How To Watch Football: 52 Rules for Understanding the Beautiful Game, On and Off the Pitch

by Tifo - The Athletic

'I love Tifo' Ian Wright
'Tifo are great' Alan Shearer
'Tifo have changed the game when it comes to football analysis' Elis James


RULE #1: DON'T WATCH THE BALL

Yes, football is about stars, goals and glory. But it's also about the intense calculations and movements being made by the twenty-one other players on the pitch. It's about the ticking clock, and the bellowing fans, and their impact on player psychology. It's about the coach, the club owner, and the director of football, who are watching, scouting and scheming from the side-lines. It's about money and data, about geopolitics and architecture, and even about climate change.

Football is the most popular sport in the world, and Tifo Football is one of the world's most popular football channels. In this short, illustrated guide, its creators share fifty-two simple 'rules' for understanding and enjoying the beautiful game-both on and off the pitch.

Covering the key concepts, tactics and philosophies that are shaping the sport today, How to Watch Football reveals surprising new perspectives on familiar elements of gameplay, while highlighting lesser-known aspects of the industry and its history.

Whether you're a casual fan or a football obsessive, the fifty-two golden rules in this pocket-size guide will deepen your delight in the world's favourite sport.

Genres: Football, Sports, Nonfiction, Soccer

219 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 17, 2022

Reviews

[Stanislav Stanchev · Rating 2 out of 5]

For me, Tifo's "How To Watch Football" was a bad case of high/misguided expectations that were not met at all. Why did I have such high expectations?

The writers produce excellent, in-depth football content on YouTube and on The Athletic. I thoroughly enjoy their videos with special praise for their great tactical breakdowns of teams, coaches and matches. In particular, the tactical analyses by JJ Bull "The Bullet" (one of the contributors to the book) have truly made me better able to watch and understand contemporary football matches.

As such, I had the book on the top of my Christmas wish list and was delighted to receive it as a present. I read it over the Christmas/New Year holidays and felt throughout that I was not really the intended target audience.

The book provides 52 extremely short (although pleasantly illustrated) "chapters" (of maximum two pages each in a small format with loads of space devoted to the illustrations) on various aspects of football - from formations and player roles over various influential coaches in the history of the sport to concepts such as sportswashing and the climate impact of/on football.

Unfortunately, none of the chapters go into any depth at all. Having read a few brilliant football books such as Inverting the Pyramid: The History of Football Tactics, Zonal Marking: The Making of Modern European Football and The Mixer: The Story of Premier League Tactics, from Route One to False Nines, I found myself learning almost nothing new. Some chapters bear promise, delving into the statistics of certain set pieces such as corners and throw-ins, but they merely whet the appetite rather than provide genuine new knowledge.

I was perplexed because the book was of course promoted on the Tifo YouTube channel, which regularly goes into much greater depth about tactics in particular. As such, I wrongly assumed that the target audience would already have a relatively good understanding of the game. The reality is, however, that I highly recommend Tifo's YouTube video content (in particular their Tifo IRL breakdowns of games) to all football fans. This book, however, I can only recommend to someone completely new to the sport, and even then I would probably say that "Inverting the Pyramid" is a much better "if you could only read one football book" candidate.

TL;DR: Too little and too superficial content. I give it two stars rather than one because I acknowledge that for the true target audience (i.e. completely new football fans), there is some nicely formulated content on the history of the sport and some recent tactical themes.

[Sam Dyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

(4.2) I found this book from Tifo nicely pitched. Of the 52 suggestions of how to watch football, there were probably about 15 that were very accessible and quite obvious, pitched at someone who has recently started watching the game.

But the rest of the suggestions were really quite insightful and new to me in some sense. The illustrations are good fun and bring clarity to the point being made.

I particularly enjoyed reading about the history of football and the philosophies of different influential managers and their effect on the game today as well as the intricacies of the transfer market and contracts.

[granolabars · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fair bit went over my head. Very nice illustrations.

[Disha · Rating 3 out of 5]

i am in need of more help than a book can provide. football enjoyers who wants to tutor me

[Benoit Lelièvre · Rating 4 out of 5]

Will this change the way I watch football? A little.

Did I learn any paradigm shifting information about the sport I love? Not really.

I was aware of the coffee table book nature of my purchase before I pre-ordered it last fall, but it's a little counter-intuitive from Tifo not to go deep into a topic. It was fun and easy to read like their YouTube videos are fun and easy to understand, but there's so many topics in there I would've loved a deep dive on like Johan Cruyff ideas or the concept of creating space in football.

JOE DEVINE IF YOU'RE READING THIS, I'D LOVE A PART TWO. MAKE IT THICKER.

