Football constitutes a vivid public ritual in contemporary European culture through which emergent social solidarities and new economic networks have come into being. This fascinating and unique volume traces the transformation of European football from the 1950s to the present, focusing in particular on the dramatic changes that have occurred in the last decade and linking them to the wider process of European integration. The examination of football illuminates how the growing dominance of the free market has changed European society from an international order in which the nation-state was dominant to a more complex transnational regime in which cities and regions are becoming more prominent than in the past. The study is supported by detailed ethnographic accounts emerging from the author's fieldwork at Manchester United and interview data with some of the most important figures in European football at clubs including Juventus, Milan, Bayern Munich, Schalke and Barcelona. It also includes a highly topical examination of racism in European football.

In recent years, scholars have understood the increasing use of the St George’s Cross by football fans to be evidence of a rise in a specifically ’English’ identity. This has emerged as part of a wider ’national’ response to broader political processes such as devolution and European integration which have fragmented identities within the UK. Using the controversial figurational sociological approach advocated by the twentieth-century theorist Norbert Elias, this book challenges such a view, drawing on ethnographic research amongst fans to explore the precise nature of the relationship between contemporary English national identity and football fan culture. Examining football fans’ expressions of Englishness in public houses and online spaces, the author discusses the effects of globalization, European integration and UK devolution on English society, revealing that the use of the St George’s Cross does not signal the emergence of a specifically ’English’ national consciousness, but in fact masks a more complex, multi-layered process of national identity construction. A detailed and grounded study of identity, nationalism and globalization amongst football fans, English National Identity and Football Fan Culture will appeal to scholars and students of politics, sociology and anthropology with interests in ethnography, the sociology of sport, fan cultures, globalization and contemporary national identities.

Football has undergone a period of transformation over the last thirty years. Despite these global processes, different national leagues have adapted in different ways. After an initial period of success directly after Italia '90, Italian football has gone through a period of sustained crisis. It has been blighted by financial mismanagement, corruption scandals and fan violence. This has impacted Italy's ability to compete on a global stage. Football Italia accounts for the development of Italian football in relation to the wider global transformations impacting football and addresses the reasons for Serie A's initial success and current malaise. Theoretically, this book locates Italian football within the wider power network of the state and how this has impacted political engagement. After an historical overview of the Italian political economy, Football Italia highlights how football is part of the wider political network. Football clubs are owned by powerful businessmen (and they are all men) who are also politicians. This centralisation of power within a small hegemonic group inhibits change. Within this broader structure, wider corruption scandals continue; from regular match-fixing scandals to doping. Meanwhile, stadiums are crumbling and police over-aggressive. It is within this context that we must place the fans. Both the ultras and supporters who attend official supporters' clubs are disaffected and without the power to change the status quo. Consequently, Italian football has been in decline throughout the 21st century.

The English Premier League (EPL) is one of the world’s most valuable and high-profile sports leagues, with millions of fans around the globe. The 2016/17 season marked the 25th anniversary of the EPL, providing a unique opportunity to reflect on how it has contributed, both positively and negatively, to key developments in football – and in sport and culture more broadly – at local, national and global levels. Drawing on central themes in the social scientific study of sport, such as globalisation, celebrity, fandom, commercialisation, gender, sexuality and race, this book is the first to assess the historical development and current significance of the EPL. With original contributions from several of the world’s leading football scholars, it provides in-depth case studies of the multifaceted role of the EPL in the contemporary world of sport, as well as offering thought-provoking predications for the future challenges that it will face. The English Premier League: A Socio-Cultural Analysis is a fascinating read for any sport studies student or scholar with a particular interest in football and the sociology of sport.

The Queens of Europe is a series of books that tells the history of the greatest European Football Clubs. A collection of images, logos, data, uniforms, records, statistics, unobtainable photos and never written statistics will tell you the story of the greatest clubs in Europe. The history of UEFA club competitions, the champions of the continent and the finalist teams, the historical logos of the clubs, the historical kits, the appearances records and the goalscorers who made the history of the clubs, the coaches, the tactics, the palmarés and the cups won by the great teams, the individual trophies won by the players, the attendance records, the greatest victories, the historic stadiums and much more. The Part 1 will tell you the legend of Real Madrid, AC Milan, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Barcelona and Ajax. The Queens of Europe è una collana di libri che racconta la storia dei più grandi club di calcio europei. Una raccolta di immagini, loghi, dati, divise, record, statistiche, foto introvabili e statistiche mai scritte vi racconteranno la storia dei più grandi club d'Europa. La storia delle competizioni UEFA per club, i campioni del continente e le squadre finaliste, i loghi storici dei club, le divise storiche, i record di presenze e i marcatori che hanno fatto la storia dei club, gli allenatori, le tattiche, i palmarés e le coppe vinte dalle grandi squadre, i trofei individuali vinti dai giocatori, i record di spettatori, le vittorie più importanti, gli stadi storici e tanto altro. La prima parte ti racconterà la leggenda di Real Madrid, Milan, Bayern Monaco, Liverpool, Barcellona e Ajax. The Queens of Europe es una serie de libros que cuenta la historia de los grandes clubes de fútbol europeos. Una colección de imágenes, logos, datos, uniformes, récords, estadísticas, fotos inalcanzables y estadísticas nunca escritas te contarán la historia de los mejores clubes de Europa. La historia de las competiciones de clubes de la UEFA, los campeones del continente y los equipos finalistas, los logos históricos de los clubes, las equipaciones históricas, los récords de presencias y los goleadores que hicieron la historia de los clubes, los entrenadores, la táctica, el palmarés y las copas ganadas por los grandes equipos, los trofeos individuales ganados por los jugadores, los récords de asistencia, las mayores victorias, los estadios históricos y mucho más. La primera parte te contará la leyenda del Real Madrid, AC Milan, Bayern de Múnich, Liverpool, Barcelona y Ajax. The Queens of Europe ist eine Buchreihe, die die Geschichte der größten europäischen Fußballvereine erzählt. Eine Sammlung von Bildern, Logos, Daten, Uniformen, Aufzeichnungen, Statistiken, nicht erhältlichen Fotos und nie geschriebenen Statistiken erzählt Ihnen die Geschichte der größten Vereine Europas. Die Geschichte der UEFA-Klubwettbewerbe, die Meister des Kontinents und die Finalistenmannschaften, die historischen Logos der Vereine, die historischen Trikots, die Einsätze rekorde und die Torschützen, die die Geschichte der Vereine geschrieben haben, die Trainer, die Taktiken, die Palmarés und die Pokale der großen Mannschaften, die einzelnen Trophäen der Spieler, die Zuschauerrekorde, die größten Siege, die historischen Stadien und vieles mehr. Im ersten Teil erfahren Sie mehr über die Legenden von Real Madrid, AC Mailand, Bayern München, Liverpool, Barcelona und Ajax.