We can list all the pros and cons of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) until the beer taps have been turned off and the jukebox disconnected at the wall, but we can be certain of one thing: no one can claim for sure that the VAR has made soccer a better game, or a more […]
Ian Plenderleith
Posted inSoccer America Confidential
'Bitter' defeat for Germany is the underdog's delight
A good World Cup ought to shatter or at least shake assumptions about soccer’s global order, and so far this tournament is delivering. Canada, one of the pre-tournament favorites, is already out, and deservedly so. The USA looks like the mere shadow of a reigning champion. Nigeria beat another fancied team, Australia, on its home […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential
The Soccer Grannies of South Africa: 'Leaving cultural expectations in the dust'
Book review: “Soccer Grannies: The South African Women Who Inspire the World” By Jean Duffy (Rowman & Littlefield) * * * * * * * * * * A dozen or so years ago, I took a group of Over-40 men to a tournament in Miami for a weekend of six-a-side soccer and unlimited socializing. […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential
Soccer's Rules: What's changed for the 2023-24 season
Every summer, soccer’s rule changes tend to creep under the radar unless there’s been a radical move that affects the way we interpret, say, offside or handball. FIFA’s rule-changing arm, the International Football Association Board (IFAB), tends to shy away from necessary changes in favor of tweaking words, muddying definitions, or abolishing some dormant and […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential
'Red Balloons': A soccer book about the real meaning of loss
Book Review: “Red Balloons” By Liam Walsh (Halcyon Publishing) * * * * * * * * * * It’s a common truth that following a team is a way to connect with other people, both close and far away. Liam Walsh relies on the anchor of Swindon Town FC of the English fourth tier […]
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Stuff Yer Superleague! Part 2: Chat with When Saturday Comes
From WSC Photos. * * * * * * * * * * Last week we got to know two of the staff at the UK’s longest-running independent soccer magazine, When Saturday Comes. Editor Andy Lyons and publisher Richard Guy told us about the history of the magazine, and offered us their views on where […]
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A Chat with When Saturday Comes, Part 1: The highs and lows of being an independent magazine
Left to right: Ffion Thomas (deputy editor), Richard Guy (publisher), and Andy Lyons (editor) * * * * * * * * * * In the era of globally branded, all-pervasive super-clubs hogging the hype and dominating the honors, there’s a certain kind of soccer fan who loves nothing more than an underdog. That doesn’t […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential
Book Review: Franz Beckenbauer's story, flaws and all
The Three Lives of the Kaiser By Uli Hesse (Simon & Schuster) * * * * * * * * * * A new English-language biography of Franz Beckenbauer has divided his life up into three sections: as a graceful, game-winning libero for Bayern Munich (three times European Cup champion) and the German national team […]
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Decoding FIFA's Big Sensational (BS) 2026 World Cup Brand Launch Thing
Early last year I unveiled the FIFA Language Analysis Machine (FLAM), a device that was able to decode FIFA President Gianni Infantino‘s 2022 New Year’s Speech. FIFA is already cooking up a storm of chronic Big Sensationalism (BS) way ahead of the 2026 World Cup, so I fired it up again this week during the […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential
European Champions League is peak soccer. But can a brand have a soul?
The first legs of last week’s European Champions’ League semifinals delivered two highly watchable games. After around 150 years of professional soccer, we may have reached a new peak in terms of speed, skill and quality. During Real Madrid against Manchester City in particular I wowed out loud at the spectacle. Inter Milan’s first-half display […]