[Erik Engberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Managed to read the entire book in one day over a few sittings! Don't remember when I started watching Tifo on YouTube, but it's been years, and I've learned so much about a sport I love as a result (also been reading The Athletic since it started it's UK coverage). This book both has new stuff, particularly the "Know Your Influence" chapters, and also a lot of information I've gotten from videos, but presented in a different way that makes me understand it more better.

The European Super League "launch" really damaged my love for football (Liverpool fan), and my relationship to my club is still irreparably damaged as a result, and I can't be bothered watching much football live anymore. Just highlights from Forest Green, Wrexham and Brighton on YouTube is fine for me. But Tifo Football and the Athletic means I still get to take part in the best sport in the world on a daily basis, and I'm thankful for that.

This book is great for lifelong football fans and newer fans, and I will definitely pick this up and reread multiple times.

[Dom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic book which focuses on the key people / philosophies / concepts of football, summarised through their 52 different ‘rules’ for understanding the game. They describe each rule but don’t go into absolutely huge detail as they do on their YouTube channel, for example. This wasn’t a problem for me though because it felt like it was a quick and easy read.

So if you’re buying a book expecting extremely thorough description into different elements of the game such as sports washing or the importance of scouting, this probably isn’t the book for you.

[Matthew Evans · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book jumps around a lot and does not have any flow or reason to it. It mentions a lot of stuff but then fails to go into further detail. Seems like it just wanted to be a “52 fun facts about soccer” rather than explaining what anything meant. If you have watched at least 3 soccer games. You will have already mastered this book.

[Ron Christiansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great follow up to the 2022 world cup. As a novice fan some of the rules/diagrams were over my head but overall very informative and insightful.

[Elliott Cramer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated throughout, and all the information was explained so well that even if you didn’t know a thing about football, after reading this you certainly would.

[Charlie Cuinnea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Book, made me much more knowledgeable in ball. Coming for Graham Potter’s job I’m that well versed in the dark arts of football now 🙌.

[Christopher Whalen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this short picture book. Some of the stuff was a bit obvious, but I actually learned quite a lot about modern football. The game has changed since my heyday in the 90s. I’ve enjoyed the Tifo videos on YouTube for a while. Intelligent analysis and a real artistic style. I zoomed through this book in a couple of days. It kinda left me wanting more: a bit more depth on interesting topics. Worth a read for anyone: both experienced and inexperienced football fans.

[Ben Ayers · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is more of a coffee table book, but I found it really interesting. It's got a good mix of tips for watching football, summaries of influential figures, explanations of tactics, etc. Really well explained and the art alongside the text (which is also great in its own right) helps to clarify what's being said. Next time I watch football, I'll be keeping an eye out for the half spaces and the corridor of uncertainty...

[Amrit Datta · Rating 3 out of 5]

For the fans of Tifo YouTube channel’s unique artwork based footballing illustrations, this book is a treat, but for the fans of the analysis deep dive on footballing matters that the same Chanel provides on YouTube, this book comes across as a bit shallow.
Its more of a good collectible item for fans of the Chanel than a print version of the deeply analytical content of the tifo YouTube channel.
It still does cover various interesting topics from the world of football, though again not sure if it covers anything holistically either, be it the history of the sport or the tactics. Did learn about some new tactical concepts like pressing triggers and half spaces which I found interesting. But I definitely had higher expectations of the content of the book, being a regular viewer of their YouTube channel.

[Ivan · Rating 1 out of 5]

First of all, it is not a book - it is a booklet. The 200 or so pages are actually 100 as every "chapter" is divided by a two pager illustration. So it's a recurring theme of two pages of content, then two pages acting as a headline for the next chapter. Did I mention it's A5 dimensions, so even less content, a even more filler.

(NOTE: some light chapter title spoilers in the paragraph below)
Furthermore, the information delivered by the book is all over the place. From career summaries of football's greatest contributors, brief explanations of xG, various tactic principles, but bam, then its a short trip to winter breaks and why teams fly into Middle East for pre-season, then a chapter on climate change, then explaining the offside rule, followed by a bit on merchandise income...

It's trying to cover a LOT of stuff but fails to properly explain any of them. The title makes no sense as well, since you'd expect more emphasis on the "watching" part, yet I'm being served a chapter on how a €100m transfer fee for a player with €5m per year salary isn't the same as €100m fee and €10m salary for a different player!?

Very disappointed with the purchase as I expected something completely different. Unfortunately this is aimed at football beginners, and anyone that's in the game for some time (i.e. more than a month...) will not learn anything more than few pieces of trivia, which can be found online as much more interesting reads, and for free. Any of the popular football blogs, let alone niche ones, will give you a plethora of amazing content compared to this.

I read this in 45 minutes, but would likely learn more by watching first half of any football match. Gonna serve as a present for someone else, since that's the only way I can get rid of it.

On a different note, when aimed at beginners, the book's content, writing style and art design are very nicely presented which can surely offer a fun read to many.

[Richard Brooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book.

I would start with a list of disclaimers: Obviously, it won't be of interest unless you're interested in football and understanding it better - which was my situation. Also it's not in classic "book format" - it consists of 52 sections, each of which is a double page spread, with lots of visuals and pictures, and with a slightly "comic book" vibe.

So this was very different to the type of book I'd normally go for.

But, actually, I found it really refreshing. It was a really easy read - but not dull. The 52 rules weren't so much rules as general insights / points, but I felt they'd been well considered to give the reader a good general set of insights into football. It was interesting, enjoyable to read, and after having read it, I now do feel that I understand football slightly more than I did before reading this.

And it's not just on-pitch strategy, it covers wider issues like sports-washing, transfer fees, scouting, etc.

To repeat my opening disclaimer, this book won't be for everyone, but if, like me, you enjoy watching football, but would like to understand the finer nuances and wider discussions around the game, then I would highly recommend this light, enjoyable, and highly informative read.

[Yorben Geerinckx · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ik was al bekend met en fan van Tifo via YouTube, dus ik was benieuwd om te zien hoe ze hun content vertaalden naar een ander medium. Dat hebben ze op zich zeker niet slecht gedaan. Ook in het boek is de lay-out, die zowel leuk (illustraties) als functioneel (grafische voorstellingen) is, een groot pluspunt.

Helaas is het boek niet op maat van een doorwinterde voetbalfan. Er worden veel basisprincipes behandeld of zaken die een voetbalkenner als vanzelfsprekend ervaart, waardoor je weinig bijleert. Bovendien zijn de hoofdstukken ook erg beknopt. Daardoor missen ze de nodige diepgang als er dan toch eens een onbekend thema wordt aangehaald.

Hoewel het boek voor mij dus zeker geen voltreffer was, zou ik het toch nog aanraden aan beginnende voetbalfans. Voor hen lijkt het mij een fijne en toegankelijke manier om bij te leren over alle aspecten van het spelletje: tactiek, historische anekdotes, trainingsmethodes, het financiële en economische aspect, enz.

[Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tifo's pocket-sized coffee table book is a delight that I believe would engage even the most casual of football fans whilst still containing enough interesting tactical analysis to interest die-hard football ultras. As an avid football fan of at least ten years, I can attest that many of the 'rules' included were at least somewhat novel and interesting. Particularly compelling were the "Know Your Influences" sections that detailed the impact of significant figures throughout the history of the world game.

The variety of topics covered was especially pleasing, and although the book can be read in around an hour or two, it made for a surprisingly edifying experience.

The only criticism I have for this book is the garish artwork and layout (this isn't necessarily a criticism of the book in isolation, but of the design language used by the entire Tifo organisation). Tifo have been due for a rebrand for some time now, but this is hardly the platform to air such grievances. Apologies.

[Bach Pham · Rating 4 out of 5]

First and foremost, Tifo is a great football content creating team, with very concise but exciting videos about all topics of football on Youtube.
This book is great. It is not too long to read. The artworks are amazing, and each topic is concise and to the point, yet still very informative and thought-provoking. It is really a nice read for football fans, and it does touch on several topics that are not very familiar to a common fan.
With that being said, the reason I only give 4 stars is because when I bought the book, I though it would be a somewhat in-depth guide about football tactics and off-field management. The book touches on more general topics as well, leaving the content not as in-depth as I though it would be. But that's just a me thing.
Overall a great read. Very engaging and not too long.

[Joel Wakefield · Rating 4 out of 5]

The 4 star rating reflects a blend of a 5 star rating for someone who is not very engaged in soccer but would like to be, and a 3 star rating for someone who follows the game.

The Tifo style is quick, airy, cartoony (though not cartoonish), with glimpses into 52 topics of interest in the game. A really good and easy introduction for someone who is looking for a good and easy introduction.

At the same time, while some of the information may be new to a soccer fan with more history with the game (particularly the quick bios of historical influences on the game and a bit more info on the women's game), there isn't much detail that will be very new or insighful. Two small pages with lots of graphics doesn't give a chance to go beyond the surface of any of the topics, so take it for what it is worth.

