By Lawrence Ostlere for The Independent

For much of the past decade, dominating possession was almost a prerequisite for success in the Premier League. That relationship is beginning to weaken as pressing, quick transitions and defensive organisation challenge the value of keeping the ball. Has possession football become obsolete?

Náutico: Rowing against the tide

By João Mário Prado for Terrace Edition

In the Brazilian city of Recife, Náutico’s historic Aflitos stadium blends into the neighbourhood that surrounds it. This beautiful photo essay captures the club’s matchday culture, from the streets outside the ground to the supporters filling its terraces.

Yesterday’s Men? The Slow Fading of Max Allegri and Luciano Spalletti

Via

Italian football has long placed its faith in experienced managers, but the fortunes of three such managers is challenging that belief. Max Allegri, Luciano Spalletti and Maurizio Sarri are struggling at their respective clubs raising questions on whether football has left their ideas behind.

Bonus Read: How Massimiliano Alvini Built Frosinone’s Miracle

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Frosinone’s remarkable rise owes much to their manager, a former shoe salesman who learned his trade in the lower leagues.

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The Real Champions League

By for

While Europe’s elite competition increasingly rewards clubs from its wealthiest leagues, the African version lives up to its name. Domestic champions must earn their place whilst qualification is unforgiving with even established giants facing the prospect of an early exit. Just as a true competition bearing a champions name should be.

Leipzig: Beyond Red Bull

By Adrián Morales for

RB Leipzig may have brought the city international recognition, but its football history stretches back much further and true football fans look beyond the franchise. Chemie Leipzig and Lokomotive Leipzig have both survived political upheaval and financial meltdown, kept alive by supporters unwilling to lose their clubs’ identities. Their rivalry remains fierce, even as both struggle far below the Bundesliga.

Bonus Read: Where Giants Have Fallen

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More than 21,000 supporters gathered to watch Real Murcia face Real Zaragoza in Spain’s third tier; a fixture that once belonged in La Liga.

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In Case You Missed It Here’s Last Week’s Most Read: 10 unwritten rules of English football

By Joey D’Urso for Joey D’Urso’s football

English football has unwritten rules, many of which are perfectly obvious to regular supporters but can surprise visitors. From where you sit to how you react when your team loses, these small customs are all part of the culture of watching football in England. Ignore them at your peril.

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The following is an extract from the book The Messi Effect: How the Global Legend Changed the Future of American Soccer by Paul Tenorio. It is available for purchase here. Copyright © 2026 by the author, and reprinted with permission of St. Martin’s Publishing Group.

The lasting impact of the buzz around Lionel Messi in MLS was already being put to the test after the league’s three-month offseason.

Going into the 2024 season, Messi’s presence in Miami wasn’t dominating new cycles as it had the previous summer, but it was still generating lucrative opportunities. Inter Miami was intent on cashing in. It scheduled a three-week preseason tour on which Inter Miami would cover more than twenty thousand miles and circumnavigate the globe—to El Salvador and Dallas, to Saudi Arabia and Hong Kong, and to Japan and back to Fort Lauderdale.

Now, some 7,500 miles away from home, stark realities for MLS, Inter Miami, and Messi were setting in. It was February 1, 2024, and the final whistle had just sounded on Inter Miami’s second game in Saudi Arabia, a 6–0 drubbing by Al Nassr.

A shirtless Messi stepped into the middle of a silent postgame locker room at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh and looked around at his teammates.

“Guys,” Messi started, the emotion in his voice rising. “We can’t play like that. We can’t not compete. It’s unacceptable.” Six days into the junket’s Asian leg, frustrations were boiling over.

One player, a bright young winger named Facundo Farias, was lost for the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) suffered during the opener in El Salvador two weeks prior. Players hardly felt like getting on a plane to travel across the world for meaningless friendly games, even less after the biggest draw of the tour—one final meeting between rivals Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi in an Al Nassr versus Inter Miami showdown, billed as “One Last Dance” was off the table. Ronaldo was injured and wasn’t going to appear in the friendly.

“When Ronaldo got hurt, it was just like, why are we even going now?” Inter Miami defender Noah Allen recalled.

Miami lost its first game to Al Hilal 4–3 in an entertaining if error-filled contest three days earlier in Saudi Arabia. Messi, who played eighty-eight minutes in that loss, approached the second exhibition in Riyadh dealing with muscle fatigue. Inter Miami initially published a team sheet absent its star’s name, only for the Argentine to emerge for warm-ups wearing cleats and a jersey, much to the crowd’s delight. The club deleted its first post and released a new graphic featuring Messi’s name on the list of substitutes.

From the street, the Kingdom Arena looked a bit like a giant Neiman Marcus at an American shopping mall. Built in just 180 days, in part to host these games, the stadium included a high wall of suites looming over one sideline and fans stacked around the other three. The vertical design lent a gladiator style feel to the arena. A block away, the Riyadh Season festival was in full bloom: A Ferris wheel shined in purple neon, a roller coaster rumbled past every other minute, and a mini-Vegas– like sphere lit up the skyline. It was yet another facet of the show the Saudi league was putting on for the world.

Inter Miami was the first guest at the Kingdom Arena, and it had not gone well for the American side.

For eighty-three minutes, Messi watched as Al Nassr ran through his team. The Saudi side led 3–0 at halftime. The rest of Miami’s Big Four spent more time throwing their arms in the air in frustration than creating anything with the ball at their feet. Al Nassr added another three goals in the second half.

After every tally, the stadium’s video board cut to a split screen. The eternal rivals weren’t sharing the field, but they remained the center of conversation. On one side, Messi leaned back in his seat on the bench; on the other, Ronaldo’s Cheshire-cat grin told the whole story. The crowd roared with its approval each time. And each time, Messi seemed to recline farther, making it a bit harder for the cameras to get a good angle.

Miami’s star No. 10 played the last seven minutes, fulfilling a contractual obligation. His cameo added additional insult to the lopsided affair. Messi’s name was now in the box score of a 6–0 defeat.

When Inter Miami returned to its locker room, a frustrated Messi walked into the center of the space. Then he started to speak. For nearly three minutes, he excoriated the group. His teammates had treated the match too much like the meaningless friendly it actually was. But Messi knew the result would be reported as anything but that.

“We should want to play these games,” Messi seethed to the defeated locker room. “If you guys don’t wake up, we’ll go home now.”

As he entered his twentieth season as a professional, Messi had long ago learned that every appearance on the field was an assessment, validation, or challenge to his legacy. That scrutiny extended to the club and league he represented. So, yes, the players’ frustrations about the tour were valid. Yes, they were four games into the preseason and playing an opponent in midseason form. Yes, jumping through time zones on a globe-trotting odyssey was far from an ideal way to prepare for the MLS campaign. And yes, the Saudi clubs had a distinct economic and thus quality advantage over Miami, even with its household names. But none of that mattered.

To Messi, the ninety minutes that had just unfolded lacked any sort of understanding by his teammates that Inter Miami represented something bigger now. He was right. Around the world, this wasn’t a preseason game. It was taken as an assessment of MLS. Inter Miami didn’t have the luxury of an off night or the leeway to shake off its preseason rust. Not if it was going to be Messi’s team. There was an obligation to meet a certain standard, to always want to win every game.

Always.

He ended the verbal lashing with a message: “From here on out, we’re going to win everything.”

There were ten months left in the 2024 season. Winning everything was an impossible mandate, but it was the standard Messi had long imposed—on himself as much as on the teams around him. Anything but striving to be the best was unacceptable, but that didn’t fit within the structure of MLS. Messi didn’t care.

Inter Miami assistant coach Javier Morales stood next to Messi, tasked with translating his words for the team’s English speakers. The forty-four-year-old Argentine and former MLS star felt blessed to be on the staff coaching Messi. He had friends getting their UEFA or U.S. Soccer Pro coaching licenses. None of them was getting near the education he was by working with the greatest to ever play the game.

“What I’m learning from this,” Morales said, “is a treasure for me.”

He discovered, though, that translating for a legend wasn’t an easy task. It wasn’t just about finding the right words. There was pressure to accurately capture the emotion.

“But in this case it was easy,” Morales recalled. “Because he was talking from his heart.

“From my point of view, he is a person that is insatiable. He is never gonna get full of winning or titles, because that is in the way that he lives his life. He doesn’t recognize a difference between a La Liga or MLS title. Of course, he understands the difference, right? But he wants to win. It doesn’t matter where he is.

“We’re talking about a player that has won the World Cup and won more titles than anyone in the world. He wants to win. If he is playing a small-sided game in training and he doesn’t win, he’s pissed. Or if he loses playing cards, or two-touch or whatever. He always wants to win.

“It’s the thing that feeds him. But at the same time he is never going to get full.”

While Messi fumed about the performance against Al Nassr—a result Inter Miami’s own coach had seen coming—MLS buried the score on its website and moved on. An event that had been given top billing all day and then aired live on Apple TV’s MLS Season Pass app suddenly had no meaningful presence beyond a meager 135-word recap on the site.

It betrayed the same lack of understanding that set Messi off in the locker room.

MLS was reverting to habit: showcasing the league’s positives while ignoring or burying the flaws. But there could be no putting your head in the sand when the greatest player in the history of the game was involved. The spotlight was simply too big.

“Al-Nassr humiliate Messi’s Inter Miami as Cristiano Ronaldo watches from stands,” blared The Guardian’s headline. The Miami Herald called it a “Nightmare in Saudi Arabia.”

As Messi’s second MLS season started, the losses in Riyadh revealed cracks in a partnership that initially felt like a perfect fit. Messi had won everything. He had nothing left to prove. But he was still prepared to compete and strive to be the best. He knew no other way.

Meanwhile, MLS, a league with so much still to prove, remained noncommittal about how it might match and leverage the ambition that Messi in Miami represented.

Copyright © 2026 by the author, and reprinted with permission of St. Martin’s Publishing Group.

About the Book: The Messi Effect: How the Global Legend Changed the Future of American Soccer, published by St. Martin’s Press in June 2026, explores how Lionel Messi’s arrival at Inter Miami in 2023 transformed not only a struggling football club but the wider landscape of American soccer.

Drawing on extensive reporting and access to key figures within Inter Miami and Major League Soccer, Paul Tenorio takes readers behind the scenes of one of football’s most consequential transfers. From the commercial explosion surrounding Messi’s arrival to the decisions made in MLS boardrooms, the book examines how a single player became a catalyst for extraordinary growth, while raising questions about whether American soccer could fully capitalise on the opportunity.

Part sporting narrative, part examination of the business of football, The Messi Effect considers the extraordinary influence of a global superstar and what his final playing years might mean for the future of the game in the United States.

About the Author: Paul Tenorio is a senior writer at The Athletic, specialising in American and international football. He has covered the sport since 2007, establishing himself as a respected journalist with particular expertise in Major League Soccer, its development and the business behind the game.

