Sam Berkeley

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About the World Cup. Volume One: 1930-1954 Sam Berkeley

Books on the World Cup fall into two types: some are weighty, detailed and reasonably accurate but inaccessible, for the most hardcore of fans only; others are funny, easy to read and a great introduction but pack little punch and leave plenty of stones unturned. There is nothing in the middle. But why not? What if there were something which both World Cup veterans and novices could pick up and enjoy, with all the info and all the drama, all the stats and all the weirdest incidents? There is now. This series of books covers both bases: it looks at every single match of every single tournament in encyclopedic detail, not missing a single kick; but it also searches out the fascinating, the extraordinary, the memorable and brings them out of the text, highlighting the pick of the action. This volume looks in detail at the earliest years of the World Cup, from its first incarnation in Uruguay in 1930 through to Switzerland 1954 and one of the greatest footballing upsets of all time.