The Football Weekly Book

by Jonathan Wilson (Editor), Barry Glendenning (Editor), Max Rushden (Editor)

Enter the world of soccer’s most popular podcast.

Football Weekly -- the biggest football (that's soccer to you) podcast in the world – has decided the time (and money) is right for their first book. It will contain all the nonsense jokes, off-the-wall trivia and occasional insightful remarks that has more than half a million listeners tuning in every week. Expect all the trademark humour of their hugely successful live shows,  

- Max Rushden and Barry Glendenning’s blind date - Mark Langdon’s ‘World of Meat’ 
- Jonathan Liew’s ‘You Are the Ref’
- Ben Fisher’s ‘Guide to Carparks’
- Snakes and Blatters, a thrilling new board game set in the Machiavellian world of FIFA politics
- Philippe Auclair’s no-holds-barred account of everything that is wrong at FIFA [redacted]
- And an exclusive David Squires cartoon 
Edited by Jonathan Wilson, the annual will feature the full pod line-up Barry Glendenning -- Max Rushden -- Barney Ronay -- Jonathan Liew -- Suzie Wrack -- Nicky Bandini -- David Squires -- Jordan Jarrett-Bryan – Elis James – Nedum Onuoha – John Brewin

Genres: Football, Sports, Nonfiction

99 pages, Hardcover

Published November 28, 2023

About the author

Jonathan Wilson is a British sports journalist and author who writes for a number of publications including the Guardian, the Independent and Sports Illustrated. He also appears on the Guardian football podcast, Football Weekly.

Reviews

[Eamonn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good silly fun 😁

[Shaun Dyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Football Weekly Book is very much what you'd expect if you listen to the show, and why would you be buying this book if you don't? It has the feel of an old Shoot! Annual only with more anecdotes about vasectomies and accidentally soiling yourself on a German train.

It is a fun, easy read from start to finish, but I particularly enjoyed the 'Focus On' sections, where you learn more about the panellists. It is also well put together with some brilliant David Squires art, and there is even a photo of Efe Sodje!

It's great fun if you're into this kind of nonsense.

[Doug Newdick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three stars if you are a Football Weekly listener only! Two stars (or even one star) if you are not. Basically this is 90 odd pages of in-jokes for regular listeners. And they are well done, and very witty, but impenetrable to anyone other than the dedicated fans who understand Jonathan Wilson's obsession with Hungarian football, Barry's Munich incident, Mark Langdon's dislike of vegetables, John Brewin's music snobbery and Jordan Jarret-Bryan's hot takes.

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable read, but very much directed to listerners of the podcast. Whilst that is understandable, an opportunity may have been missed to use it as an introduction/gateway for those that do not listen to it.

If a long time listener you get exactly what you'd expect, with the dry humour and in jokes threaded throughout. Good to relax reading on a lazy weekend afternoon or evening

[Hein Matthew Hattie · Rating 5 out of 5]

For fans only, a gift book of inside jokes and content-light graphics about the Guardian Football (soccer) Weekly podcast. I’ve had it by my bedside since New Year’s, reading a couple pages before napping when needing some fluff. So I guess technically this took me five months to read, which makes it a bargain.

[Zosia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Only worth a read if you're a die-hard fan of Football Weekly. If you're not, you won't understand a thing, it's ninety pages of inside jokes.
That being said, I adore my leftist snowflake football podcast and I enjoyed reading this immensely.

[Benet · Rating 4 out of 5]

An homage to annual sports roundup magazines that is full of inside jokes for pod listeners - made me laugh out loud many times.

[Jonny Brick · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun idea which even has deliberate typographical errors. Fans of the pod will get the in-jokes, while newcomers have been brought up to speed. Genuine football history and lots of bantz.

[Harry Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very funny but a LOT of filler and a few factual inaccuracies

[Philip R · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great! Just like the Beano annual. They will have to do one every year now.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Didn't know what to expect from this, and yet it was exactly as anticipated.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book full of great anecdotes from my favourite footballing podcast, a long with some great stories from the game that I didn’t know about either.

[Seth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun for fans. Good Squires comic, glad to see Neville Southall on a few pundits' best 11's, kept me busy for an evening.

[Jamie Summers · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining read.

[James Lees · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant - all the in jokes and witty takes I could have ever wanted in written format (instead of directly plugged into my ears).

Barry and Max are my heroes

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Better than I'd expected, with more than merely rehashing of inside jokes and some good graphic design and a bit of personality, and I quite liked the profiles. Better than the similar offering by Second Captains and wasn't on weird-smelling paper either.