all types of football from the Premier League down to non league about his hometown club Hartlepool down to playing and managing in even lower football. There are a couple of chapters in this book spotted about which regard his favourite matches, usually he would be watching them but you can tell that he really loves football and is as passionate now as when he was young. He describes Soccer Saturday at great length and it sounds like they got so much enjoyment out of it all. It is such a fantastic and clever read and below I have put three quotes from the book that I can think can tell you what the book is like. Although I usually can't decipher a book on whether it should be three or four stars for example, this has been one of the easiest books for me to put 5 stars on as it genuinely made me laugh and I struggled putting it down when reading it.
● "Paul (Merson) is responsible for a story which started on Soccer Saturday but when the punchline wasn't delivered until Monday. During the course of the six hours, the Soccer Saturday panel consume enough to feed a small African nation. Sandwiches, chips, crisps, chocolate - anything to keep their finely tuned athletes' bodies in shape. Merse had been eating, but was delivering a first-half report when one of his upper middle teeth weakened by a Sky Sports baguette, flew out. A gap-toothed grin showed the extent of the damage. Our floor manager, Frankie, disappeared but returned during the commercial break with a glass of milk. She told Paul to put his tooth in the milk as it would help preserve the roots until he could get to see a dentist. Daft as it sounds, this is true and not an old wives' tale! The milk keeps the tooth moist and contains proteins that can help. Merse nursed that glass of milk containing the submerged tooth like a baby. He carefully carried it to his car and drove home cautiously with his precious cargo. When he got an emergency appointment at his dentist on Monday morning, he probably presented the tooth, explaining that he had kept it in milk to preserve the root all weekend. The dentist fished it out of the milk and looked.
'Mr Merson,' he said. 'This is a false tooth!' Merse had forgotten the original tooth had been knocked out during a match years earlier."
● "Over the years, I had developed an almost unhealthy fascination for knowing things like how many clean sheets Man United had kept in the season (seventeen in 2022-23), how many goals Stockport County's Paddy Madden had scored since Boxing Day (one), how many consecutive games Kevin van Veen of Motherwell had scored in (eleven - scoring fourteen goals in them). Each week I would spend hour upon hour updating my own stats - and I loved it. I remember spotting Josh McEachran, once of Chelsea, hadn't scored a league goal in almost one hundred games - a lot for a midfielder. Every week I religiously updated that total - 101, 102, 120, 130, 140 - knowing that one day when he did finally score I would be able to blurt out this staggering (to me anyway) fact that few people could know. To hell with updating the Man City or Liverpool score, when Josh did score, this would take priority. Then one Tuesday night, I was sitting at home watching Julian Warren present a Soccer Special when the vidiprinter spluttered out, Brentford 1 (McEachran 42) Birmingham City 0. He had scored at the 189th time of asking and I wasn't in the bloody studio! All I could do was shout 'bastard, bastard, bastard at the TV much to my wife's surprise."
● "When he was younger, my elderly son Robbie was misguided enough to think he was a Chelsea fan before he learned the joys of Hartlepool United."
● "Paul (Merson) is responsible for a story which started on Soccer Saturday but when the punchline wasn't delivered until Monday. During the course of the six hours, the Soccer Saturday panel consume enough to feed a small African nation. Sandwiches, chips, crisps, chocolate - anything to keep their finely tuned athletes' bodies in shape. Merse had been eating, but was delivering a first-half report when one of his upper middle teeth weakened by a Sky Sports baguette, flew out. A gap-toothed grin showed the extent of the damage. Our floor manager, Frankie, disappeared but returned during the commercial break with a glass of milk. She told Paul to put his tooth in the milk as it would help preserve the roots until he could get to see a dentist. Daft as it sounds, this is true and not an old wives' tale! The milk keeps the tooth moist and contains proteins that can help. Merse nursed that glass of milk containing the submerged tooth like a baby. He carefully carried it to his car and drove home cautiously with his precious cargo. When he got an emergency appointment at his dentist on Monday morning, he probably presented the tooth, explaining that he had kept it in milk to preserve the root all weekend. The dentist fished it out of the milk and looked.
'Mr Merson,' he said. 'This is a false tooth!' Merse had forgotten the original tooth had been knocked out during a match years earlier."
