Teachers and football: schoolboy association football in England, 1885-1915

The 1870 Education Act that opened up elementary education for all children contained no provision for outdoor games. This book explains how teachers, through the elementary school football association, introduced boys to organised football as an out-of-school activity. The influence and significance of this work, insofar as it relates to the elementary school curriculum and the growth of professional and amateur football are explored in detail, including:
* How ideological commitments and contemporary concerns for the physical welfare of children in cities may have led teachers to promote schoolboy football when it was not permitted during school hours.
* The extent to which out of school organised football may have led to outdoor games being accepted as part of the school curriculum
* How elementary school football in London in the late nineteenth century influenced the development of the amateur game
This is a fascinating account of the origins of schoolboy football and the factors that have influenced its development and the consequences and benefits that have followed not only for school football but for sport in schools and communities as a whole.



The Football Manager: A History

Football managers are at the center of today's commercially-driven football world, scrutinized, celebrated and under pressure as never before. This book is the first in-depth history of the role of the manager in British football, tracing a path from Victorian-era amateurism to the highly paid motivational specialists and media personalities of the twenty-first century.

Using original source materials, the book traces the changing character and function of the football manager, covering:

· the origins of football management - club secretaries and early pioneers
· the impact of post-war social change - the advent of the football business
· television and the new commercialism
· contemporary football - specialization and the influence of foreign managers and management practices
· the future of football management

The Football Manager examines the influence of Britain's traditionally pragmatic and hierarchical business management culture onBritish football, and in doing so provides a new and broader perspective on a unique management role and a unique way of life.

For those interested in the history of football and for those interested in management more generally, this book is a valuable new resource.



The Work of Professional Football: A Labour of Love?

The Work of Professional Football: A Labour of Love? presents unique long-term studies and provides rare insights into to the precarious careers and ordinary working culture of professional soccer footballers. Away from the celebrity-obsessed media gaze, the work of a professional footballer is infrequently glamorous and for most players a career in football is insecure and short-lived.

As a former professional soccer player turned academic, Martin Roderick's familiarity with the world of football is foundational to this privileged research into a world that is typically both 'closed' to the public gaze and ignored by media reportage and academic research which prefers to focus on a small, unrepresentative group of elite players. Key themes explored within the text include:

· The culture of work in professional soccer football
· The changing identity, orientation and expectations of players during their career
· The fragile and uncertain nature of careers inprofessional sport
· The performance and drama of a career under public scrutiny
· The role of relationships with managers, owners, support staff and partners
· The insecurities inherent in a football career such as injury, aging, performance and transfer

The text deals with a wide range of issues for sports students and academics, particularly those with a focus on the sociology of sport but also including sport development, sport management and coaching studies. The text will be of interest to researchers in sport studies, careers, industrial relations and the sociology of work.



Football in the New Media Age

Football/soccer in the new media age can often appear ubiquitous, dominating much of the mainstream news and current affairs agenda. The vast amounts of money paid to elite soccer players and the inability of young men to cope with this when combined with their media-fuelled celebrity status have frequently made headlines. However at the core of this process is the battle to control a game which has exploited its position as a key "content provider" for new media developments over the last decade.

Based on extensive interviews with key players in the media and soccer industries, Football in the New Media Age analyzes the impact of media change on the soccer industry. It examines the finances of the game, the importance of rights and rights management in the industry and attempts by clubs themselves to develop their own media capacity. It also explores the key role played by soccer supporters. At the core of the book is an examination of the battle for control of the game as media, business and fans all seek to redefine the sport in the twenty first century.



Science and Football V: The Proceedings of the Fifth World Congress on Sports Science and Football
Science and Football VI: The Proceedings of the Sixth World Congress on Sports Science and Football

Science and Football V and VI presents the edited papers from the Fifth and Sixth World Congress on Science and Football that took place in Portugal in April 2003 and Turkey in January 2007. The collection represents the latest scientific research into the variety of sports known as football such as association football; rugby codes (Union and League); national codes (American, Australian and Gaelic).

A recurring theme for this series of conferences has been a commitment to bridge the gaps between theory and practice in the service of the promotion of high quality applied football science. The book is clearly structured into nine parts and focuses on the following key issues:

* introductory keynote address
* biomechanics and mechanics
* fitness test profiling of footballers
* performance and match analysis
* football medicine
* football training
* paediatric exercise science
* physiology and nutrition
* behavioural and social sciences.

This collection provides valuable information for coaches, players, trainers, managers, medical and support staff, and scientific workers concerned with the range of football codes.



Science and Soccer

This fully revised and updated edition of the classic text Science and Soccer looks at the application of sports science to the world's most popular sport. It explores the latest scientific research and development in every key facet of the game, including: coaching and training techniques, nutritional programs, injury prevention and rehabilitation, and match analysis. Essential reading for support staff, coaches, physiotherapists and psychologists, the book directly addresses the massive expansion of the game in the US, including important new chapters on talent identification and the growth and development of youth players, as well as new research on women soccer players.



The Science of Soccer

For the first time ever, science gives us the answers to questions like "what's the chance of a team that wins the League or Premiership also winning the Cup? Can you predict how many goals will be scored? What's the best height for footballers? Is the winning team the best team?" The Science of Soccer is a fascinating book, dealing with a wide range of subjects where scientific analysis can be applied to football. Starting with a qualitative description of the basic physics that relate to the ball and its bounce, the author then moves through kicks and throws to a simple account of the more complex physics of a ball in flight. Fulfilling your scientific curiosity, this book uncovers aspects of the game that are not normally discussed. It includes a look at game theory, how the rules affect the flow and enjoyment of the game, why the best team does not always win, unusual statistics about players, and an insight into the economics of the game.



The Science of Training - Soccer

Effective athletic training is tailored to suit the specific sporting needs of the athlete. A soccer player needs to develop strength, agility and endurance but their fitness and exercise recovery requirements will vary throughout the soccer season.
In response to the lack of in-depth and up-to-date material focusing on this area, "Science of Athletic Training" provides clear guidelines, an evidence base and a theoretical framework for proven effective soccer training in practice.
Some of the key features in this new manual include:
* annual programme and pre-season training
* avoiding over-training and reducing the risk of injury
* strength, power and anaerobic training
* alternative training for soccer
* nutrition, diet, sleep and lifestyle.
This is a thorough text with impressive attention to detail. The book presents lots of graphic illustrations and explains the research-based rationale for the advice given. This is an essential tool for students and professionals in sports science and sports coaching.



Handbook of Soccer Match Analysis: A Systematic Approach to Improving Performance

Analyzing individual and team play is essential to improving performance in soccer, but identifying the right information and putting it to good use can be tricky. This is the first book to focus entirely on match analysis in the game of soccer.

Representing an essential and unique resource, this handbook looks at the very latest in match analysis research, and at the innovative technologies being used by professional clubs. Bridging the gap between theory and practice, it documents the methods by which coaches, sport scientists and fitness coaches can improve individual and team performance in soccer. The following areas are covered:

· tactics, technical ability and physical fitness
· how to supply objective feedback to players
· how to develop specific training routines
· manual, video and computerized match analysis systems
· current research findings in soccer match analysis

By combining the latest scientific data and methods of analysis with the practical advice needed by those on the sideline, this book breaks new ground and offers a winning glimpse into the future of match analysis.



Nutrition and Football: The FIFA/FMARC Consensus on Sports Nutrition

Nutrition and Football is a FIFA endorsed book which provides the first formal scientific consensus on players’ energy use fluid, and optimal nutritional requirements. Including:

* nutrition for pre-season, training, match play and in different climates
* analysis of the energy and metabolic demands of players in different positions
* water and electrolyte requirements
* strategies to balance effects of stress, over training and over playing
* ideal body composition in professional football
* analysis and interventions to counter late game fatigue
* supplements and nutrition for optimum training adaptation
* the effects of alcohol on metabolism, performance and general health.

Each contributor to this accessible guide is an internationally recognized expert in their field and the chapters embrace all key aspects of nutrition for football. Presenting cutting-edge research, the book has a practical and applied focus and has been developed with input from practicing sports nutrition club professionals.



Youth Soccer:From Science to Performance

Youth Soccer blends contemporary child-focused sports science theory with youth specific coaching practice to help create evidence soccer development strategies for children.



LA84 Foundation Soccer Coaching Manual

This manual covers the fundamentals of managing a high school soccer program and provides information on technique, warm ups, drills, game strategy, rules, sportsmanship, soccer injuries and nutrition. Includes a chapter on the use of Performance Enhancing substances with high school athletes. Nine chapters, 256 pages.



SOCCER-COACH-L Basic Soccer Coaching Manual

Self-published by Soccer Coach L, a mailing list for the discussion of coaching soccer. "A soccer coaching manual for new and experienced coaches of young soccer players (players in the range of 4 to 11 years of age)"



Soccer in a Football World: The Story of America's Forgotten Game

David Beckham’s arrival in Los Angeles represents the latest attempt to jump-start soccer in the United States where, David Wangerin says, it “remains a minority sport.” With the rest of the globe so resolutely attached to the game, why is soccer still mostly dismissed by Americans?

Calling himself “a soccer fan born in the wrong country at nearly the wrong time,” Wangerin writes with wit and passion about the sport’s struggle for acceptance in Soccer in a Football World. A Wisconsin native, he traces the fragile history of the game from its early capitulation to gridiron on college campuses to the United States’ impressive performance at the 2002 World Cup. Placing soccer in the context of American sport in general, he chronicles its enduring struggle alongside the country’s more familiar pursuits and recounts the shifting attitudes toward the “foreign” game. His story is one that will enrich the perspective of anyone whose heart beats for the sport, and is curious as to where the game has been in America—and where it might be headed.



Beckham: Booth Feet on the Ground

So much has been written about David Beckham that it's easy to think we know everything about the world's most famous athlete, but only Beckham himself can set the record straight on his beliefs, his dreams, his loves, his fears, and, above all, his sense of who he is. "Beckham is an intimate account of an extraordinary life, a life in which, against all odds, he has managed to keep both feet on the ground.