A History of the World Cup: 1930-2014

by Clemente A. Lisi

There is no sporting event more popular than the World Cup. For one month every four years, billions of people around the world turn their attention to the tournament. Fans call in sick to work, pack into bars to watch games, or stay home for days at a time glued to their TV sets. Nothing else seems to matter.In A History of the World 1930-2014, Clemente A. Lisi chronicles this international phenomenon, providing vivid accounts of individual games from the tournament's origins in 1930 to modern times. It features a glossary of terms, statistics for each competition, photos, and profiles of the most memorable—and controversial—figures of the sport, including Diego Maradona, Juste Fontaine, Franz Beckenbauer, Mario Kempes, Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane, and, of course, Pelé. Though other histories of the World Cup largely ignore the United States' contribution to the competition, this volume highlights the progress of the American teams over the last several decades.Updated with a new chapter on the 2014 World Cup, profiles of those players who stood out in the latest competition, and revised statistical information, A History of the World Cup provides a fascinating read for fans of the game.

Genres: History, Sports

642 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 6, 2015

Reviews

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book looks at an interesting topic but the author's lack of storytelling skills makes the entire book read like a huge almost never-ending Wikipedia article. Also a HUGE chunk of the book is devoted towards US national soccer team which hardly had any impact in world cup history. The author spends 4 pages talking about 1 group level match US national team had while devoting another 4 pages to a combination of 4 quarter final matches, 2 semi final matches and 1 final match.

I'm giving this 2.5/5 stars because I'm feeling generous.