● "Over the years, I had developed an almost unhealthy fascination for knowing things like how many clean sheets Man United had kept in the season (seventeen in 2022-23), how many goals Stockport County's Paddy Madden had scored since Boxing Day (one), how many consecutive games Kevin van Veen of Motherwell had scored in (eleven - scoring fourteen goals in them). Each week I would spend hour upon hour updating my own stats - and I loved it. I remember spotting Josh McEachran, once of Chelsea, hadn't scored a league goal in almost one hundred games - a lot for a midfielder. Every week I religiously updated that total - 101, 102, 120, 130, 140 - knowing that one day when he did finally score I would be able to blurt out this staggering (to me anyway) fact that few people could know. To hell with updating the Man City or Liverpool score, when Josh did score, this would take priority. Then one Tuesday night, I was sitting at home watching Julian Warren present a Soccer Special when the vidiprinter spluttered out, Brentford 1 (McEachran 42) Birmingham City 0. He had scored at the 189th time of asking and I wasn't in the bloody studio! All I could do was shout 'bastard, bastard, bastard at the TV much to my wife's surprise."
● "When he was younger, my elderly son Robbie was misguided enough to think he was a Chelsea fan before he learned the joys of Hartlepool United."
August 12, 2025
Reposted from CB Book Reviews on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/p/DNRYKG9sV...
Over the years that I watched Soccer Saturday, Jeff Stelling was synonymous with the programme and became an icon of football alongside long-term friend Chris Kamara. As the anchorman Jeff balanced the normal role of a TV presenter with panelist’s shouting and jumping out of their chairs alongside him in studio, notifications of events from the matches taking place around the country, producing millions of well timed and accurate stats and facts about players and managers alike, all whilst delivering with a wit and humour that kept the viewer engaged week after week.
In this, his fourth book, former Soccer Saturday anchor man Jeff Stelling roles back the clock to recount some of the roles he has held, and key people along the way who have been integral to his progression to Soccer Saturday legend, with an MBE to boot! Jeff adds to his previous collection of books by providing stories from across his career, interspersed with a number of key experiences that are memorable to him. He provides his perspective and opinions on Sky’s shock decision to let go of a number of the panelist’s and reporters who had been the faces and voices of Soccer Saturday over a very long period of time in the name of attempting to keep the show relevant to younger viewers (a sad and poor decision in my opinion).
He explains his own complicated departure from the show, why he decided to resign and then withdrew his resignation, and why he felt his resignation was necessary on multiple occasions during his last 2-3 years of involvement with the show.
Author Stelling takes the reader backstage and discusses the friendships he has made as the fired panelist’s reunite for a live tour, as well as his own personal tour alongside former Sky reporter, @biancawestwood . He also provides more personal stories, such as his daughter’s health struggles and his many endeavours to raise money for charity.
In similar fashion to his presenting Jeff delivers this, his autobiography, recounting many a tale with a rant and a witty, humorous remark.
I found this to be a comfortable, enjoyable and nostalgic read from a man who has only further gained my adoration and respect as a result.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DNRYKG9sV...
Over the years that I watched Soccer Saturday, Jeff Stelling was synonymous with the programme and became an icon of football alongside long-term friend Chris Kamara. As the anchorman Jeff balanced the normal role of a TV presenter with panelist’s shouting and jumping out of their chairs alongside him in studio, notifications of events from the matches taking place around the country, producing millions of well timed and accurate stats and facts about players and managers alike, all whilst delivering with a wit and humour that kept the viewer engaged week after week.
In this, his fourth book, former Soccer Saturday anchor man Jeff Stelling roles back the clock to recount some of the roles he has held, and key people along the way who have been integral to his progression to Soccer Saturday legend, with an MBE to boot! Jeff adds to his previous collection of books by providing stories from across his career, interspersed with a number of key experiences that are memorable to him. He provides his perspective and opinions on Sky’s shock decision to let go of a number of the panelist’s and reporters who had been the faces and voices of Soccer Saturday over a very long period of time in the name of attempting to keep the show relevant to younger viewers (a sad and poor decision in my opinion).
He explains his own complicated departure from the show, why he decided to resign and then withdrew his resignation, and why he felt his resignation was necessary on multiple occasions during his last 2-3 years of involvement with the show.
Author Stelling takes the reader backstage and discusses the friendships he has made as the fired panelist’s reunite for a live tour, as well as his own personal tour alongside former Sky reporter, @biancawestwood . He also provides more personal stories, such as his daughter’s health struggles and his many endeavours to raise money for charity.
In similar fashion to his presenting Jeff delivers this, his autobiography, recounting many a tale with a rant and a witty, humorous remark.
I found this to be a comfortable, enjoyable and nostalgic read from a man who has only further gained my adoration and respect as a result.
