How Soccer Explains the World
The American version of football has tried to expand itself throughout the world by having teams, such as the New England Patriots, play in international places, such as London. Those games do draw a crowd for sure, and the stadium fills itself without any sort of problem, yet, somehow American football is not a popular sport in places other than the United States of America.
Soccer, otherwise known as football in many parts of the world, has the ability to draw people together from all over the world. The United States roots for its team, Brazil roots for their players, and so on and so forth. People from all over the world play soccer and love to watch the World Cup; this is the sport that can build up a country’s pride and a sport that can be played by five year olds in their own backyard.
As How Soccer Explains the World states, “soccer is much more than a game, or even a way of life.” Written by Franklin Foer, this book is a different outlook on a theory of globalization. It is a novel that brings its readers on a remarkably insightful tour through the world of soccer. Not only does he write about soccer as a sport but also about how it causes civilizations to mingle and how soccer is related to the international economy.
It is a National Bestseller that has been quoted by Joe Queenan of the New York Times Book Review to be “An eccentric, fascinating exposé of a world most of us know nothing about.” When he says “most of us,” he is referring to Americans–who are more about the sports of baseball and football rather than soccer.
Foer’s proposes a pretty interesting theory about the world and globalization that is worth the read. Though there are parts of it that are difficult to agree with due to the facts that Foer presents, I definitely would have to say that Foer has provided me with some interesting outlooks on the world, and it can be represented through the sport of soccer.
