The conundrum of Concacaf, Canada and Costa Rica Soccer is an absurd game, and cup tournaments can effect random and bizarre patterns of unexpected success and failure. That’s why we love the game, right? Maybe not so much if you’re Canadian, and you watched your team outplay one of the favorites, Belgium, and start out […]
Ian Plenderleith
Posted inSoccer America Confidential, Story
World Cup 2022 group games, first round: A surfeit of VAR, politics and stoppage time
VAR! What is it good for? It took all of three minutes for the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) to start spoiling this World Cup. As if it needed any further dampeners after years of discussions about the way millions of migrant workers have been – and continue to be — exploited and mistreated in Qatar. […]
Posted inStory, Youth Soccer Insider
Ref Watch: The goalkeeper's tears, and a penalty
The following is an excerpt from Ian Plenderleith‘s latest book, “Reffing Hell: Stuck in the middle of a game gone wrong.” Illustrated by Tim Bradford (Halcyon Publishing) “Thrice he assay’d, and thrice, in spite of scorn, Tears, such as angels weep, burst forth.” — John Milton (Paradise Lost) * * * * * * * * * […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential, Story
Uncovering FIFA's all very well, but what about the future?
REVIEW: FIFA Uncovered (Netflix documentary, 4 episodes) If you want to remind yourself just how insanely corrupt world soccer’s governing body FIFA has been since the mid 1970s, then the new four-part Netflix documentary, “FIFA Uncovered,” is a very well re-constructed history from the time that Joao Havelange took over the FIFA presidency in 1974, […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential, Story
World Cup Books, Part 3: How fans can achieve real and lasting change
Power Players: Football in Propaganda, War and Revolution By Ronny Blaschke (Pitch) * * * * * * * * * * It’s over two years since we talked to German author Ronny Blaschke, just as his book “Power Players: Football in Propaganda, War and Revolution” was published in German. The book that we described as […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential, Story
World Cup Book Review, Part 2: Searching for the real Qatar
Inside Qatar: Hidden Stories from one of the Richest Nations on Earth By John McManus (Icon) An Armchair Fan’s Guide to the World Cup: the Story of how Football came to the Desert By Jon Berry (Pitch) Qatar 2022: the Tiny Nation that Dreamed Big By ND Prashant (Pitch) The country of Qatar “doesn’t have […]
Posted inSoccer America Confidential, Story
World Cup Book Review, Part 1: Dictatorship, USA 94, and the greatest upsets
Over the coming weeks, Ian Plenderleith will be reviewing a selection of the more interesting books that have been published ahead of the 2022 World Cup. * * * * * * * * * * • Blood on the Crossbar: the Dictatorship’s World Cup By Rhys Richards (Pitch) • USA 94: The World Cup […]