Books : Soccer Against the Enemy: How the World's Most Popular Sport Starts and Fuels Revolutions and Keeps Dictators in Power
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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 796.334
EAN num: 9781560258780
ISBN number: 1560258780
Label: Nation Books
Manufacturer: Nation Books
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 320
Printing Date: April 27, 2006
Publishing house: Nation Books
Sale Popularity Level: 246885
Studio: Nation Books
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Product Description:
Soccer is much more than just the most popular game in the world. It is a matter of life and death for millions around the world, an international lingua franca. Simon Kuper traveled to twenty-two countries to discover the sometimes bizarre effect soccer can have on politics and culture. At the same time he tried to discover what makes different countries play a simple game so differently. Kuper meets a remarkable variety of fans along the way, from the East Berliner persecuted by the Stasi for supporting his local team, to the Argentine general with his own views on tactics. He also illuminates the frightening intersection between soccer and politics, particularly in the wake of the attacks of 9-11, where soccer is obsessed over by the likes of Osama bin Laden. The result is one of the world's most acclaimed books on the game, and an astonishing study of soccer and its place in the world.
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Rated by buyers 
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From an American perspective this was just so-so. I only say that due to the lack of background on my part. There were some very interesting stories within the books and others where a better background on my part would have helped.
Rated by buyers -
I read this a few years after reading "How soccer explains the world", so my comparison is based on a shaky memory, with lots of other soccer reading in between....
In some ways, SATE a more interesting read - you can really feel that the author knows soccer much more intimately than Foer (HSETW author) does. And the writing is a little less 'clinical' than the other book, and the extra chapter is nice. But while this book is a series of anecdotes that are entertaining, I thought Foer does a better job making the point implicit in the title.
And the clumsy translation is ridiculous - it's as if the publishers just performed a "search and replace" for "football" and "soccer" - to the point where it's at times confusing: sections about "American soccer" where clearly he meant American Football (=gridiron). I know it's not Shakespeare, but I'd rather read the "real thing".
Rated by buyers 
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I read dozens of books a year and cannot remember laughing out load so many tmes while reading a book. Kuper manages to write both a very interesting history of international soccer and also infuse it with some unbelievably funny dry humor. Other than getting a little dense in the Spain section, the book was awesome. The chapter on Afica is unforgettable. I wish he would write a follow-up.
Rated by buyers 
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I have recently finished this book and besides reading the "Scarlet Letter" by Hawthorne in high school; this has been the most paintful book I have ever read. The premise is a good one: what different countries' take on soccer (football, I'm in America give me a break). However, the chapters seem to not be organized very well. The best chapter which would have been a better introductory chapter "Celtic v. Ranger" was placed near the end of the book. "Celtic v. Rangers" was the most focused and detailed of the book. Now, if Kuper decided to keep this approach throughout the book then I believe I would have loved this book. However, what annoyed me was how Kuper wasted (no offense) three chapters on the Baltics, South Africa (which should have been folded into the general Africa chapter) and on Herrerra (I really got no sense of Italian soccer) and yet wrote a clipped chapter on Brazilian soccer. I actually had to struggle to get through this book and I haven't had that experience for years! The only reason that I am not giving this book a single star is the fact I loved the chapters on Russia, Germany, Brazil (while clipped was good but definitely could have been better) and Celtic v. Rangers.
Rated by buyers -
Soccer Against the Enemy is a book which chronicles the impact that society has upon soccer, and soccer upon society in various countries throughout the world. The author, Simon Kuper, is a Dutch born writer who has been around the world of soccer for most of his life and has written for numerous publications in Europe. The problem for Kuper is that he wrote this book towards the beginning of his career, and there are a few sections of this book where this becomes obvious. The fact that Kuper was a 23 year old traveling the world on an extremely limited budget gives him some excuse for this, and makes it a distraction that isn't too noticeable.
Along with these rough parts, the full title; Soccer Against the Enemy: How the World's Most Popular Sport Starts and Fuels Revolutions and Keeps Dictators in Power, is somewhat misleading. The majority of this book is not focused on this specific statement. Rather, the author spends time examining why soccer culture is the way it is in different countries. He spends time within some chapters addressing dictators and revolutions, notably the section on African soccer, and spends time on it in the Argentina chapter, but for many others, he seemingly ignores politics, or at least politics as we think of them in the traditional sense.
With that said, Kuper does very well in his examination of why soccer is played the way it is. His look into African soccer really gives an insight into what life is like there. He shows the absolute dictatorial rule that many people suffer under, and how soccer can become the one true expression of how people feel. This startling insight can catch the reader off guard.
Kuper looks at all sorts of aspects in the world of soccer. His journey spans five continents and over twenty countries. He talks to politicians, generals, coaches, and players to get a full view of everyones perspective on the game. This perspective is added to by the breadth of teams which he involves himself with. From Barcelona, to Dynamo Kiev, to the United States National Team, Kuper goes everywhere and talks to so many players that the reader really gets a full view of what soccer is throughout the world. The only thing that eclipses Kuper's breadth of teams, is the variety of countries he visits, including but not limited to, Russia, Croatia, South Africa, Cameroon, and Argentina. Kuper's goal is to give perspective from throughout the world, and he succeeds in this.
Kuper's segment on the Celtic v. Rangers rivalry is among the best in the book. It really shows the intensity and history behind the rivalry. This section alone defines the passion that soccer fans around the world have. However, the best section of the book was the add on chapter for the American version. This chapter, entitled Global Game, Global Jihad, details the impact that the game of soccer has on developing Middle Eastern countries in conjunction with radical Islam. It isn't a controversial chapter, just a statement of facts that helps details how soccer has turned so political in that part of the world.
When reading this book it is sometimes slightly confusing as to where exactly the author is trying to go. There are times where the big picture gets lost in the details, but once finished with the chapter everything tends to fall into place. I would suggest this book for a soccer fan of every level. It really gives a good look into why things are the way that they are in certain countries. The look at mafia ties in Eastern Europe, religious convictions, geographical and ethnic divisions, and the plight of third world countries to be noticed reveal stories that are usually kept under wraps in the soccer world. Kuper does a great job explaining these stories, and provides great information that can only come from very first hand accounts like his.
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