What do you think?
Rate this book
Twenty Football Towns
'A fabulous book...quirky and witty...as addictive as football itself.' Michael Crick
In our world of global superstar footballers, it's easy to forget the grassroots of a sport where loyalty to a hometown club is often rock solid - and counts for everything. Even as local communities come under threat, football fandom still pulls us together. But why is this? What is the special magic that connects towns and teams?
For many of us, the local club offers it all: passion, hope, heartache, drama. And a sense of belonging. The town where we grew up and all the places we've lived are the bedrock of our lives, and memories of seeing the local team play are inextricably intertwined with our sense of place and identity.
Steve Leach spends a year visiting the twenty towns and clubs that are special to him. He celebrates the distinctiveness of these places, the fascinating differences between Lincoln and Leyton, Barrow and Birmingham, Macclesfield and Morecambe -towns and teams that may not be glamorous, but they are unique and, more importantly, they are home.
In our world of global superstar footballers, it's easy to forget the grassroots of a sport where loyalty to a hometown club is often rock solid - and counts for everything. Even as local communities come under threat, football fandom still pulls us together. But why is this? What is the special magic that connects towns and teams?
For many of us, the local club offers it all: passion, hope, heartache, drama. And a sense of belonging. The town where we grew up and all the places we've lived are the bedrock of our lives, and memories of seeing the local team play are inextricably intertwined with our sense of place and identity.
Steve Leach spends a year visiting the twenty towns and clubs that are special to him. He celebrates the distinctiveness of these places, the fascinating differences between Lincoln and Leyton, Barrow and Birmingham, Macclesfield and Morecambe -towns and teams that may not be glamorous, but they are unique and, more importantly, they are home.
272 pages, Paperback
Published August 6, 2020
4 people are currently reading
37 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
November 18, 2022
Like football itself, this book is a game of two halves. Each chapter features a different location, which is then divided into two parts, the author’s recollection of the location/background info and history, and then a match report. I found that the first part was very interesting but then the match reports are often disappointing, I suppose it depends on the quality of the match but they sometimes develop into generic match reports like you’d read in the paper. Having said all that it’s a good book, well worth a read or if you need some facts or trivia about any of the locations then it’s perfect!
January 1, 2023
Neat to hear about the places I've been, interesting history of the others, if a little before my time.
August 23, 2023
Strong authorial voice with added memoir from a life well lived (Steve, who was at university in the early 1960s, is now retired). Let down on occasion by incorrect football knowledge but this doesn't detract too much from the social geography, reportage and quotation from Danny Gray's books on football fan culture.
April 26, 2024
Excellent combination of local UK geography and 2018-20 lower league football
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews