So Much More Than That: A British Journey of Football, Industry, War and Migration

by Hannah Grainger

Overview

Football's culture is complex and controversial. Debates rage over rules, transfers, wages and rich owners who prioritise income streams and elite league status. But the sport has a nobler side. Clubs become families who celebrate the good times and collectively mourn tragic events. This community culture is embedded in football and the same questions have been asked for generations. What is a fair salary? How can we help to educate and support children and families in need? Who stands up for the rights of the voiceless? This book journeys through the industrial heartlands in and around Glasgow, Birmingham and Manchester to explore how migration, industry and the aspirations of working-class people and their employers influenced the early structure and culture of English and Scottish football. Often serious, sometimes funny, it reveals how ordinary people experienced life and the rise of the beautiful game in the 19th and 20th centuries, drawing on material from club archives, newspapers, personal anecdotes and military records.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781801505185
Publisher:	Pitch Publishing Ltd
Publication date:	01/16/2023
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	352
File size:	39 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Hannah Grainger-Clemson is a sports fan, coach and amateur athlete with a social sciences doctorate from the University of Oxford. She has written journal articles and book chapters based on community projects and historical research, and has worked in social and cultural policy development across Europe.

Editorial Reviews

"Has football lost its soul? With major clubs being snapped up by Third World dictatorships while those in the lower divisions either face financial oblivion or are left at the mercy of opportunist developers, it certainly seems so. This excellent book recalls a time before all that, when the once beautiful game was still young and rooted in its local communities, and to some extent that spirit still lives on, especially in the lower reaches of the football pyramid. Mixing family recollections with in-depth archive research the book shows how the aspirations of working-class people in the major industrial conurbations found expression through football, the sense of community and shared purpose providing a haven and comfort in hard times. It’s full of great stories, and some brilliant, evocative photos."

Choice Magazine, Pick of the Paperbacks - Simon Evans