His reporting has also appeared in The Washington Post, ESPN, FourFourTwo and the Orlando Sentinel. A Costa Rican American who grew up in Mount Vernon, Virginia, Tenorio graduated from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. The Messi Effect is his first book.

Each week on Cultured Football we pick the five great football stories from the previous seven days.

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By Sam Tighe for ESPN

Turkish football has always had a taste for big names, but this summer's spending has taken things to another level. Mohamed Salah's arrival at Trabzonspor is part of a remarkable transfer window in which the country's biggest clubs have competed for some of Europe's most recognisable players. Yet, whilst the excitement is understandable, questions remain about whether it is sustainable.

Palermo, Catania and Messina… Discovering Sicily’s Soul Through Football

By Dan Cancian for Destination Football

In 2006, Sicily had three clubs in Serie A and seemed ready to challenge Italian football's established order. Two decades later, none remain. In the intervening two decades, Palermo, Catania and Messina have endured relegations and financial collapses yet, throughout, their fans’ passion has remained as strong as ever.

Crvena Zvezda in Limbo

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Nine consecutive league titles have made Crvena Zvezda virtually untouchable in Serbia, yet when it comes to Europe they continue to falter. With domestic competition offering little preparation for tougher opponents, new manager Albert Riera is left with the difficult task of building a side capable of competing beyond its borders.

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10 unwritten rules of English football

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English football has unwritten rules, many of which are perfectly obvious to regular supporters but can surprise visitors. From where you sit to how you react when your team loses, these small customs are all part of the culture of watching football in England. Ignore them at your peril.

Bonus Read: The Language of Calcio

[ x ]

Italian football has a rich and unique game a vocabulary that extends far beyond tactics and positions; understanding these expressions offers another way of appreciating calcio and its history.

Superstition and Sorcery: The influence of magic in Iranian football

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In Iranian football, superstition sometimes extends well beyond the usual pre-match rituals. Former internationals and coaches have spoken of sorcerers being consulted, spells cast against opponents and even team selections can be influenced by numerology.

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In Case You Missed It Here’s Last Week’s Most Read: The Geography of Winning

By Dave Proudlove for Football Heritage

English football clubs have always been shaped by the places they represent, from industrial cities to provincial towns. Often, the managers who leave the deepest impression are the ones who get this connection and reflect it.

By Various Authors for The Guardian

Every year, the Guardian pick those which they feel are the best 60 young talents in the world. Every year I pick them for Cultured Football. Simply love scrolling through this list and getting a glimpse of the future.

Bonus Read: 3 underrated gems from France who could be set for big moves

[Mohamed Mohamed x Transfer Flow]

The French league might be facing challenges but it remains unrivalled when it comes to the development of talent.

Bonus Read: Scouting League Two’s under the radar talents

[Ali Maxwell x ]

League Two footballers rarely attract attention beyond their own supporters or clubs they play against. Yet the talent is there.

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Inside the £1-an-hour official football shirt factories

By Tom Grundy for the BBC

I recently spent around £200 for two football kits for my children and, as often happens when I make a similar purchase, I wonder why they seem to be getting more expensive every season. So it was quite uncomfortable - on many levels - to read that the Cambodian factories producing kits for some of Europe’s biggest clubs pay workers less than £1 an hour and offer difficult working conditions.

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The Geography of Winning

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English football clubs have always been shaped by the places they represent, from industrial cities to provincial towns. Often, the managers who leave the deepest impression are the ones who get this connection and reflect it.

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How deep does Italy’s stadium crisis go?

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The 1990 World Cup saddled Italian football with stadia that quite simply did not work. Euro 2032, and the resulting investment in stadia, offers an opportunity to fix this. Yet it also presents a challenge in preserving the character of most stadia whilst hoping that fans are kept in mind.

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How Real Betis Built Their European Success Under Manuel Pellegrini

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For most of their history, Real Betis have alternated between moments of promise and others of disappointmetn. Under Manuel Pellegrini, however, they have found consistency with six consecutive European qualifications reflecting patient management, intelligent recruitment and growing financial ambition. Sustaining that progress, particularly with an expensive stadium redevelopment ahead, may prove to be the biggest challenge.

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In Case You Missed It Here’s Last Week’s Most Read: What Manchester City Stole From Us All

By Sham for The Non-Negotiables

I spent quite some time debating whether to include anything on the Manchester City verdict. Surely, part of me felt, people have already had enough about this whole debacle. Ultimately, however, I felt that it was too big a story to keep out and went for this opinion from an Arsenal perspective.

Go through the list of clubs that took part in the first European Cup and you might be surprised by how many familiar names are missing. There was no Barcelona, Manchester United, Inter or Bayern Munich; almost none of the clubs that are regulars these days were there.

In their place there was a different cast of clubs; unheralded ones like Servette, Rot-Weiss Essen and Saarbrucken. Reims, another of those which today would be considered a lesser light, famously made it all the way to the final.

All of which is hardly surprising. The competition was the brainchild of French sports newspaper L’Equipe, whose journalists wanted to settle the increasingly common arguments about which club side was the strongest in Europe. To do so they sent out invites to those considered as being among the continent’s most prestigious sides, taking care to include as many of the more reputable countries as possible. Ultimately, they had to make do with those who replied.

With that in mind, England, as the birthplace of the modern game, was obviously high on their list, with Chelsea the club they chose to approach. The London side had just won the English league for the first time in their history and initially they were quite interested in taking part. Indeed, their involvement had progressed beyond simply accepting an invitation, as a pairing with Swedish champions Djurgarden had already been lined up whilst representatives of the two clubs had met to discuss when their games should be played.

Yet not everyone in England shared Chelsea’s enthusiasm for the new competition. Most notably, Football League secretary Alan Hardaker was strongly opposed; seeing little need for English clubs to prove themselves against teams from the continent and worried about the additional demands European matches would place on the domestic calendar.

Eventually it was his view that prevailed and Chelsea withdrew.

Naturally, this created a problem as the organisers didn’t have a list of clubs on standby that they could turn to. Instead, they had to re-start the process and reach out to clubs from countries which originally had not been considered.

Three possible opponents eventually emerged. One was Stade Dudelange, champions of Luxembourg. Another was Spartak Praha Sokolovo, the club now known as Sparta Prague.

The third was Polish side Gwardia Warszawa and the choice ultimately fell on them.

Again this selection was unusual. Gwardia were not Polish champions as the title had been won by Polonia Bytom who, however, were struggling badly when the list of candidates was being drawn up. Instead, Gwardia had won the Polish Cup and were among the leading sides in the league when discussions over participation were taking place, having just beaten the reigning champions 7-1.

That result had a huge bearing on the pick but there were practical considerations too as Warsaw was easier for the Swedes to reach, with a direct flight available from Stockholm. Over the years it has also been rumoured that there may have been political considerations behind the Polish authorities putting forward Gwardia, a club closely associated with the country’s security services.

Whatever combination of sporting, political and logistical factors came into play, Djurgarden opted for the Warsaw club.

And so on 20 September 1955, the latter became the first Polish club to play in a European competition.

Gwardia Warsaw had officially been set up in 1948, although their origins stretched back to the immediate aftermath of the Second World War.

The club grew out of Milicyjny Klub Sportowy, a Warsaw side established in 1944 and associated with the Polish militia. In March 1948, this connection was formalised with the creation of Zrzeszenie Sportowe Gwardia.

This was part of the wider reorganisation of Polish sport taking place under the country’s new communist authorities. Rather than clubs developing purely as independent sporting institutions, many were brought under organisations representing particular branches of the state and economy. Gwardia became the sporting organisation associated with the security services, just as similar structures were being established elsewhere across the Eastern Bloc.

Officially, Gwardia existed to provide and promote sports and physical activity among employees of the public security services and their families. Indeed, the new club featured various sports apart from football; boxing, judo, athletics and taekwondo sections were also incorporated.

Reality, however, was not that simple and the club existed to serve and promote the organisation it represented, a relationship that defined the club’s identity whilst simultaneously providing resources and influence.

No club could expect to exist, let alone succeed, without such backing. Tellingly, representing Gwardia came with numerous material benefits, including a regular salary after retiring from the sport, food rations, and clothing parcels from the United States, which were of great value in those early postwar years.

Boosted in this manner, Gwardia were promoted to the Ekstraklasa in 1953 and immediately established themselves as title challengers. One year after that promotion they defeated Wisła Kraków 3-1 to win the cup, the success which inadvertently opened the doors to Europe.

Whilst there were doubts over the reason why they had been picked for this honour, there was genuine talent throughout Edward Brzozowski’s team where goalkeeper Tomasz Stefaniszyn was a Polish international, as was midfielder Edmund Zientara, while further forward Stanisław Hachorek and Krzysztof Baszkiewicz provided much of the attacking threat.

Still the Swedish champions presented a formidable challenge. Their team included a number of internationals, among them Sigge Parling, Gösta Sandberg and goalkeeper Arne Arvidsson. Perhaps the most intriguing figure was Sven “Tumba” Johansson, a gifted footballer who would become considerably more famous as one of Sweden’s greatest ice hockey players.

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Gwardia’s preparations suffered a significant setback when Hachorek was ruled out through injury but a solution was quickly found when Marian Norkowski, a striker belonging to Gwardia Bydgoszcz, was drafted into the Warsaw side specifically for the trip to Sweden.

If Norkowski was lucky to have made the trip, others were not. Coach Brzozowski had overseen Gwardia’s rise and had previously won the Polish championship with Polonia Warszawa. Yet when his team travelled to Sweden, he was not with them: the authorities refused to issue him with a passport.

Brzozowski had a reputation as an independent character and apparently was not considered sufficiently reliable to represent the country abroad. So while the system could help Gwardia secure players, resources and opportunities, even the coach of one of its favoured clubs remained subject to the political restrictions of communist Poland. Tadeusz Foryś took charge of the team instead.

The match was played under floodlights, something Polish players had little experience of at the time. Indeed players would subsequently talk of the difficulties they had in following the ball beneath the artificial lighting, even suggesting that its shadow caused problems when they attempted to control it.

Djurgården attempted to exploit their physical advantage with high balls towards their forwards, while Gwardia hoped that their greater speed would cause problems. That plan suffered an early blow when Baszkiewicz was injured.

Substitutions were not yet permitted, meaning that one of Gwardia’s principal attacking threats had little choice but to remain on the pitch despite being unable to contribute properly.

Still, the Poles survived. Djurgården were awarded a penalty shortly before half-time, only for Stefaniszyn to save Parling’s attempt and Gwardia held out for a 0-0 draw, returning to Warsaw with what appeared to be an excellent opportunity to reach the next round.

The Polish press was encouraged; the Swedes were rather less impressed: Swedish newspaper Idrottsbladet confidently suggested that Djurgården’s real performance was still to come.

It proved remarkably prescient.