[Niks Eehee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do like the Tifo guys and their brilliant and funny podcast as my other half had them on every night during the World cup.
As a non-football watcher with some basic understanding, I couldn't really connect the concepts in the book to what I was watching on screen, or maybe I wasn't sure what to look out for - so it's not really a book for newbies. But I think I was also expecting for it to bridge some kind of gap which it didn't really do, whereas the podcast actually did a better job of it for my understanding. Did love reading about the history of various players, managers, teams and of the game itself. Realistically would have given it a 3.5 rating but rounded up due to the good illustrations and the fun sized chapters.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had looked forward to reading this and whilst I enjoyed it, I do feel a little let down. Thought there would be more depth and detail to it. There were some interesting parts to it, but I just wanted more. A very quick and easy read. Easily read in an hour.

The bad thing for me, was that I purchased the kindle version which is useless as the book is not able to read on a kindle, book is putting it lightly, its more like a PDF. It is incompatible to be read on Kindle devices and it can be read on the Kindle app but you cant zoom in to actually read it, only able to be comfortably read on Kindle for PC. So it loses marks for that. Better off buying the print version.

[Dejan Vukmirovic · Rating 3 out of 5]

This short book is very interesting take on world of football. It shares visual design with Tifo's Youtube channel and is very nicely packed in format where every topic takes 2 pages and has very meaningful and insightful visuals.

A bit of disappointment is the misleading title, at least to me. A number of topics covered actually have nothing with watching the game, but rather are about surrounding themes (finance in football, for example). It's not that those topics are boring, it's just that they are not about what is happening on the pitch. Some other topics (effectiveness of corners, half-space...) are on-spot and useful.

[James R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book would be a great read for anyone that has just discovered football an explainer about all the obscure bits of knowledge that life-long fans talk about and expect others to know. For those that are already familiar with football, this book is a little frustrating as the 52 short chapters give a good but too brief introduction to the ideas they cover. I'd have preferred they covered about half as many topics at twice the depth, as each chapter was slightly disappointing as they were too short to have any real insight for anyone that's not only recently discovered football. Having said all that, the bite-sized chapters are well out together and nicely illustrated.

[Sipho · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

I love Tifo Football's YouTube channel. Since the Russia World Cup, it has been my go to resource for understanding more of the game of football; tactics, the business and sub plots going on behind the scenes.

Naturally, then, I was quite excited when this book was announced.

Reading it, however, was a bit of a let down.

It is essentially a written summary of some of their popular videos, with illustrations to go along. And while it's still quite informative, this book feels like deja-vu if you're a subscriber to the video content.

[Ashish Panda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perhaps ten percent of the chapters provided me with new information. With a lot of superficial information. Such a book is meant for someone just starting to watch the game, or atleast with an intent to do so.

All is not lost, still some paragraphs were interesting especially the chapters about women’s football, ultras of all ahly and why football has 11 players? 😂

Anyway it doesn’t matter if I liked it or not, I would still recommend other Readers to give it a try. Have fun!! Enjoy the illustrations ( that’s what I gave a 4 not 3)

[Nemanja Micovic · Rating 3 out of 5]

In general, the book is ok, but I expected to see more content for the football match itself. Instead, there's a lot of content dedicated to the off the pitch part of the match, and also to short biographies of football figures. While that is interesting, the part of the title HOW TO WATCH FOOTBALL set my expectations to see more of the football match content (types of attacking runs, statistics of football, off-the-ball movement, famous play reconstruction, etc.).

Book is also very short, in general, it's like 2 brief pages for watch rule. I blitzed through the book in 1 day without rush.

[Kamesh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a big fan of Tifo was eagerly waiting for this book to released and reach me in US. The book covered most basic concepts of football and as seasoned football fan I was slightly disappointed but I still love this book and have ordered more to gift to my friends to introduce them to this amazing game !!! I really liked the short chapters and format and I really hope they bring vol 2 with really advanced learning of the game !! Thanks Tifo this was a very pleasant and fast read !!

[Henrik Warne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing. I bought this on a whim when I saw the annoucement that it had been published. There is a good mix of subjects (tactics, economics, historical figures), but there is far from enough written in each chapter. Also, half the book is just spreads with the chapter titel and nothing else. So it is really 108 pages, not 216. The most interesting chapters were on influencers of the game, among them: Johan Cruyff, Arrigo Sacchi, Valeriy Lobanovskyi, and Claude Makélélé.

[Thomas Santarossa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was actually a pretty good book.

Excellent for anyone that likes football and a perfect way to upgrade your knowledge into the world of football if your understanding is limited.

Super easy to read with lots of small and interesting details and bits of information.

If I’m to knit pick, It just felt like I was reading a picture book and would have liked it to go a little further into depth about some things rather than just a brief summary/chapter on each topic.