Chapters
1. Chasing the Sun
Ancient ball games, and the rise and fall of folk football. read extract
2. Growing Pains
Football’s 19th-century revolution in Britain’s public schools. read extract
3. Ball of Confusion
Soccer and rugby gradually grow apart in the 1860s and 70s. read extract
4. Pigskin Pioneers
Early football in the United States, and how Ivy League students turned rugby into a game of their own. read extract
5. Workers’ Playtime
The working-class invasion of soccer and rugby in northern England, leading to professionalism and rugby’s ‘Great Split’. read extract
6. The World’s Game, Part 1
Soccer conquers Europe and South America. read extract
7. The Gaelic Game
The story of Gaelic football, and its place in Irish culture and politics. read extract
8. The Men of Mark
Australian Rules football, from its birth in 19th-century Melbourne to today. read extract
9. Carrying the Union Flag
Rugby union’s evolution since the 1895 breakaway by the Northern Union. read extract
10. Gridiron Glory
American football graduates from its college roots into the big-money behemoth of today. read extract
11. In a League of Their Own
How rugby league grew into a distinct sport, with its own rules, style and culture. read extract
12. The World’s Game, Part 2
Soccer’s world domination continues after World War II. read extract
13. Radically Canadian?
The tangled roots of Canadian football. read extract
14. Oddballs
A round-up of some lesser-known football sports. read extract
Epilogue: The Ghosts of Football Past read extract
Ancient ball games, and the rise and fall of folk football. read extract
2. Growing Pains
Football’s 19th-century revolution in Britain’s public schools. read extract
3. Ball of Confusion
Soccer and rugby gradually grow apart in the 1860s and 70s. read extract
4. Pigskin Pioneers
Early football in the United States, and how Ivy League students turned rugby into a game of their own. read extract
5. Workers’ Playtime
The working-class invasion of soccer and rugby in northern England, leading to professionalism and rugby’s ‘Great Split’. read extract
6. The World’s Game, Part 1
Soccer conquers Europe and South America. read extract
7. The Gaelic Game
The story of Gaelic football, and its place in Irish culture and politics. read extract
8. The Men of Mark
Australian Rules football, from its birth in 19th-century Melbourne to today. read extract
9. Carrying the Union Flag
Rugby union’s evolution since the 1895 breakaway by the Northern Union. read extract
10. Gridiron Glory
American football graduates from its college roots into the big-money behemoth of today. read extract
11. In a League of Their Own
How rugby league grew into a distinct sport, with its own rules, style and culture. read extract
12. The World’s Game, Part 2
Soccer’s world domination continues after World War II. read extract
13. Radically Canadian?
The tangled roots of Canadian football. read extract
14. Oddballs
A round-up of some lesser-known football sports. read extract
Epilogue: The Ghosts of Football Past read extract