The Ball is Round: A Global History of Football

The Ball is Round traces soccer's complete history from its ancient origins through its modern incarnation as the world's most popular sport. This comprehensive chronicle covers the game's development across continents and cultures over thousands of years. The narrative moves chronologically through key periods including soccer's codification in 19th century Britain, its global spread during colonial expansion, and its evolution through both World Wars. Goldblatt examines the sport's role in major social movements, political upheavals, and economic transformations across different regions and eras. The book integrates detailed accounts of memorable matches and players with broader historical context about the cultures and societies that shaped the game. The text covers both men's and women's soccer, professional and amateur levels, and the growth of soccer institutions from local clubs to FIFA. This work ultimately reveals soccer as a lens for understanding power, identity, and social change throughout human civilization. Through the story of one sport, Goldblatt illuminates the forces that have shaped the modern world.

Readers describe this as a thorough but dense examination of football's social and political history. Many appreciate the depth of research and global scope, particularly the coverage of football in Africa, Asia and South America. Liked: - Cultural analysis connecting football to broader historical events - Coverage of lesser-known episodes in football history - Detailed research and extensive citations Disliked: - Writing style can be academic and dry - Some sections become overly technical about economics and politics - Length (900+ pages) makes it challenging to read cover-to-cover - European focus despite global ambitions Ratings: Goodreads: 4.25/5 (1,024 ratings) Amazon: 4.4/5 (89 ratings) Common reader comment: "Incredibly informative but requires dedication to get through." A LibraryThing reviewer noted: "The depth of information is remarkable but the writing style lacks narrative flow." Several Amazon reviewers mentioned struggling to finish despite finding the content valuable.

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🌍 While writing this comprehensive history of football, David Goldblatt reviewed over 1,000 books and articles, documenting the sport's evolution across six continents. ⚽ The book's title references a FIFA law stating "the ball shall be spherical" - a rule that has remained unchanged since 1872. 👥 Goldblatt explores how football became intertwined with political movements, including how Brazilian dictator Getúlio Vargas used the 1938 World Cup team to promote his nationalist agenda. 📚 At nearly 1,000 pages, it remains one of the longest single-volume histories of football ever published in English. 🎓 Despite being considered a leading football historian, Goldblatt never played the sport professionally - he was a sociology lecturer before becoming a sports writer.