Gwardia’s preparations for the return were once more hardly ideal. Rather than remaining at home, they travelled to Yugoslavia for matches against Vojvodina Novi Sad and Red Star Belgrade, ostensibly to sharpen themselves for the European tie (incidentally, they lost both games).

Djurgården took a different approach. They chartered a plane to Warsaw and settled into the Bristol Hotel before the match.

This time Brzozowski was at least permitted to take his place on the Gwardia bench. It made little difference.

Before the Warsaw crowd had been given much opportunity to settle, Hans Eriksson put Djurgården ahead after just five minutes. Baszkiewicz quickly equalised and for a moment Gwardia believed they could actually win out. Yet it was not to be.

Eriksson scored again in the 17th minute and completed his hat-trick five minutes later. Gösta Sandberg added another before half an hour had been played.

With Djurgården 4-1 ahead by half-time, Gwardia’s European adventure was effectively over.

Perhaps the most revealing reaction came from Przegląd Sportowy. Journalist Jerzy Zmarzlik admitted that, having watched the return game, he struggled to understand how Gwardia had managed to draw in Stockholm. Based on what he had just seen, he wrote, it might appear that Polish football was still “in its infancy”.

Yet, painful as the result and that assessment must have been, it did not signal the end of Gwardia’s ambitions. If anything, their best opportunity to establish themselves among Poland’s elite was still to come.

Two years later they returned to the European Cup, once again without having won the Polish title. This time there was considerably less doubt about their sporting credentials. Gwardia had developed into one of the best teams in the country and spent much of the 1957 season challenging for the championship.

For a while, it looked as though they might actually win it. They led the table for much of the campaign and at one stage held a five-point advantage, a significant margin at a time when only two points were awarded for a victory. Their challenge faltered badly towards the end, however, allowing Górnik Zabrze to overtake them and leaving Gwardia as runners-up.

It would prove to be the highest league finish in the club’s history.

Their second European adventure was considerably more dramatic than their first. Drawn against East German champions Wismut Karl-Marx-Stadt, Gwardia won the first leg 3-1 in Warsaw before losing the return by the same score.

There was no away-goals rule and penalties were not yet used to settle European ties, so a third match was required on neutral ground in Berlin. Even that failed to separate them, the teams drawing 1-1 after extra time.

What followed is unimaginable today.

With no further sporting means available to determine who should advance, the tie was decided by drawing lots. Wismut won and Gwardia were eliminated without actually having lost the deciding match.

It was another near miss for a club that seemed permanently destined to brush against major achievements without quite claiming them.

Indeed, the momentum of those early years began to fade. Gwardia were relegated from the top flight in 1960 and thereafter spent much of the following decade moving between the first and second divisions.

That inconsistency did not mean that the club had ceased to matter. Its institutional backing remained and the wider Gwardia organisation continued to produce elite sportsmen, particularly in boxing and judo. Yet in football, the emergence of Górnik Zabrze as the dominant force in Poland and the continued strength of clubs such as Legia Warszawa, Ruch Chorzów and later Stal Mielec meant that Gwardia were increasingly pushed away from the centre of the game.

By the end of the 1960s, however, another good side was beginning to emerge.

Promotion in 1969 was followed by six consecutive seasons in the top division, culminating in 1972-73 when Gwardia finished third behind champions Stal Mielec and Ruch Chorzów. Significantly for a club increasingly overshadowed within its own city, they finished four points ahead of Legia.

It was undoubtedly Gwardia’s finest period since the 1950s.

Once again, there was considerable talent in the side. Defender Jerzy Kraska had been part of the Polish team that won Olympic gold in Munich in 1972, while Ryszard Szymczak was another international and had finished as the Polish league’s leading scorer earlier in his career. Stanisław Terlecki, one of the most gifted and individualistic players Polish football would produce during the following decade, also emerged at the club.

Finishing third brought Gwardia back into Europe for the 1973-74 UEFA Cup and this time they managed something their pioneering predecessors had failed to do: win a European tie.

Their opponents were Ferencváros, one of the biggest clubs in Eastern European football. Gwardia won 1-0 in Budapest through a Szymczak goal and then beat the Hungarians 2-1 in Warsaw.

The reward was a meeting with Feyenoord.

Even in defeat, Gwardia gave an indication of their quality. They led in Rotterdam before eventually losing 3-1, then won the return in Warsaw 1-0 thanks to another Szymczak goal. It was not enough to overturn the deficit, but there was consolation in what happened afterwards: Feyenoord went on to win the UEFA Cup.

The following season brought another opportunity for silverware. Gwardia reached the 1974 Polish Cup final, where they faced newly crowned champions Ruch Chorzów. A victory would have delivered their first major trophy in twenty years but two Joachim Marx goals shortly after half-time settled the game, Ruch winning 2-0 to complete a league and cup double.

Yet because Ruch were champions and therefore entered the European Cup, Gwardia inherited Poland’s place in the Cup Winners’ Cup.

Their opponents were Bologna.

A 2-1 victory in Warsaw raised hopes of another notable European result, but a 2-0 defeat in Italy brought elimination.

There was no disgrace in their performance but the same could not be said of their domestic season. In 1978, the team which had finished third only two years earlier, was relegated.

They would return to the top division, but increasingly their stints there were temporary ones. Gwardia ceased to be a club competing for honours and instead became one fighting purely to retain its status.

There was one last flicker at the beginning of the 1980s.

A young generation contained some exceptional footballers, most notably Dariusz Dziekanowski. He had crossed Warsaw from Polonia as a teenager and quickly established himself as one of the country’s brightest attacking talents. Alongside players such as Marek Banaszkiewicz and Krzysztof Baran, he helped Gwardia win promotion back to the top flight in 1981.

Dziekanowski soon became a full Polish international. Another young defender emerging at Gwardia, Dariusz Wdowczyk, would also go on to play for Poland and later for Celtic.

For all the talent that these players brought, they couldn’t return the club to its former heights. In 1983 Gwardia were relegated again and, this time, there would be no return. Dziekanowski was sold to Widzew Łódź for 21 million złoty, at the time an extraordinary transfer fee in Polish football, while Wdowczyk moved across the city to Legia.

Those departures were symbolic, highlighting how Gwardia could still produce players capable of succeeding at the highest level but the club itself could not aim to do likewise.

For a while it remained a respectable second-tier side. Gwardia spent much of the remainder of the 1980s in the second division and was still playing there as late as 1992.

Then came a much more fundamental problem, with the political system that had created Gwardia beginning to disintegrate.

Communism had provided the club with considerable advantages. Its association with the security services had helped supply facilities, employment, funding and institutional protection. In the new Poland that relationship no longer carried the same value.

Indeed, it eventually became a liability.

Nowhere was that more obvious than at Gwardia’s home on Racławicka Street. The club had used the large sporting complex there since the 1950s. Over the years it had grown into far more than a football ground, incorporating training pitches, sports halls, tennis courts and other facilities used by the numerous sections operating under the Gwardia name.

That Gwardia did not own it was a problem which had mattered little under communism. As long as the club and the institutions controlling the land effectively belonged to different branches of the same state system, the distinction was largely academic. That changed drastically once that system disappeared. They were still allowed to use the premises but as tenants.

The football team’s decline accelerated. By the beginning of the twenty-first century Gwardia had slipped far down the Polish pyramid and in 2005 it dropped out of the third tier.

The Racławicka complex, meanwhile, was deteriorating.

In 2007 control of the property passed to the national police headquarters. The organisation which had effectively created Gwardia almost sixty years earlier was now on the other side of an increasingly bitter property dispute.

A proposed monthly rent running into hundreds of thousands of złoty was completely unrealistic for a club operating in the lower reaches of Polish football. Gwardia accumulated debts while its ageing facilities continued to deteriorate.

There were increasingly desperate attempts to generate money. The stadium that had once staged European football was repurposed for major concerts, with artists including Tina Turner, Metallica, Aerosmith and Iron Maiden performing there.

It still wasn’t enough.

By 2013 the condition of parts of the Racławicka complex had become so poor that the building inspector prohibited their use. Training facilities were closed and utilities were cut off. Other sporting sections were affected too, leaving athletes at a club that had produced Olympic champions struggling to find somewhere suitable to train.

For the football team, already competing far below the professional game, the damage was terminal and in 2018 Gwardia’s football section was dissolved.

It was a remarkably quiet ending for a club that occupied a unique place in Polish football history.

Today, the name Gwardia Warszawa survives through other sports, but its football team does not.

Honours Won:

Polish Cup winners: 1954

Polish First Division runners-up: 1957

Polish First Division third place: 1959, 1972-73

Polish Second Division champions: 1966-67, 1977-78, 1980-81

Polish Cup runners-up: 1974

The story of Gwardia Warszawa is now captured in this exclusive Cultured Football shirt. Featuring its original badge and a brief history, if you enjoyed their story you can now own a piece of football’s forgotten past.

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This might, on the face of it, not appear to be an article about football. But it very much is about football and where the decisions that shape it often take place.

Bonus Read: The Peculiar Afterlife of Brescia

[Charlie Rhodes x ]

Brescia Calcio is dead. And yet it still exists.

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What Manchester City Stole From Us All

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I spent quite some time debating whether to include anything on the Manchester City verdict. Surely, part of me felt, people have already had enough about this whole debacle. Ultimately, however, I felt that it was too big a story to keep out and went for this opinion from an Arsenal perspective.

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London to Rijeka and life as a professional footballer in Croatia

By Chris Burton for Goal

Not long ago, young English footballers rarely looked abroad to expand their careers. That, however, is changing. The search of regular football saw Daniel Adu-Adjei leaving Bournemouth for Rijeka where he has found bigger football world waiting for him.

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Former Chelsea coach on his 17 years at Stamford Bridge and what he learned from the experience

By Adam Bate for Sky Sports

During his 17 years at Chelsea, Ed Brand has gone from being a player in the academy to coaching others. In this interview he talks about the experiences that formed his ideas on coaching, from developing young players to working with senior professionals, and why adaptability matters more than imposing a rigid philosophy. There’s plenty written about how players develop, this offers rare insight into how coaches do so.

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A Dispatch From Extremadura

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With only brief spells in LaLiga - often followed by financial collapse and rebirth - Extremadura has never occupied much space on Spain’s football map. Yet the region that has retained a character increasingly difficult to find elsewhere still carries its own footballing ambitions.

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In Case You Missed It Here’s Last Week’s Most Read: I’m Picking Up Bad Vibrations

By Phil Derbyshire for Modern Football is Rubbish

Some managers seem to earn a reputation and keep getting jobs in spite of how much and often they fail. This is a two-footed tackle of an article on those managers.

By Daniel Austin for the BBC

Brexit, rising transfer fees and the financial value of home-grown talent mean that England’s biggest clubs are increasingly competing for players who are still years away from the first team. Often, teenagers are offered potentially life-changing sums to move clubs, creating difficult questions about whether decisions are still being driven by what is best for their development or by the money they might be worth.

I’m Picking Up Bad Vibrations

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Some managers seem to earn a reputation and keep getting jobs in spite of how much and often they fail. This is a two-footed tackle of an article on those managers.

Fußball 101: Stickers

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Walk through almost any German city and football stickers are impossible to avoid. Most mark territory but others carry messages about politics, friendships, players and the people clubs have lost. Together, they form a kind of unofficial history of German football culture. And they’re just plain entertaining.

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Do National Football Styles Still Exist?

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Watching international football once meant seeing how a nation viewed itself with countries developing styles that reflected at least part of their identity. Globalisation - and the resulting cross-pollination of ideas - mean that those clear distinctions are fading. For better and worse.

Bonus Read: The International Break

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“I’ll admit it’s going to be tough, and it’s only tough because we all love and adore the game, so much so that we struggle to live without it being daily in our lives”

Football Archetypes: The Nonchalant Technician

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Football once allowed for players who seemed to stroll through matches, contributing little without the ball before doing something wonderful with it. Pirlo, Berbatov and Le Tissier belonged to the that tradition but Juan Román Riquelme perhaps embodied it better than anyone.

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In Case You Missed It Here’s Last Week’s Most Read: Who does Como belong to?

By Luke Taylor for FORZA CALCIO

From the outside, Como’s rise from bankruptcy to the Champions League looks like one of modern football’s great fairytales. Look closer, however, and the vast wealth behind it takes away some of the magic.

It is difficult now to think of Spanish players in English football as anything unusual. But when Rafa Benítez arrived at Liverpool in the summer of 2004, the relationship between the two football cultures looked very different.

What followed was remarkable. Benítez surrounded himself with Spanish coaches and staff and brought in a succession of players from La Liga. Some, like Xabi Alonso, Pepe Reina, Luis García and Fernando Torres, became hugely important figures at Anfield. Others enjoyed considerably less success. Together, though, they helped create an era in which Liverpool developed an unusually strong connection with Spanish football.

It is that period that Sergio Andrés Medina explores in his book Spanish Liverpool, looking beyond just the familiar names and famous nights to tell the stories of the players, coaches and other figures who formed part of what became a distinctly Spanish chapter in Liverpool’s history.

I spoke to Sergio about why that connection developed, the influence Benítez had beyond simply signing Spanish players, why some adapted better than others, the importance of the less celebrated pioneers, and whether Istanbul really did change everything.

What made you want to write Spanish Liverpool?

Well, I am a journalist and I had always wanted to write a book about this team and these players, especially because in those days many of them were Spaniards. Since I was a teenager, maybe even before, Liverpool had always caught my eye. I didn’t know why, but there was something special about it: the city, The Beatles, that team of pioneers in 2004.

Then Fernando Morientes, who was one of my idols in those years, joined the club. Although I’m a Real Madrid fan, Liverpool became a kind of second team for me to support.

What did Benítez understand about Liverpool that allowed him to establish such a strong connection with the club and its supporters so quickly?

Maybe, in this case, Istanbul changed everything and allowed Benítez to spend so many years at Liverpool. That first season, 2004-05, was quite difficult and, in some ways, the European success gave him credit, trust and confidence from the media, the supporters, the boardroom and even the players.

It seems to me that, without Istanbul, that connection with the city, the club, the fans and the community wouldn’t have been possible, because I don’t know how long he would have stayed there otherwise.

Benítez brought more than Spanish players with him. How much did he change Liverpool’s approach to coaching, tactics, recruitment and preparation?

He was already a pioneer in his training methods. He was different from most managers in Spain back in the early 2000s, so when he got there, the players didn’t understand or like those training sessions.

In some ways, he was more of a teacher and an innovator than a coach, and this caught everyone’s attention. But the thing is that those new methods eventually paid off, and many other managers and coaches, not just in England, used them.

If we talk about recruitment, I’d differentiate between two things: the budget and the language. Like Houllier, he wanted to sign a few of his countrymen, or players who understood the Spanish language, such as Aurélio and Mascherano, in order to make things easier. This was especially true in his first season, with García, Josemi, Alonso, Morientes, Núñez and even Pellegrino. The same applied to his assistants: Herrera, Ayestarán and Ochotorena, people he had already worked with and known for several years.

The limited budget he had at his disposal was the reason he signed players for both the senior squad and the reserves with the idea of selling them in the future and making a profit. On many occasions, his signings were players who were affordable because of their price rather than his first choices. For instance, Torres was a first choice; Núñez was not.

Was there resistance to those changes? Looking back at how Benítez and some of his Spanish players were discussed, was there a suspicion of continental football in England that has largely disappeared today?

The main resistance came from the players, the ones who ruled the dressing room. Just take a look at the Netflix documentary The Miracle of Istanbul. Carra, Gerrard and even Owen, in his first conversations, didn’t understand his ideas and methods. They all say that Rafa was different.

Talking about the first signings, it’s clear that neither Josemi nor Núñez had the same pedigree as Alonso, Morientes, Reina or Torres, for example. But it’s fair to say that Josemi was the first one, and that is always difficult. Another language, another climate and he was alone. He played everything until he got injured and lost his place to Finnan.

Núñez was a fine player, but two things are key. He came as part of Michael Owen’s transfer to Real Madrid and the fans were angry about that, especially because of the price of Owen and because Núñez had not been an important player at the Bernabéu. Later, he got injured at Melwood in his second training session and couldn’t show his true level.

But they were both good players and played their part in the Spanish Liverpool story. Later, for Torres or Riera, among others, it was “easier”. They played so well and performed superbly, but it was also a bit easier because the door had already been opened.

Why did so many Spanish players seem to connect particularly strongly with Liverpool? Was there something about the club or city that made the transition easier?

Istanbul changed everything. Once Benítez’s project found stability and was able to develop its potential, many other Spaniards jumped on the bandwagon, not just at Liverpool but in other big cities, Manchester and London above all. Just look at Mata, Silva, Cazorla, Bellerín, Negredo, Pedro, Azpilicueta…

Of all the Spanish players Liverpool signed during that period, who do you think had the greatest influence on the club?

Every one of them played their part, but Torres, for me, was the best of them. He was superb over there and had his best seasons ever. And, curiously, he was trophyless!

Alonso and Reina also had a great influence and must be considered legends. People have fond memories of them, but Torres was on a higher level. At least from my point of view.

And whose contribution has been most underrated? Is there someone whose Liverpool story deserves more recognition than it generally receives?

As I always say, Núñez and Josemi. They were the first ones and people don’t remember them at the same level as Luis García or Alonso. And they were important too.

Also Morientes. He was a fine striker but he couldn’t compete at his best. But all five were members of the original Spanish Liverpool and deserve credit and recognition.

Were there players you began researching with one impression of and ended up viewing completely differently?

We all knew Reina was a good goalkeeper and a future prospect as one of the best in his position, but he exceeded all expectations. In just one season, he became one of the leaders of the dressing room.

The “pity”, at least for me, is that I think he could have spent more seasons on Merseyside. Just take a look at his career.

We inevitably remember Alonso, Torres, Reina and García, but there were plenty of Spanish signings who didn’t succeed. Did you identify any common reasons why some adapted and others didn’t?

There were a few: the language, the weather, the injuries… Here in Spain, referees are stricter. In England, they allow more. But above all, the injuries. Morientes, Josemi and Núñez got injured in their first months.

Torres was also prone to injury, but not in his first season.

The city is also a bit different nowadays compared with those years, so their families had to be comfortable too, and some of them were alone. Being alone abroad while your relatives are in Spain is difficult too.

English football traditionally carried stereotypes about Spanish players — technically gifted but perhaps too lightweight for the Premier League. Did that generation at Liverpool help change those attitudes?

I don’t think so. As Sid Lowe says in the book, we all thought Morientes was the perfect stereotype for British football: strong, good in the air, quite powerful. But later, the ones who succeeded were los bajitos, “the tiny ones”: Cazorla, Silva, Mata, Navas, Pedro Rodríguez or even Thiago Alcántara.

I think that generation changed the mentality for us Spaniards, as fans and journalists, and certainly for the footballers.

There is inevitably a lot of nostalgia surrounding Benítez, Istanbul and that generation. Does romanticising the period obscure some of its tensions, disappointments and failures?

Yeah, maybe. But from the beginning, it’s clear that there were plenty of ups and downs in those years. There were successes but also failures.

The thing is that some of those “failures”, such as the 2008-09 season, instead of being remembered as a disappointment, are recalled as almost perfect seasons. That season, the squad thrashed both Real Madrid and Manchester United.

But yes, there were business issues that affected the team, especially the arrival of the American owners, and there is the idea that Liverpool could have earned more silverware in those years.

Benítez’s relationship with Liverpool became about much more than football, particularly during the ownership battles. Is it possible to separate the affection for Benítez the manager from what he eventually came to represent to supporters?

People on Merseyside have loved Benítez since he made Liverpudlians think and believe that they could compete against anyone, especially in those years against that United, Chelsea and even Arsenal. With the obvious differences, it was the kind of philosophy Jürgen Klopp later used.

He has continued living there and has been very committed to the city in many ways, even raising funds and proceeds for charities.

The supporters protected him and showed their support because it was clear that the Americans were unfair to him. But again, part of the reason for that was the night in Istanbul.

When speaking to the Spanish players and coaches, did you notice differences between how they remember that period and how Liverpool supporters remember it?

They all remember those years quite fondly. It was tough and tricky in the beginning, but everyone is well aware, and proud, of what they achieved, even the ones who didn’t get the headlines or were in the shadows, such as Rafa’s assistants.

The supporters obviously focus more on and remember the famous ones, like Alonso, Luis García or Torres. Not everyone recalls the cases of Núñez or Josemi and the difficulties they faced. That is one of the reasons I wrote the book. They all deserve credit.

For instance, in my country there were supporters who didn’t remember Arbeloa playing for the Reds. In football, the memory is very short.

Football history tends to be written around managers, transfers, matches and trophies. Having researched this story, what do you think actually causes the culture of a football club to change?

The Bosman ruling changed football in the nineties. Later, during the COVID months, more substitutions were introduced during a game. Investors from Arabia, Asia or Qatar, the new rules, VAR… the culture of football is changing for the worse.

It seems to me that football is not what it used to be. It’s a pity there are no English players in the LFC line-up. The same happens, for instance, with Real Madrid: almost no Spanish players at all. It’s a shame.

Could something similar happen today? With sporting directors, recruitment departments, analytics and managers generally having less control over transfers, could one coach reshape a club culturally in the way Benítez did?

I don’t think so. For all those reasons, Benítez was the first one. The pioneer. The revolutionary, as Guillem Balagué said. The one who opened the door.

What was the biggest surprise you uncovered while researching the book — something you hadn’t expected when you started?

When I travelled to Liverpool to interview Rafa, I discovered the real passion and affection of the supporters. People in their seventies and older really support and love the team! I also discovered the importance of Benítez in the city and in the English game.

And when I talked, for instance, to Morientes, Núñez, Benítez and Ochotorena, they had all been at Real Madrid in different roles, and all of them told me that Liverpool is no smaller than Real Madrid. They also all highlighted Anfield as a temple.

Another thing was the magnetism the city has for those who have lived there. I remember the stories Herrera and Ochotorena told me, and they had goosebumps when they recalled those years. So did I when I listened to their passion!

Was there one interview, anecdote or individual that fundamentally changed how you understood the story you were writing?

All the interviews were special, but the most important and the longest was the one with Rafa Benítez. What a privilege!

But I have good memories of every one of them: the first one with Núñez, which is always special; the one with Iván Campo; the one with Matt Ladson in English; the one with Vicente del Bosque…

Having spent so much time researching it, do you believe there really is something distinctive about the relationship between Liverpool and Spanish football, or did an extraordinary manager and an extraordinary generation of players simply make it feel that way?

I think it’s special and distinctive because of the Istanbul comeback. Because of all the people from Spain who were involved in those years. Not just the footballers, but the coaching staff, the employees at the club, the lads in the reserve team…

Also, that Liverpool team was important in changing the mentality, and in part the fate, of the Spanish national team. Just remember, four or even five guys from that LFC team were regulars for Spain in those years: two Euros and a World Cup.

But I think the city itself is key to this recipe. Liverpool is the perfect blend of football and music. The city and Anfield are special, unique. I’m not sure if this could have happened in another city. Surely it could have, but without that charm and magic.

About the book: Spanish Liverpool: The untold story of how Rafa Benítez conquered Europe and revolutionised the English game tells the story of the remarkable Spanish influence on Liverpool during Rafa Benítez’s time at the club, an era that began with his arrival in 2004 and would transform both Liverpool and perceptions of Spanish football in England.

Sergio Andrés Medina looks beyond the obvious success stories of Fernando Torres, Xabi Alonso, Pepe Reina and Luis García to explore the wider group of players, coaches and staff who formed part of the Spanish contingent at Anfield. That includes those whose Liverpool careers did not go according to plan, but who nevertheless played their part in opening the door for those who followed.

At its heart is the story of Benítez himself: the methods and ideas he brought from Spain, the extraordinary triumph in Istanbul during his first season, his battles on and off the pitch and the relationship he developed with Liverpool and its supporters.

Featuring contributions from many of those involved, Spanish Liverpool is the story of a period when the connection between one English club and Spanish football became something much deeper than a collection of transfers. You can buy the book here.

About the author: Sergio Andrés Medina is a Spanish journalist and the author of Spanish Liverpool: The Untold Story of How Rafa Benítez Conquered Europe and Revolutionised the English Game.

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By for The Slum Sport

Whenever I go to watch a football game I make it a point to buy a programme if one is for sale. Not only does it provide something to read at half-time (essential for stadia, like Anfield, where mobile signals are crap) but it is a nice memento of the game. Yet, when I look around, I find that less and less people seem to be doing the same. Which is a pity.

Aiming for the moon, falling back to earth

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After missing out on the Champions League, financial pressures left Olympique Marseilles considering whether it could afford Europe at all. A summer of many sales on no new incomings exposed their situation even further. The Europa League, which once represented an opportunity to dream might this season end up being a reminder of their new reality.

Arsenal Don’t Take Risks, and That’s What Makes Them So Strong

By Ali Tweedale for The Analyst

Arsenal have often been called boring but in truth the numbers show that for them taking fewer risks has become a strength rather than a limitation. Indeed, Arteta’s system creates situations where the safer option can also be the most dangerous one, turning control into attacking threat.

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Who does Como belong to?

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From the outside, Como’s rise from bankruptcy to the Champions League looks like one of modern football’s great fairytales. Look closer, however, and the vast wealth behind it takes away some of the magic.

Super Depor are back! The rebirth of Deportivo La Coruna

By James Westwood for Goal

Deportivo La Coruña spent much of the early 2000s challenging Spain’s biggest clubs before financial problems took them down as far as the third tier. An impressive start on their return after eight years, however, has revived memories of the side once known as Super Depor.

Bonus Read: Castellón Rising

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Castellón have spent 35 years outside La Liga, but a combination of smart recruitment, data-led decisions and investment beyond the pitch are making a return to the top flight feel possible.

Over the past year, I’ve been featuring extracts from recently published football books on Cultured Football. But I’m still not entirely sure whether people enjoy them or would like to see more.

So I’m curious: do you enjoy reading these extracts? Would you like to see more of them on Cultured Football? Let me know.

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In Case You Missed It Here’s Last Week’s Most Read: The Quants Who Bought Football

Via The Arc Sport

That Brentford and Brighton have become two of best English football’s through the use of data is well known. Less well known are the stories of Matthew Benham and Tony Bloom, the former partners who made fortunes applying mathematics to football betting before bringing much the same thinking into club ownership.

The following is an extract from the book Rebels, Rogues, Guns & Gods: The Wild World of Brazilian Football by Jon Cotterill. It is available for purchase here.

Neymar’s inclusion in Brazil’s World Cup squad may have delighted millions of his fans, but it also exasperated some of the country’s most influential journalists. Until the game against Scotland, the 34-year-old had not appeared for the national team for almost three years, and for sections of the Brazilian media, his addition was a ‘risky gamble’. “It was a misguided choice. Carlo Ancelotti swapped the 15 goals of Chelsea’s João Pedro, who scored at the highest level of world football, for Neymar, who played just 15 games this year! I didn’t like Neymar’s call-up. He is undeniably a gifted player—it’s a joy to watch him—but he hasn’t been making a decisive impact,” said Paulo Vinícius Coelho.

Mauro Cezar Pereira was just as vociferous. “I was disappointed that a top-tier coach would submit to marketing agents, lobbyists, and the whole circus orchestrated by the Brazilian Football Confederation to call up Neymar and create an entire merchandising spectacle.”

Neymar’s appearance in the defeat against Norway in the last sixteen appears to be his last for his country, coinciding with the Seleção’s worst finish in a World Cup since 1990.

Ancelotti’s decision to include the country’s record goalscorer despite fitness concerns provoked deeper divisions than many outside Brazil appreciate. Hugely popular yet polarising, Neymar epitomises a recurring dilemma for Seleção coaches—talent that can lift a team but also unsettle it, as with Romário in earlier generations.

Baixinho (Shorty) won the World Cup in 1994 and was named Fifa World Player of the Year in the same season. Virtuoso and masterful, Romário was a law unto himself, sometimes training only when he felt like it and, in his latter days at Vasco da Gama, hardly ever bothering to travel for matches outside Rio de Janeiro. The player had countless disputes with some of the greatest names in football, once famously declaring: “When Pelé’s silent, he’s a poet.”

Though adored by fans worldwide, Romário was regarded as problematic by many inside the game. The 1994 Seleção manager, Carlos Alberto Parreira, avoided using him until injuries and Brazil’s precarious position in the South America World Cup qualifiers forced his hand. Mário Zagallo and Zico dropped him from the 1998 World Cup squad, ostensibly because of an injury, though there had long been feuds among the trio. Luiz Felipe Scolari resisted immense pressure and refused to call him up for the squad that won the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea, insisting that Romário only scored against weak teams.

In his pomp, Romário was unrivalled on the pitch. But there was another player who could match him for cockiness.

Renato Gaúcho was one of the most flamboyant and outspoken footballers of the 1980s and 90s. He was popular and successful, and a stylish winger in excellent form in 1986. But breaking a training camp curfew and then being caught trying to return by climbing over the perimeter wall cost him his place in the squad travelling to Mexico for the World Cup. Gaúcho remained unrepentant. “I was the team’s best player in the qualifiers. I was 23 years old and flying physically. Brazil had some ageing players. I was sure I would have been very important. Coach Telê Santana didn’t punish me. He punished a country to maintain discipline.”

After retiring, Renato Gaúcho moved into coaching, winning trophies and becoming the most successful manager in Grêmio’s history. He was also the first to lift the Libertadores as a player (1983) and as a coach (2017), both times with Grêmio.

One other player dominated the headlines in the 1990s and early 2000s, consistently topping every ‘bad boys’ chart ever since: Edmundo.

Undisciplined and hot-headed, The Animal, as he became nicknamed, was easily provoked and showed little concern for upsetting those around him. He fell out with many of the stars in the illustrious Palmeiras team that won the Brasileirão in 1993 and 1994. Top striker and club idol Evair was so annoyed during one match that he was caught calling Edmundo a ”brat” on camera.

Edmundo was at the centre of a headline-grabbing incident in Ecuador during the Libertadores. With the match against Quito’s El Nacional at 0-0, the striker missed a penalty and the hosts won 1-0. At full-time, a local journalist approached him for an interview. In a moment of rage, Edmundo knocked the TV camera to the ground. Remarkably, it kept rolling and the footballer’s attempts at trashing the device were caught on film.

Edmundo was at his best in 1997, developing an excellent partnership with Romário with the Seleção, though their relationship would deteriorate considerably in the years that followed. In June, Brazil faced Bolivia in the Copa América final. Edmundo scored the first goal but was filmed landing a left hook on Luis Cristaldo in the second half. The officials missed the incident, and Brazil coach Mário Zagallo responded quickly, substituting the player before he could be sent off. Brazil went on to win 3-1.

Somewhat surprisingly, Edmundo’s growing list of misdemeanours did not deter Fiorentina from paying around £8m for his services in January 1998. True to form, Edmundo immediately clashed with coach Alberto Malesani, who had benched him. In February, the player returned to Brazil, threatening to leave Fiorentina for a new club just weeks after joining.

The footballer spent much of his career at Vasco and was worshipped by the supporters. But in 2000, he was forced to share the spotlight with Romário and the larger-than-life club president, Eurico Miranda. Edmundo was the designated penalty taker when Romário joined, but Eurico decreed that the newcomer would take over. By this stage, Edmundo and Romário had already clashed numerous times. An irritated Edmundo told the press that Vasco had a king and a prince. Days later, Romário scored a hat-trick against Olaria and, after, delivered one of the most cutting put-downs in Brazilian football: “Now all the court is happy. The king, the prince and the fool.”

Once again, in this World Cup, Brazil were forced to wrestle with the same old issues: when does genius become a liability and can superstardom coexist with squad cohesion? After crashing out to Norway, the Seleção have now gone the longest period in their history without winning the trophy, and the reputations of both Carlo Ancelotti and Neymar have taken a serious hit.

About the Book: Rebels, Rogues, Guns & Gods: The Wild World of Brazilian Football explores the darker, stranger and often extraordinary side of Brazil’s national game. Moving beyond the familiar image of samba football and dazzling talent, Jon Cotterill tells stories of rogue players, match-fixing, crime, corruption, violence and some of the remarkable characters who have shaped Brazilian football. Featuring figures including Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Romário, Garrincha and Adriano, the book uses these stories to explore the contradictions between the glamour of Brazilian football and the harsher realities that exist beneath it.

About the Author: Jon Cotterill is a British journalist, writer and researcher who specialises in South American football, particularly the game in Brazil. Based in Brazil for more than two decades, he has written extensively about Brazilian football as well as player recruitment and scouting. His work has appeared in The Guardian, The Telegraph, Daily Mail, World Soccer, FourFourTwo and ESPN FC whilst he has also worked for FIFA and the CBF. He is also the author of Brazil in the World Cup, Anatomy of a Football Scout and Scouts’ Stories: A Life in the Shadows.

Each week on Cultured Football we pick the five great football stories from the previous seven days.

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That Brentford and Brighton have become two of best English football’s through the use of data is well known. Less well known are the stories of Matthew Benham and Tony Bloom, the former partners who made fortunes applying mathematics to football betting before bringing much the same thinking into club ownership.

AmaZulu FC and the ever changing faces of South African football clubs

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AmaZulu FC are not one of the most famous clubs in South African, yet few have a history as distinctive. With close ties to Zulu monarchy and controversial returns to the top flight, theirs is a remarkable story that. It is a remarkable tale of survival sometimes at all costs.

Sanremese Calcio: Karembeu’s Ambitious Project on the Italian Riviera

Via Calcio England

The Italian Serie D is filled with historic clubs trying to find their way back, but few projects match that Sanremese. World Cup winner Christian Karembeu has taken control of a club long defined by financial instability, bringing other big names like Clarence Seedorf and Yann M’Vila into an ambitious rebuilding project.

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Never mind the big three, London City calling

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The WSL has traditionally been dominated by women’s teams attached to some of England’s wealthiest clubs. London City Lionesses break that mould: an independent side backed by billionaire Michele Kang, whose investment has already taken them into the top flight and attracted some of the game’s biggest names. Their rapid rise poses interesting questions about the future direction of women’s football.

No Vardy, No Party: Chaos in Cremona

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Serie B rarely needs much help producing drama but Cremonese have provided an early reminder of its unpredictability by sacking Marco Giampaolo hours after a cup victory over Parma.

Each week on Cultured Football we pick the five great football stories from the previous seven days.

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In Case You Missed It Here’s Last Week’s Most Read: Why Herrera is playing for free in Spanish third division

By Nathan Edwards for the BBC

After a career spanning Manchester United, PSG and Boca Juniors, Ander Herrera is back at his boyhood club. Real Zaragoza have fallen a to the third tier since Ander Herrera left them 15 years ago, but he has returned at 37, donating his salary in the hope that he can aid the rebuild.

Contrary to public perception, Belgium is not short of cities worth a visit. Indeed, there are plenty which offer a delightful mix of medieval squares, Gothic cathedrals, picturesque canals and, naturally, very good beer. Trips to Bruges, Ghent and Dinant, for instance, tend to make up some of Europe’s most enjoyable city breaks.

Enticing visitors to Beringen is, however, a bit trickier. The city has its own attractions but these are topped by a mining museum and a former spoil tip, both a direct result of Beringen being primarily a mining town for much of the twentieth century. They’re interesting enough for the right audience, but not the kind that many are willing to visit.

Still, it is unescapable that coal has shaped Beringen. It and the surrounding area had been largely rural before coal was discovered beneath Limburg towards the end of the nineteenth century. From that point, everything began to change. Mines opened, creating jobs and a need for workers who arrived from all over Belgium and beyond.

As happened elsewhere, this sudden boom resulted in a need for better, or at least bigger, infrastructure. Houses were built along with schools, shops and anything else needed by a rapidly growing community.

Naturally enough, that also meant recreational facilities.

In the early 1920s, the management of the Beringen mine began offering tennis for engineers and other senior employees. For the miners, the popular choice was football.

This led to the formation of Cercle Sportif Kleine Heide on the fourth of December 1924 with mining engineer Eduard Frenay elected as chairman and backed financially by the NV Kolenmijnen van Beringen (Beringen Coal Mines).

Quickly renamed as Beringen Football Club, the new side adopted red and black as its colours, a nod to the red handkerchiefs worn by miners to wipe away coal and dust from their faces. Their games were played, aptly enough, at the Mijnstadion - literally the Mine Stadium - which stood opposite the enormous Beringen colliery.

At first this was just a mere field with markings of a football pitch, but it gradually developed into a proper stadium. A monumental entrance was added in 1930 and, after the Second World War, this was followed by a grandstand and main building designed by architect René Van Steenbergen.

The football club playing inside it was developing too.

Beringen first reached the national divisions in the 1930s and continued climbing after the war. In 1950 the side won promotion to the Division d’Honneur, becoming the first club from the Limburg region to reach the highest level of Belgian football.

The city’s delight was short lived. Beringen were immediately relegated and spent much of the following decade moving between Belgium’s top two divisions. Another promotion in 1952 was again followed by relegation a year later. They returned in 1955, went down in 1957, came back in 1958 and were relegated once again two years after that.

A liftploeg – the Flemish term for yo-you club - if there ever was one.

Whilst the club fluctuated between divisions, there was still talent at Beringen. Michel Bensch, himself a miner, scored heavily regardless of which division the club played and even won three caps for his country. In another era, it is difficult to imagine a player with that record not being picked up by one of Belgium’s bigger clubs. Instead, Bensch’s eleven-year career was all spent with his hometown club.

As time passed, Beringen started to make more of that talent. In 1962, they returned to the topflight once again and this time they had some staying power. Tuur Ceuleers had been brought in as trainer that year and was allowed to build the team. A legendary striker during his playing career – he is still fourth in the list of all time goal scorers of the Belgian topflight – Ceuleers began to put together a team that combined grit with talent.

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Like any good story, this one begins somewhere unexpected: not on a football pitch,

It says a lot about the side that perhaps the most notable duo - Alfons Peeters, a defender and Armand Peeters, a striker - were renown more because they were twins than for any special talent. For sure, they were all very good footballers but this wasn’t a side built around stars.

Roger De Condé, Frans Gebruers and Julien Pooters formed a solid defence. Wim Mertens had to provide the attacking spark, with Cyriel Van Herle alongside him to offer greater physical presence. Van Herle was known for his extremely powerful shot that could easily decide a game. Also, up front there was Staf Kauwenberghs, a technically strong striker who added guile to others’ grit.

Tellingly, a number of those players still worked in the mine during the week before putting on the Beringen kit at the weekend.

Their first season back was hardly spectacular, ending with a thirteenth-place finish. Yet the following campaign would become the greatest in the club’s history.

Belgian football in the early 1960s was increasingly dominated by Anderlecht and Standard Liège. The Brussels club had already won nine league championships whilst the team from Liège had won three of the previous six titles.

Beringen had no right to challenge either. Nevertheless, as the 1963-64 season progressed, the miners’ club kept winning. Boosted by their formidable attack, they collected 41 points from their 30 matches, winning 16 of them and losing only five.

Only Anderlecht proved better, finishing four points ahead of them.

For a club that had spent much of the previous decade struggling simply to remain in the division, it was an extraordinary achievement. Crowds of around 15,000 were regularly filling the Mijnstadion as the town watched its team challenge the country’s traditional powers.

Yet even as Beringen were enjoying the greatest season in their history, events away from the pitch were about to take an extraordinary turn.

On 1 March 1964, Beringen faced Turnhout, a club fighting to avoid relegation. In the days before the game, two Turnhout officials, including chairman Jan Verbeek, allegedly used former Diest player Vic Verdonck as an intermediary to offer Beringen goalkeeper Frans Gebruers 40,000 Belgian francs to influence the result. Beringen captain Felix Geybels was also implicated.

Gebruers apparently had second thoughts before the match, fearing that Beringen’s directors had discovered what was happening. His suspicions were justified. On 9 March, the club wrote to the Belgian FA reporting the attempted bribery, prompting an investigation that uncovered the scheme.

The consequences were severe. Turnhout were relegated, with Berchem Sport spared in their place, while Verbeek, Verdonck, Gebruers and Geybels were initially banned for life. Incidentally, the initial result - a 2-0 win for Turnout - was reversed with Beringen handed a 5-0 victory, a result that catapulted them in second place ahead of Standard Liege.

Even so, for Beringen, it cast an unfortunate shadow over what should have been remembered simply as the greatest league season in the club’s history.

That controversy killed any momentum that Beringen had been building, not to mention that it deprived them of two key players. They would never get that close again.

The following season Beringen slipped to eighth and from there settled into a rather less glamorous existence in the lower half of the table. Eventually, in 1970, the familiar journey back to the second division returned.

Again, it did not last long.

Promotion in 1972 lead to another lengthy period among the elite and, for the next decade, Beringen became a fixture in the Belgian top-flight once more. There were no more title challenges, but some notable footballers passed through the Mijnstadion. Belgian internationals Wilfried Van Moer and Julien Cools both played for the club, while Dutch coach Kees Rijvers also spent time in charge

Survival occasionally required a little assistance.

Beringen finished in the relegation places in 1976 but remained in the division after La Louvière were punished over a corruption case. Five years later it happened again. Beringen once more finished in a relegation spot, only for Beerschot to be sanctioned and sent down instead.

Twice the trapdoor had opened beneath them but on both occasions someone else had fallen through.

Eventually, however, there was no reprieve. Beringen were relegated in 1982, immediately won promotion back to the first division and then finished bottom in 1983-84.

This time the decline proved to be more permanent, and they would never play top-flight football again. By 1988 Beringen had fallen into the third tier; eight years later they dropped into the fourth.

What happened to the football club cannot be separated entirely from what was happening outside the Mijnstadion. Belgium’s coal industry had been contracting for decades and the Limburg mines that had once provided employment for tens of thousands of people were approaching their end.

One after another they closed.

On 28 October 1989, the Beringen mine produced coal for the final time. The industry around which the town had developed was gone.

Beringen FC survived it, but only just.

The club continued playing in the lower divisions throughout the 1990s, a long way removed from the days when they were among the country’s best. Financial problems mounted and in 2002, they were forced into a merger with Vigor Beringen, the city’s smaller second outfit, even if it had actually been founded first, in 1913.

The two joined together to form KVK Beringen. Officially, however, it was Vigor that survived the merger, with the new club taking its place.

Echoes of the club that had come so close to becoming Belgian champions survived in the new entity, and supporters continue to keep its history alive. Yet for all that continuity, the truth remains that, after 78 years, Beringen FC had ceased to exist.

Honours Won:

Belgian First Division runners-up: 1963-64

Belgian Second Division champions: 1949-50, 1957-58

Belgian Second Division runners-up: 1961-62, 1971-72, 1982-83

The story of Beringen FC is now captured in this exclusive Cultured Football shirt. Featuring its original badge and a brief history, if you enjoyed their story you can now own a piece of football’s forgotten past.

Buy the Shirt

By Nathan Edwards for the BBC

After a career spanning Manchester United, PSG and Boca Juniors, Ander Herrera is back at his boyhood club. Real Zaragoza have fallen a to the third tier since Ander Herrera left them 15 years ago, but he has returned at 37, donating his salary in the hope that he can aid the rebuild.

Bundesliga season 2026-27: All you need to know

By Jonathan Harding for DW

There might not be much doubt about who the ultimate winner is going to be but, beyond that, the Bundesliga - which kicks off this weekend - is bound to be highly entertaining.

Inside Right to Dream: The Academy Shaping Football’s Next Generation

Via

Right to Dream has grown from an academy in Ghana into one of football’s most successful development networks, creating a route from education and youth football into the professional game. A growing list of graduates proves that it is a model that works.

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First John Stones, then Djed Spence and now Curtis Jones! The English invasion at Inter proves Italy is still an attractive destination for Premier League players

By Mark Doyle for Goal

The moves to Inter by John Stones, Djed Spence and Curtis Jones is a growing reflection of a generation of players that are less afraid of trying new experiences abroad than those that came before them. And whilst the Serie A may no longer be the destination it once was, for English players its appeal is seemingly undiminished.

The whispered rise of Polish football

By Stephen Ganavas for Scouted Football

Polish football spent decades struggling to recover from the fall of communism but the Ekstraklasa is now beginning to reflect the country’s wider transformation. With rising attendances, stronger clubs an increasingly impressive generation of young players and European results improving, Polish football is finally beginning to matter.

Each week on Cultured Football we pick the five great football stories from the previous seven days.

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In Case You Missed It Here’s Last Week’s Most Read: Is Turkey home to savvy signings or a new retirement league? We’ll soon find out

By Leander Schaerlaeckens for The Guardian

Turkey has always been famed for having the passion, rivalries and football culture of a major league. Yet it has never had as many widely recognisable stars as the latest transfer window has delivered. Whether it is enough to push the league up a tier, or simply prove to be a temporary spending cycle that leads to nothing and other leagues have experienced, is another matter.

By Jonee for Football Heritage

“Ultimately, a football club is a collection of memories. Some are shared by millions of people. Some belong to a few thousand. Some belong to one family. Some belong to one person. But they all matter. A supporter can remember a goal that happened thirty years ago with more emotion than a match that happened last weekend.”

Is Turkey home to savvy signings or a new retirement league? We’ll soon find out

By Leander Schaerlaeckens for The Guardian

Turkey has always been famed for having the passion, rivalries and football culture of a major league. Yet it has never had as many widely recognisable stars as the latest transfer window has delivered. Whether it is enough to push the league up a tier, or simply prove to be a temporary spending cycle that leads to nothing and other leagues have experienced, is another matter.

Most people find Cultured Football through someone else. Be that link.

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Tzolis, Touré, Manzambi and the Premier League Newcomers We’re Excited to Watch in 2026-27

By Ryan Benson for The Analyst

Every new Premier League season delivers players with reputations built elsewhere looking to prove themselves in what is the most popular league in the world. Some succeed, others find that adapting to English football is not as easy.

Bonus Read: 2026-27 Premier League Season Preview

[ x ]

Has there ever been a summer that brought as much change to the Premier League as this one? Probably not. Which should make it all the more interesting. Especially if you’re Arsenal, I guess.

Ligue 1 Season 2026/27 Preview

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There might not be much doubt over who the ultimate winner will be, but Ligue 1 offers plenty of intrigue nevertheless. And the opportunity to see some of the world’s biggest talent before they become popular elsewhere.

How Independiente del Valle became South America’s wonderkid factory

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With Darwin Guagua’s move to Brentford, Ecuador’s Independiente del Valle added to their reputation as one of South America’s most prolific clubs thanks to an academy that keeps producing players coveted by Europe. Yet their model is about more than finding the next valuable prospect.

Each week on Cultured Football we pick the five great football stories from the previous seven days.

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In Case You Missed It Here’s Last Week’s Most Read: South America’s Best Badges

By Ben Dudley for Scenes we want to see

You’ve probably heard about and seen plenty of the biggest clubs in South America. But do you know Club Deportivo Morón from Argentina? What about Manta Football Club from Ecuador? More specifically, have you seen the club crests?

The following is an extract from the book Till I Die: Why Football Means Everything (Even When It Shouldn’t) by Damien Pearse and published by Oneworld Publications. It is available for purchase here.

I’m on a dog walk in February and feeling the impact of another Wolves loss on my mood.

It’s my usual circuit from a Saxon church, about 5 miles from Hastings; through the cemetery, past the pond, across open fields and looping back through woods where bluebells would soon stage their slow-motion resurrection.

It is one of those crisp, cloudless winter days when the blackbirds return, convincing you that spring might have arrived early. But my mind notices nothing of the beauty around me. As I crunch along the cemetery path, the dog jumps up for the ball, leaving a paw print on my jeans.

‘I haven’t got the fucking ball,’ I snap. ‘I left it in the car.’ He does it again. I’m easily irritated.

Before I get to the meadow, I sit down on a bench in the graveyard under a small oak tree. I fail to register why it’s there because my head is busy wrestling with an idea.

The emotional turbulence of being a football fan had been going on for years now, decades even, giving me moments of euphoria, but also ruining countless weekends. Not just for me, but for those around me too.

It was hard to justify, really.

Of course, I could understand why I might feel a little disappointed if Wolves lost or pleased if they won, but the profundity of my mood swings were disproportionate for an adult.

I didn’t even live in Wolverhampton anymore and these were a bunch of young men who wouldn’t recognise me if I walked into the home dressing room with their names tattooed on my forehead.

Why does a win feel like I’ve popped an ecstasy tablet, and a loss like I’ve been hurled into an emotional pit with no exit ramp? Where does all this rage come from?

And why am I compelled to watch games week after week, even when I know that the likelihood of feeling better at the end is low?

Sitting on the bench, I started to wonder if I could use some of the skills I had picked up over the course of my career to unravel this mess.

I have been a journalist for many news organisations, including the Wolverhampton Express & Star, the Press Association, the Guardian and Sky News. I have even dabbled in sports reporting and followed England football hooligans during international tournaments.

Over the last 15 years, I have learned to unpick the messy knots of the human mind as a therapist, working in the NHS and now privately as a trauma specialist.

What if I used these skills to address the question: Why does football matter so much?

Behind me, a blackbird starts up again, as optimistic as a pre-season football fan. The dog drops something indistinguishable and damp at my feet and looks up, expectant. I ignore him.

Where do I begin with this project?

I already had some data from the Liverpool game, where I’d made notes tracking what felt like a disturbing experience. In fact, I’d already sketched the bones of what would become the introduction to this book. But before disappearing into a 90,000-word exercise in navel-gazing, I needed to know if I was a bit of an outlier, a fringe lunatic, languishing in my away kit, many football pitches away from the normal distribution.

Or was this affliction – this compulsive, all-consuming emotional chaos – something lots of other people were suffering with as well?

I don’t think asking a few mates on WhatsApp will cut it. At best, that’s a biased sample, fewer than twenty men, all from the same Catholic state school in Wolverhampton, emotionally stunted in strikingly similar ways.

So I decide to go wider and test my premise on the Facebook group where I’d recently been complicit in Gary O’Neil’s humiliation. That might give me some proper data.

I write: ‘Hi, everyone. I’m writing a book about the madness of being a football fan, from the perspective of a psychologist. I want to answer questions like “Why does this game make me so dysregulated?” I want to check I’m not some weird, maladjusted oddball. I want to explore the emotions and behaviours other fans experience. What bemuses you about being a fan?’

Then I brace myself, genuinely uncertain of what I’ll get back.

These forums can get toxic very quickly. I am expecting abuse, some unpleasant trolling at the very least. The child in me covers his face and prepares for digital annihilation.

I wait.

I set off into the meadow, the low sun spilling over the wood ahead. I am glued to my phone, neck in a U-bend, arms tense, breathing shallowly. Will I be ignored? Laughed at? Maybe I’ll be reported to the group’s admin for misusing the forum.

Five minutes pass. Nothing.

I jab at my phone, refreshing the page with the frantic concentration of someone typing at high speed with one finger. The familiar weight of shame begins to stir in my stomach. I reach the edge of the woods feeling anxious.

I loop back towards the church, barely registering the snowdrops and daffodils jostling for space beneath the naked trees. Glancing up from my phone, I spot a group of walkers heading towards me, clutching poles, chatting, laughing, entirely at home in the landscape.

I suddenly feel self-conscious.

As they pass, I tuck the phone into my pocket and offer a hearty, countryside grin. I make some wholesome remark about the promise of spring.

They nod. And as soon as they are safely out of range, I pull the phone out again.

Still nothing. I begin to suspect I really am an outlier.

By the time I reach the cemetery, there are signs of life. A few likes. Then an actual response. And then the dam breaks.

Dozens of replies. Then hundreds.

There was despair, conspiracy theories, hatred of officials, unbridled joy, arrogance, pure, unfiltered rage, schadenfreude, relationship stress. The data was pouring in.

Then, something stranger happens. Private messages begin to arrive with friend requests. My phone is pinging constantly. People wanted to confess.

There were fans who said that they loved football as much as their children and partners. There were some who had planned weddings around fixture lists and skipped funerals for cup ties. There were those that had grieved the transfer of a player they’d never met but somehow loved.

One woman messaged me in desperation: ‘I’m so sorry I have hacked this group but we’re on the verge of divorce. He’s obsessed. It’s like I don’t exist.’

She gave an intimate account of their physical disconnection, finishing with a single, aching question:

‘Can you help me understand?’

Some wanted to meet me in person.

Others asked for professional help, as if, as a mental health professional, I held the antidote to whatever this unnamed affliction was.

And then there was John, who describes himself as an ex-hooligan. He tells me he’s moved his season ticket to the quieter upper tier of one of the stands not for the view, but to protect himself.

‘VAR, and the incompetent refereeing has me back in the red mist zone. Only the fact I’m high up stops me from doing something mad.’

I stare at my phone, amazed at how honest and open people are being.

Friends call me when they are in crisis. Some, especially my patients, might go so far as to describe me as calm. Yet football seemed to bypass all of that maturity and wisdom. It distorted my personality, as if I was being hijacked by a younger, more volatile version of myself.

Like John, I was unsettled by my inability to control it.

By the time I reach the church, I have 197 direct messages.

I sit down on the bench in the cemetery and try to take it in.

I click on a message from Andrew, a Wolves fan who’d moved to Detroit at twenty-six. He describes his fandom as an addiction.

‘It’s Friday evening. I’ve just eaten and should be relaxing, but I’m already feeling anxious about tomorrow’s game.’

He tells me how the recent sending-off of Matheus Cunha has knocked him sideways.

‘Honestly, I was quite distraught. Waves and waves of emotion and I didn’t know what to do with it.’

Then Andrew mentions something that would become central to the book: connection.

‘The Michigan Wolves supporters’ group. We meet at an Irish pub in Plymouth, Michigan. It helps. To share it.’

He tells me his mum has just died. He reassures me he has a therapist and is coping, but it feels good, nevertheless, to tell me.

Down the gravel path, I spot two girls, maybe twelve or thirteen, walking slowly. They approach a grave and lay down bottles of Prime. One begins to cry.

The grave is covered in football memorabilia: youth trophies, medals, footballs, a Manchester United teddy bear, colourful stones and pictures.

The grave belongs to Harry Dennis. He died at eleven years old.

Football, it seemed, had already been a defining part of who he was.

I didn’t know it then, but his mum would later help me understand something important about the irrational, fragile beauty of being a fan. And she would remind me about how football has immense power for good.

Making my way back to the car, my phone was still pinging.

About the Book: Till I Die: Why Football Means Everything (Even When It Shouldn’t) is an exploration of football fandom and the extraordinary hold it can have over our lives. Blending psychology, reportage, and personal reflection, Dr Damien Pearse examines why supporters invest so much of themselves in clubs that can so often leave them frustrated, heartbroken, or euphoric. Through conversations with fans, scientists, players, and online provocateurs, the book explores identity, belonging, masculinity, obsession, and the emotional extremes that football can provoke. Rather than focusing on the game itself, Till I Die seeks to understand the people who live and breathe it.

About the Author: Dr. Damien Pearse is a chartered psychologist specialising in trauma. Before entering psychology, he worked as a journalist, becoming one of the youngest specialist reporters at the Press Association, where he covered football hooliganism during the 1998 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2000. He later worked for both The Guardian and Sky News. A lifelong supporter of Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C., Pearse combines professional expertise with personal experience to examine the psychological and social forces that make football such a powerful part of people’s lives.

Each week on Cultured Football we pick the five great football stories from the previous seven days.

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Greece has struggled to recapture the heights of Euro 2004 over the subsequent two decades. Now there are signs of a new generation of players emerging, attracting attention of some of the continent’s biggest clubs. At the heart of this lies improving academy work at home and growing opportunities abroad, combining to give Greek football reason to look forward again.

South America’s Best Badges

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You’ve probably heard about and seen plenty of the biggest clubs in South America. But do you know Club Deportivo Morón from Argentina? What about Manta Football Club from Ecuador? More specifically, have you seen the club crests?

Don’t Delete the Ugly Frame | vs Port Vale

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This is a delightful recent discovery. Brett Patzke is Wolves’ pitchside photographer who, it turns out, is also quite good with the written word. Here he shares his appreciation for the renewed freedom to get close to the game again - something possible in the Championship but not Premier League - whilst reflection on technically imperfect photographs that end up being just right. Fascinating.

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The EFL Championship is like a thought experiment designed to drive football clubs round the twist

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The Championship returned this weekend with the usual belief that it is all up for grabs. With promotion carrying such extraordinary rewards, the result is a division where ambition and anxiety collide to bring about unpredictability. There are of course favourites but if history is anything to go by, holding tightly to those beliefs is a sure way of ending up looking foolish.

LaLiga 26/27 Season Preview

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If you’ve been following Cultured Football this past few weeks you know that I’ve been including a previous or two in every issue. And I couldn’t pass up this look at the La Liga, could I?

Each week on Cultured Football we pick the five great football stories from the previous seven days.

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In Case You Missed It Here’s Last Week’s Most Read: Why stadium design is getting more outlandish

By Tom Ravenscroft for Dezeen

When I first saw images of Birmingham City’s new stadium (above) I assumed they were AI-generated concepts produced by a fan. Instead, it is the winning design. Yet Birmingham are not alone. Clubs - and countries - increasingly want to build stadiums that are instantly recognisable, which often means going for architecture that projects a distinctive visual identity.

By Tom Ravenscroft for Dezeen

When I first saw images of Birmingham City’s new stadium (above) I assumed they were AI-generated concepts produced by a fan. Instead, it is the winning design. Yet Birmingham are not alone. Clubs - and countries - increasingly want to build stadiums that are instantly recognisable, which often means going for architecture that projects a distinctive visual identity.

Does Pre-Season Really Matter?

By for The Set Piece

Pre-season results are often dismissed as meaningless, but the weeks before the season begins can still tell us plenty about a football club. For, whilst the results themselves don’t carry any points, those games do reveal some truths.

What Are Transfer Fees Really Buying?

Via

“Transfer fees are not really buying trophies. They are selling hope, probability, and, most importantly, protection from being wrong.”

Bonus Read: Why ‘winning the summer transfer window’ doesn’t help Premier League clubs

[ x ESPN]

Fans might dream otherwise, but you DO NOT want to win the transfer window.

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The Meteoric Rise of Yan Diomande: From Nomadic Triallist to Bundesliga Superstar and a €140m Real Madrid Transfer

By Ryan Benson for The Analyst

Here’s what I don’t get about modern football. Despite almost endless resources, Real Madrid were not moved to sign Yan Diomande when he was playing relatively nearby at Levante two years ago. RB Leipzig were. Yet now Real are willing to spend a huge amount on his transfer (and undoubtedly his wages). Did Diomande improve that much over the twelve months he was in Germany?

Portuguese Primeira Liga - 26/27 Season Preview

By for GBE Expert Hub

There typically isn’t much doubt over who will win the Portuguese Premeira Liga; it will be one of the big three of Porto, Sporting and Benfica. That doesn’t mean that there isn’t much to look forward to as the new season kicks off.

Bonus Read: Coming up: six promoted teams to look out for in Europe this season

[Niall McVeigh x The Guardian]

Whilst things might be somewhat boring at the top of a number of leagues, it gets more interesting if you look elsewhere. Like, for instance, at some of the newly promoted sides.

Each week on Cultured Football we pick the five great football stories from the previous seven days.

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In Case You Missed It Here’s Last Week’s Most Read: The forgotten football federation that tried to dethrone FIFA

By Matt Snep for The Backpass

Current FIFA leadership seems intent on testing the limits of its power. That has prompted fresh questions about whether football could ever break away from its governing body, although the idea is far older than many realise. More than a century ago, another international federation attempted to build an alternative.

“It’s better to burn out than to fade away.” Few lyrics have captured the romance of impermanence quite like those words from Neil Young’s *My My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue)*.

It’s a line usually reserved for musicians, artists and larger-than-life figures whose brilliance burned bright before disappearing. Through it, Young gave us one of popular culture’s most enduring reflections on legacy: that perhaps there is something admirable about a life that shines intensely, even if only briefly.

Football, of course, tends to see things differently. A player who explodes onto the scene before fading almost as quickly is rarely remembered as a success. More often than not, they become a cautionary tale; a career forever framed by what might have been. In football, greatness is measured not just by how brightly you shine, but by how long you can keep the light burning.

The same is true of clubs, only more so. Players come and go, managers are replaced and owners change, but clubs are expected to outlive them all. Their identity is built over generations, accumulating memories, traditions and supporters with each passing decade. Survival is almost taken for granted. Even those that suffer relegation, financial collapse or years in the wilderness are expected, somehow, to endure.

Which is why the story of Jokerit is so unusual.

Each week on Cultured Football we pick the five great football stories from the previous seven days.

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Like any good story, this one begins somewhere unexpected: not on a football pitch, but inside a brand-new ice hockey arena. When Finnish businessman Hjallis Harkimo completed Hartwall Arena in 1997 as the new home of Jokerit’s ice hockey team, he inadvertently set in motion a chain of events that would bring together not one but two football clubs.

The starting point was PK-35, a club with roots stretching back to 1935. Founded in Vyborg before being re-established in Helsinki after the Second World War, PK-35 had worked its way into the Veikkausliiga during the 1990s.

Success on the pitch, however, masked growing financial problems. By the end of the decade the club was struggling to survive. That was when Hjallis Harkimo entered the picture.

Although a lifelong HJK Helsinki supporter, Harkimo saw an opportunity. Jokerit’s ice hockey team commanded one of Finland’s largest and most passionate fanbases, but for much of the year those supporters had no team to follow. Why not create a football club that could carry the Jokerit name through the summer months?

Rather than starting from the bottom of the pyramid, Harkimo acquired PK-35’s Veikkausliiga licence and first team, rebranding them as FC Jokerit despite initially promising that PK-35 would not lose their identity. The original PK-35 survived, continuing with its youth and lower-division sides, but Finland’s topflight suddenly had a brand-new club that had never actually earned promotion.

There was also a more practical motivation. Harkimo was leading the development of a new 10,000-seat football stadium in Töölö, financed through a mixture of public and private investment. HJK would be the anchor tenant, but a second football club would help justify the project, fill the fixture calendar and strengthen the stadium’s commercial viability.

Initially, the plan was for FinnPa to do that. When that side was relegated in 1998, their main backers Finnair pulled out and the club was dissolved. The void was filled by FC Jokerit.

At first, the idea seemed inspired. They won their first-ever Veikkausliiga match, finished fourth in their debut season and, most significantly, lifted the Finnish Cup by beating FF Jaro 2-1 in the final.

Alongside this there was a good run in the Intertoto Cup where Jokerit were only eliminated by West Ham in the third round.

A year later, when playing in their new stadium they kept improving, finishing as runners-up in the league. The team had been considerably strengthened – Shefqi Kuqi, who would go on to enjoy a fine career in England, was the main addition – and the ambition of dethroning HJK seemed within reach.

Yet second would be as good as it got.

Things broke down quickly after that. A year later they were relegated, losing the decisive match against FF Jaro, and despite an immediate return to the topflight it was clear that the old ambition was gone. They survived one more Veikkausliiga season, achieving the modest objective of avoiding relegation, but that proved to be the end. Hockey fans hadn’t transferred they sympathies and the club was losing money.

Once the campaign was over, Harkimo sold the football operations to HJK Helsinki. The club was rebranded as Klubi-04 and moved to the third tier, where it became HJK’s reserve team. Just six seasons after playing their first league match, FC Jokerit had ceased to exist.

FC Jokerit compressed almost an entire life cycle into six extraordinary years: rapid success, cup glory, European nights, relegation and eventual extinction. It never became what Harkimo had imagined, but it had still been pretty eventful. In 2012, supporters founded a phoenix club, Jokerit F.C. Helsinki, determined that the name would not disappear entirely. But the original experiment was over.

* The original PK-35 did not disappear. Instead, it continued with its junior and amateur sides, gradually climbing back through the divisions until it once again reached the professional ranks.

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