Cultured Football's Gift Guide: Books & Magazines

Books & Magazines

For the past year, Cultured Football has been picking the best football articles for you to read. This week, we're continuing doing that but in a slightly different manner: every day in this first week of December we're going to provide you with a guide to gifts that we feel you (or any football lover in your life) will enjoy.

Books

Played in Germany: A Footballing Journey Through a Nation's Soul by Kit Holden

An exploration of the major football clubs and cities across this vast nation, offering a concise introduction to modern German history as viewed through the lens of its key footballing regions, passionate fanbases, and intense rivalries; this is an incredibly enjoyable read and definitely one of my favourites from this year.

Narcoball: Love, Death and Football in Escobar's Colombia by David Arrowsmith

Thanks to the multiple TV series about his life, there has been a (weird) resurgence in interest on Pablo Escobar. Often, however, this barely mention his one major passion: football. Escobar - and other drug barons - used the money they gained to fuel their childhood dreams of running their clubs. In turn football gave them a path to gain popularity and get into people’s sympathies. All of that is laid out in this captivating read.

European Football's Greatest Grounds: A Photographic Collection of Europe’s Most Breathtaking Football Venues: One Hundred Must-See Football Venues by Leon Gladwell

“Part guide, part love letter to the history, people and places that showcase the best of Europe's football landscape this book is sure to leave you planning a future football trip” goes the book blurb. For once, I couldn’t put it better. Few books give me as much enjoyment as ones like this.

Bring Me That Horizon: A Journey to the Soul of Portuguese Football by Miguel Lourenço Pereira

Over the past few years we have been blessed with some great footballing histories of some of the strongest nations in the game. Bring Me That Horizon adds Portugal to that list.

My Beautiful Sisters by Khalida Popal

A poignant and inspiring glimpse into the lives of Afghan women athletes, particularly focusing on the Afghan women's football team. This memoir is not just about the sport; it delves deeply into themes of courage, resilience, and the struggle against gender oppression in a challenging socio-political landscape. While the writing may occasionally lack polish, the powerful message of unity and strength resonates strongly throughout the book.

A Culture of Kits by John Blair

With insights from experts and collectors, Blair captures the football shirt collecting community aspect of this hobby, illustrating how vintage shirts serve as symbols of nostalgia and identity within the football culture. A visually appealing and informative guide for anyone interested in the intersection of sports and fashion; in other words: a great book to look through!

Magazines

Glory

The concept for Glory is simple: pick a nation and then dive deep into its football culture. The execution: brilliant. If you’re going to subscribe to one magazine then this is probably it.

Nutmeg

Do not let Nutmeg’s focus on Scotland put you off: I guarantee that you’ll find plenty to enjoy in any issue of this magazine even if you have no interest in the game north of the border. And, if you still have any doubts, check out their companion Substack for sample of what Nutmeg is all about.

Full disclosure: I have been a paid contributor to Nutmeg.

Blizzard

The grand-daddy of long-form football writing, Blizzard keeps going strong. If you enjoy Cultured Football then you will definitely love Blizzard that routinely features the best football writers talking with the freedom to explore topics they rarely get the opportunity to do elsewhere.

Futbolista: Issue 12 Battle for the Soul of Valencia

It has been a few months since Futbolista put out their latest issue which focuses largely on Spain but it is still well worth checking out. One of the newer kids on the magazine block, Futbolista is less regular than the others mentioned but still very much worth a read when it does come out.

Full disclosure: I am paid contributor to this issue of Futbolista.

Something Else…

If you’ve still got hankering for a good read, might I suggest my own books: Echoes of an Italian Summer - a collection of little known stories from Italia 90 - or The Forgotten Genius of Italian Football, that tells the forgotten story of four times Italian league winner Carlo Carcano. And don’t forget that every subscriber of Cultured Football can download a free copy of Master of the Azzurri: The Life of Enzo Bearzot

Disclosure: Cultured Football does not receive any commission of make any financial gain from the items mentioned here except for where disclosed.