September 8, 2025
When it originally launched in 1998, I couldn't have been the only football fan that scoffed at Sky TV's new Soccer Saturday format. From 12 till 6pm, a host and four retired players would DESCRIBE events from live games. That's right; they watch the games and tell us what transpires. Stupid, right? No, it was genius. With the right pundits and a charismatic host, their chemistry alone elevated it from its risky premise to, sometimes, fantastic television. At its centre was Jeff Stelling, the enthusiastic ringleader of the perverse, utilising enthusiasm and camaraderie to keep the show on track and from that first show in '98 through to his last in 2022, he was not just a fine sports broadcaster but as good a presenter in any medium. With Saturday Afternoon Fever: The Autobiography (2024), Stelling tells us the story of his life, his times on the show and shares his unabiding love for the Beautiful Game. I'm pleased to say he is as likeable on the page as he was on the screen and his stories are as infectiously entertaining as he is self-deprecating and charming. My brother and I have often joked that Stelling was 'the father we wished we had'. Having read this, that statement is enhanced. A great read for fans of the writer or football in general.
January 14, 2026
I enjoyed this book, I did hope it would be more Soccer Saturday focused snd more storeis from the show and a peek behind the curtain.
Enjoyable read though and an honest one too with Jeff's opening up on family matters like his daughters battle with eating disorders.
A man who is very much part of my adolescence and Saturdays are not the same without Soccer Saturday in it's heyday with Paul Merson, Phil Thompson, Charlie Nicholas and Matt le Tissier. The spark is missing. Give me the legends anyday over the likes of Clinton Morrison and Tim Sherwood.
A good read but could have been great.
Enjoyable read though and an honest one too with Jeff's opening up on family matters like his daughters battle with eating disorders.
A man who is very much part of my adolescence and Saturdays are not the same without Soccer Saturday in it's heyday with Paul Merson, Phil Thompson, Charlie Nicholas and Matt le Tissier. The spark is missing. Give me the legends anyday over the likes of Clinton Morrison and Tim Sherwood.
A good read but could have been great.
March 14, 2026
Fully believable and thoroughly enjoyable
Miss the show
It made my Sat
Kammy produced some great memories for all of us who love football and can see the lighter side of what is after all a wonderful game; your quick and witty interactions with him made both of you the stuff of legends. Your trip to Croker was magical.
Enjoy your retirement.
Miss the show
It made my Sat
Kammy produced some great memories for all of us who love football and can see the lighter side of what is after all a wonderful game; your quick and witty interactions with him made both of you the stuff of legends. Your trip to Croker was magical.
Enjoy your retirement.
October 15, 2026
Really enjoyable read if like me you are/were an avid Soccer Saturday viewer.
Theres a bit of me that’s sad that Jeff had to make these decisions when he was under unimaginable personal strain and I detect this impacted his ability to change.
Clear he’s a thoroughly decent man though, and I hope he remains as happy as he was
Theres a bit of me that’s sad that Jeff had to make these decisions when he was under unimaginable personal strain and I detect this impacted his ability to change.
Clear he’s a thoroughly decent man though, and I hope he remains as happy as he was
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 16, 2026
You cannot help but hear the dulcet tones of Jeff Stelling in your head as you read this. Like his persona on tv, he also comes across as a personable gent in here. Entertaining and quite often hilarious read.
June 26, 2026
An easy read following Jeff’s life and career , dominated by his love of football and revealing personal tragedies and challenges. Although I didn’t watch the show much as I always attended live matches , everyone knew Jeff and all he achieved .
August 11, 2026
Excellent read, with lots of stories from Jeff’s six-decades long involvement in football as a fan, reporter, and broadcaster.
There are more personal stories too, as he gives a deeper insight into his life away from the larger-than life personality presented on-screen.
There are more personal stories too, as he gives a deeper insight into his life away from the larger-than life personality presented on-screen.
October 28, 2025
Brilliant!
Highly Entertaining and written in such a way as to make it an easy read.
Highly Entertaining and written in such a way as to make it an easy read.
February 8, 2026
Enjoyed his take on the Soccer Saturday show. Some of his tales meandered a bit but overall a good read.
February 11, 2026
Nothing grounbreaking but enjoyable enough for fans of the golden days of Soccer Saturday. Bit disjointed as others have noted.
February 12, 2026
4.1 / 5 - I enjoyed this, easy to read and engaging. Brings back good memories of Saturday afternoons, but nothing stays the same forever. Definitely worth a read.
February 20, 2026
Enjoyable, but not great.
September 21, 2026
Decent enough with plenty of football stories for soccer Saturday nostalgia merchants
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews