Best Sports Books 25

21 years, 188 Test Matches, 704 Test Wickets.This is Jimmy's intimate, honest reflection told with his trademark humility and dry humour. From growing up in Burnley as an outsider, isolated at school, bunking off, dreaming of being somewhere—anywhere else, to dominating the 22 yards of the wicket as part of the deadliest England attack ever assembled.Jimmy takes us inside the dressing room to those unforgettable moments: his debut under Nasser Hussain, facing off the Aussies with Monty Panesar, Kevin Pietersen's 'textgate' and that Mitchell Johnson incident. He reflects on the intense rivalries with Michael Clarke and Sachin Tendulkar and the burgeoning friendships with Alastair Cook and Stuart Broad. Delving behind the cricket, Jimmy reveals his experiences of personal loss alongside the pain of professional injury, and the strength he found from his marriage and the arrival of his two children.Finding the Edge is a front-row seat at the greatest games of the last two decades as England journey from perennial losers to world number one. But, above all, it is a coming-of-age story that reveals the real Jimmy: vulnerable, introspective, relentlessly determined and constantly evolving — a bowler unequalled, a career like no other.This autumn's must-have autobiography from cricket legend, Jimmy AndersonEndorsements'Revealing and often moving' — Guardian

When it comes to the toughest races in the world that push competitors to their absolute limits, a trend has captured public attention: female athletes have been beating the strongest male contenders in events traditionally designed for men.In Ultra Women, two endurance athletes delve into the surprising science of sporting performance to explore the physiological and psychological differences between the sexes. Could fat stores and muscle type (and capacity for not sleeping) really give women an edge over men in ultra long distances? And what roles are played by pace, preparation, and motherhood?Speaking to elite athletes, historians and scientists, the book unearths the largely unknown past of female endurance, from hunter-gathering to the early 20th century discipline of pedestrianism. We meet poverty-stricken mother Stamata Revithi, who snuck into the 1896 Athens Olympics marathon; 1980s swimming pioneer Lynne Cox — who crossed the world’s coldest oceans in just a swimsuit — and Jasmin Paris, a British vet who ran almost non-stop to win a 268-mile mountain race, while breastfeeding.Brimming with inspiring stories, Ultra Women blazes the trail laid by Caroline Criado Perez’s Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men. Upbeat and fast-paced, it sets out a blueprint for increasing female participation in sport.EndorsementsFor a long time, I’ve wanted to understand why women are having such success in ultra distances and this book did a superb job of explaining it all. It was a joy to read from start to finish, beautifully written and incredibly engaging. A masterful work that will challenge your views on the physical capabilities of all women. — Sue Anstiss, author of Game OnPhenomenal. This is the first time these iconic stories have been brought together in one book, really helping us to understand the history of women’s endurance sport and what it means about the strength of women and our ability to do incredible things despite the barriers that have been put in our way. — Sophie Power, champion ultrarunnerUltra Women is an important and timely re-examination of the role and performance of women in endurance sport, through history, through science and through some incredible and inspiring stories. I was gripped, amazed — and most importantly — enlightened. — Adharanand Finn, author of Running with the KenyansThis is the book we’ve been waiting for. A timely acknowledgement of the challenges faced by women in the world of ultra events and a celebration of their trailblazing, record-breaking successes. It will change your perspective on what endurance means. — Helen Mort, runner and author of A Line Above the SkyA fascinating exploration of female ultra-distance sporting achievement — and a fitting tribute to those pioneers who blazed a trail for us all to follow. — Jasmin Paris, champion ultrarunner

In 2019, the English Premier League introduced the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), a way of using technology to review and correct the on-field referee's decisions. Players hate it, managers hate it, pundits line up to pour scorn on its decisions, and fans have coined the chant 'it's not football any more' to describe its effect on the game.Almost every other sport in the world has managed to integrate technology into its decision-making process. Why is football failing so badly? Is it a special case, or have the game's authorities got something wrong? And what does the controversy about VAR tell us about the nature of authority, rationality and technology in the 21st century?Is it football any more?EndorsementsShortlisted in the Charles Tyrwhitt Sports Book Awards 2025Longlisted for the 2025 William Hill Sports Book of the Year'Fascinating and persuasive' — The Herald'Everyone involved in the VAR controversy should read this short, beautifully written book and think again' — Sir Michael Barber

Christopher Clarey, one of the world’s preeminent tennis writers, focuses his lens on Rafael Nadal, the indomitable and inspiring force of nature from Spain who has been one of the most relentless competitors in any sport.The Warrior examines Nadal’s mindset and his 14 French Open titles.Nadal has won big and often on tennis’s other surfaces en route to becoming one of the greatest players of all time, securing two Wimbledon titles on grass and four U.S. Open titles on cushioned acrylic hardcourts.But clay, the slowest and grittiest of the game’s surfaces, is where it all comes together for his tactical skills, whipping topspin forehand, and gladiatorial mindset.Clay is to Rafael Nadal what water is to Michael Phelps, which helps explain one of the most impressive individual sports achievements of the 21st century.Clarey, who has been covering Nadal since he was 17, draws on interviews over many years with Nadal and his team and with rivals like Roger Federer.This is not just a book about tennis. The Warrior draws much wider lessons from Nadal’s approach to competition.

As the 2022 World Cup in Qatar drew to a close, there was a bitter undercurrent to Argentina's triumph. Throughout the tournament, numerous allegations of sportswashing and financial misconduct had been made against the state of Qatar, moving what had previously been a smaller conversation into the worldwide spotlight. The question had been asked, who really owns and runs football? Journeying from Abu Dhabi to Newcastle, and onto London, Paris, Moscow and New York, journalist Miguel Delaney investigates the allegations of sportswashing and misconduct in the beautiful game. The result is a gripping account of how football has been taken over by the world's wealthiest businessmen, state-backed corporations, media tycoons and oil-rich oligarchs. From Neymar's £198 million transfer to Paris Saint-Germain and Abu Dhabi's construction empire in Manchester, to failed Financial Fair Play constraints and the dawn of the European Super League, Delaney draws on exclusive interviews and unprecedented access to key stakeholders to produce an all-encompassing exposé of modern football's highest echelons. The definitive account of how capitalism and the world's elite corrupted modern football. Authoritative, riveting and eye-opening, States of Play reveals how football has become a tool for the world's elite. Endorsements Shortlisted for Football Book of the Year and Best Sports Writing Award at the 2025 Sports Book Awards A Times Sports Book of the Year A Telegraph Book of the Year An Irish Times Book of the Year An Irish Independent Book of the Year 'Important, perfectly timed and hugely necessary.' — The Guardian 'Football needs this book. A monumental piece of investigative journalism.' — Irish Times 'A must-read on how modern football works.' — Ian Wright 'Brave, forensic and utterly gripping.' — Tom Holland 'The moral compass that the game needs.' — Andy Brassell 'In this excellent investigation, Delaney reveals the ugly side of the beautiful game.' — Oliver Bullough 'The most important football book of its generation.' — Jack Pitt-Brooke 'Tackles the major issues affecting football today with fearlessness and forensic scrutiny. An important investigation for our times.' — Laurie Whitwell 'A majestic book. The essential guide to how the people's game has become the plaything of the very rich and powerful.' — Jonathan Wilson Miguel Delaney's States of Play was ranked in the Irish Times bestsellers list for the weeks of 11–18 November and 9 December 2024.

Football is the world's most popular sport, and the shirts worn by teams and their supporters are its greatest means of cultural expression. Every year clubs launch new kits with increasingly extravagant marketing campaigns and convoluted explanations of how their designs reflect their history and local community. But football shirts are much more than just a symbol of which club we support. A seemingly innocuous combination of colours, sponsor logos and materials can all reflect the social values, financial struggles and political ideologies of the day, as geopolitical issues increasingly seep into every aspect of the game. Investigative journalist Joey D'Urso has travelled across the globe, combining on-the-ground reporting with unparalleled analysis to collate a list of the twenty-two football shirts that best explain the modern world.

Despite his consistency, his achievements, and—more so—his visibility, he has never written an autobiography, nor has a biography ever been written about him. He remains an enigmatic figure. We barely know how his teammates really feel about him, and we do not know what he thinks of them. We do not really know how the events of the past decade in Egypt have impacted his life. We barely know what truly motivates him, and we know very little about whether a move to join the exodus of high-level, European-based footballers in Saudi Arabia would interest him. This biography seeks to answer those questions by speaking to the people who know him best through a mixture of on-record and off-record interviews. A definitive biography to remember.

Donald McRae has been immersed in boxing for fifty years. He has followed fighters around the world and won multiple awards for his writing. But, in recent years, McRae’s love has waned, as criminality and corruption consume the soul of boxing.In 2018, grieving the death of his sister and with his parents terminally ill, he sought refuge in boxing again — just as Tyson Fury completed an incredible comeback, proving that the ring can still offer exhilaration and redemption.From Fury’s resurrection to the first undisputed heavyweight champion this century, boxing can be epic and electrifying. It can also be disappointing, as McRae discovers when he documents doping’s insidious rise or travels to Saudi Arabia where boxing ignores state repression. In The Last Bell, McRae takes us ringside to thrilling bouts with great contemporary champions and fighters as different as Fury, Canelo Álvarez, Oleksandr Usyk, Katie Taylor, Regis Prograis and Isaac Chamberlain. Whether in London or Las Vegas, he shows us what it is like to see joy pour out of a boxer in the dressing room after a magnificent victory or to hold the hand of a fighter being wheeled away on a stretcher after a devastating defeat. As he tries to reconcile the contradictions which lie at boxing’s murky heart, McRae is unflinching and compelling.McRae helps boxers open up about their doubts and fears and charts the courage of fighters facing ordeals from depression to war. And in telling the heartbreaking story of Patrick Day, he faces death in the ring. The Last Bell is his most powerful and personal book yet, a riveting account of life, death and boxing.Endorsements'The Last Bell takes us on a journey through the last six years in boxing, from 2018 to 2024 as McRae loses his parents and questions why he is still obsessed by the brutality of boxing.... The result is exhilarating and terrifying.' — The Herald, Book of the Month'One of the very best writers working today' — Benjamin Myers, author of The Offing and The Gallows Pole.'Thrilling and raw, this is sport writing at its best' — Dina Nayeri, author of The Ungrateful Refugee.

In 2034, Saudi Arabia will host the men's FIFA World Cup and mark the culmination of Mohammed bin Salman's ambitious plan to modernise Saudi Arabia, a kingdom of unfathomable wealth at the heart of the Islamic world, which is only now emerging from nearly a century of self-isolation. How did we get here? Why would a country spend tens of billions of dollars, perhaps even hundreds of billions in the long run, to buy and control sport?Engulfed is a story about ambition, family rivalries, extreme wealth, power, murder and disinformation. It is also the story of dictatorship, political corruption and, at its root, how sport—football, yes, but also golf, boxing and even e-sports—became a vital geopolitical tool for Saudi Arabia.Drawing on Montague's exclusive first-hand interviews from his extensive travels across Saudi Arabia, the US, the north-east of England, Spain, Turkey and beyond, Engulfed uncovers how the House of Saud zeroed in on the political power of sport, using it both as a powerful political tool of influence and as a way to rectify the PR damage caused by one of the most infamous assassinations in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Test cricket is on the cusp of its 150th anniversary. For the first time, Test Cricket tells the full, gripping story of the players and stories that have shaped the game's evolution since 1877.Award-winning author Tim Wigmore brings to life both Test cricket on the pitch and the game's social significance around the world. This captivating tour is illuminated by dozens of exclusive interviews with the game's greatest players, including Sachin Tendulkar, Pat Cummins, Michael Holding, Muttiah Muralitharan, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Chappell, Dale Steyn, and Rahul Dravid.From Bodyline to Bazball, the golden age to the rise of the West Indies, and Shane Warne to Ian Botham, readers will come to appreciate Test cricket's remarkable history like never before.The first narrative history of Test cricket.Endorsements"Wonderfully wide-focused, unfailingly readable and laced with passages of insightful analysis, Tim Wigmore's history of Test cricket is a true tour de force." — David Kynaston"Much more than simply a history of Test cricket, this is a colourful, modern take on the sport's most treasured format. I've commentated on over 400 Tests and learned so much from this wonderful book. Wigmore lays bare the challenges Test cricket faces and the fight required to preserve it." — Jonathan Agnew, BBC Test Match Special"Hugely informative and enjoyable — a fantastic achievement. A must-read for all cricket lovers." — Peter Frankopan"Excellent." — Mike Atherton"A vibrant, global history of the oldest form of cricket. Told across decades and vast spans of geography, using history, memoir, stats, science and the voices of greats living and gone, it is destined to be a classic... Monumental." — The Hindu

The football World Cup is the most watched sporting event on the planet. It has become a global phenomenon; 211 nations initially entered the 2022 edition. It has been running for almost a century.Yet until now there has been no comprehensive history of the tournament. Based on fresh interviews and meticulous research, this book will change that.By 1930, football had outgrown the Olympic Games. A new competition, run by FIFA, would take international football to the next level. After a shambolic start to the first cup in Uruguay — an incomplete stadium, shoddy refereeing and physios accidentally injuring players — the thrilling final saw Uruguay take on Argentina, beating them 4–2.From those chaotic beginnings grew the modern World Cup, a cultural phenomenon that draws the world together like nothing else, and that gives it a profound importance. Ask a random person on a random street to name a moment in the history of Senegal and they may well say Pape Bouba Diop's winner against France in the 2002 World Cup, a goal not only against the defending champions but against the former colonial masters.The World Cup has political significance. West Germany's success in 1954 was a moment of reintegration into global society. Progress to the semi-finals in 1998 gave a huge boost to Croatia's sense of national self. But football is an unpredictable sport: in the so-called Soccer War of 1969, tensions between El Salvador and Honduras were ignited by a World Cup qualifier. More recently, the focus for governments seeking political gain has been hosting the tournament, with the World Cups in Russia and Qatar clear examples of sportswashing — staging a tournament to project an image of a thriving society.There has never been a comprehensive history of the World Cup that has considered not only the matches and goals, the players and coaches, the tales of scandal and genius, the haggling and skulduggery of the bidding process, but has also placed the tournaments within a socio-political framework. The story of the World Cup is also the story of the world; this book tells its definitive history.Endorsements'A master at telling football's greatest ever stories... Breathtaking. Wilson's eye for detail and his elegant writing brings the World Cup to life like no other book on the topic I have ever read' — Elis James'Epic in scope, awesomely rich in detail, and compulsively entertaining' — Tom Holland'So much of what we know of football's history we know thanks to Wilson' — Simon Kuper

Most batters just do their best, yet the top players create art. It is physically impossible to face an 80mph delivery and track it with your eyes, yet the greatest batters do more than just watch the ball, they can see into the future.This book is about the batters who see what mortals don't. Javed Miandad purposefully makes errors to manipulate the field, Sachin Tendulkar dug up a pitch to take on Warne, Shivnarine Chanderpaul practised non-stop on a beach with tennis balls until he mastered technique and Joe Root's great play against spin is known to be a confluence of three random events. Others, such as Smith, Pietersen and Richards, carried on the work of a man 100 years before their time, and Ranji changed cricket with a bucket.Their methods and stories are different, but their currency is the runs. Through interviews with cricketing greats such as David 'Bumble' Lloyd, Nasser Hussain, Rahul Dravid and Brian Lara, this book shows you the science, skill and culture that made the 50 greatest batters of all time — and, ultimately, how they conquered leather with willow.Colourful cricket history meets expert analysis in this richly researched exploration of the art of batting.Endorsements'a wonderful tale' — David 'Bumble' Lloyd'one of cricket's most distinctive writers' — Andy Zaltzman

Sam Smith and Phil Jackson grew to know and respect each other in the late 1980s, when Smith was a Chicago Tribune sportswriter and Jackson was an assistant coach for the Chicago Bulls. Forty years later, the two remain close friends. In 2021, Smith helped the NBA arrive at a list of the seventy-five greatest players of all time in celebration of its seventy-fifth anniversary. Phil Jackson was asked to participate too, but he’s not a big fan of ranking greatness. They’ve been enjoying the argument ever since.In Masters of the Game, Smith and Jackson chop it up about the basketball life, the sport, and the genius and the shadow side of the all-time greats: Jordan, Kobe, Shaq, Magic, Bill Russell, Wilt, Jerry West, Bird, LeBron, KD, Steph Curry, Bill Walton, and more. In a conversation full of high-grade analysis and high-grade gossip, we meet the stars of long-ago eras of basketball and see the mark race left on players and the business of the game—and we get a master class on character and the alchemy of a good team. And of course, inevitably, these two old heads get into the GOAT debate.There are so many huge characters here, and Smith and Jackson can hold their own with any of them. Their spirit—sharp, wise, irreverent, honest, respectful of the lore and legacy of the game but never pious—and the clash of their different perspectives combine.The legendary sportswriter and the Hall of Famer and eleven-time NBA champion coach separate the music from the noise in the stories of the greatest who ever played and their impact on the game. A joyous ride, a short course in greatness open to all students.

Between 2012 and 2023, Ian Graham worked as Liverpool FC's Director of Research. His tenure coincided with the club’s greatest period of success since the 1980s, including winning the Premier League in 2020 — Liverpool’s first league title after an agonising 30 years.Here for the first time, Graham reveals the fascinating data that informed some of the club’s most pivotal moments of the past decade, from the appointment of Jürgen Klopp as manager in 2015 to the signing of Mohamed Salah in 2017. Along the way, he shares groundbreaking insight into the modern game, including how a season largely played behind closed doors transformed our understanding of home-side advantage, and why the GOAT (greatest of all time) might not be who you think. In a game increasingly dominated by an elite few, Graham charts a path for the future where a data-savvy competitor will always find the edge.The insider account of the data revolution that has swept through the modern football world, written by one of its key architects, Ian Graham.Endorsements'The best book on football I have ever read' — Daniel Finkelstein'Deserves a place among the great modern books on football' — Sam Wallace, chief football writer, Telegraph

Eben Etzebeth is the most-capped player in South African Rugby history. A towering lock, whose intelligence, energy and aggression on the pitch is feared, respected and often imitated but never matched, he is the heart and soul of the Springbok team, a key part of their astonishingly successful run that encompasses two consecutive World Cups and a current two-year stint at the top of the world rankings.In his first book, Eben will uncover the key driving factors in his extraordinary career, and how he keeps focused, both on and off the pitch. From his humble beginnings in Goodwood, a Cape Town suburb where nothing came easy, to his place within the South African squad and their inner workings, get ready for a rugby story like no other.

The Springboks made history in France in 2023 when they became the only team to win the Webb Ellis Trophy four times. Who can forget how the Boks won by only one point in three games? Released on the anniversary of this milestone, Twice the Glory by Lloyd Burnard and Khanyiso Tshwaku investigates how this remarkable victory was achieved.A recurring theme is the relationship between Jacques Nienaber and Rassie Erasmus, one that goes all the way back to their university days, how it developed and how, when watching the Boks play against Ireland in 2017, they decided to come back to SA to ‘turn things around’.Nienaber is famously self-effacing, but in a dedicated chapter and interview the authors examine the man who rose from physiotherapist to world-beating coach and how he combined with Erasmus to form a world-beating duo.Rassie and Jacques had only 18 months to turn the Boks around before their triumph at the 2019 World Cup. It’s all here: the Covid disruption, the Siya Kolisi story, Rassie in hot water over that video, injury blows, and rising new talent as they head off to France to do battle once again.Twice the Glory is filled with drama, anecdotes and tears. This is a story that will have you on the edge of your seat as you relive the nail-biting moments, and it also includes penetrating analysis of what contributed to making this Bok team the finest in its history.

For celebrated journalist Tracey Lee Holmes, sport has been both a way of life and a lens through which to look at life itself. In this completely candid, wide-ranging and passionate book – part memoir, part manifesto – she shares both her stories and her views on sport’s most dramatic issues.The dragonfly sees in 360 degree perspective, and that’s what Tracey Lee Holmes has always done in her sports journalism. Over four decades, she has taken us beyond the scores and stats to the real stories of sport – the stories of human beings in exultation and defeat, and the bigger stories of money, power, and all too often, discrimination.In both her life and work, Holmes has consistently broken barriers. The first female presenter of the ABC’s flagship sports programme, Grandstand, she has pioneered coverage of and by women in sport. Her longform style of interviewing and her reporting on world events like the Olympics and FIFA World Cups have introduced us to athletes from all backgrounds and nations, from our own Cathy Freeman and James Hird to Ayrton Senna and Pele. Anchor, reporter, podcaster and – for a rocky spell over the 2000 Sydney Olympics – media manager, Holmes has never sought to divorce sport and the politics of the world it’s played in. As well as recounting highlights (and a couple of lowlights) from her career, in this book she shares her views on drugs in sport, Sam Kerr, and what challenges face the Olympics before the 2032 Brisbane Games.Holmes has also had a rich personal story. The child of itinerant surfers, she has lived in many different countries with her own children and husband, Stan Grant, seeing the world from many different perspectives. And only after many years living in China did she learn that she has Chinese heritage herself.Bracing, intimate and characteristically unconventional, The Eye of the Dragonfly gives us the full picture of a remarkable life in sport.

From one of Australia's leading military historians and biographers, Peter Rees, comes Guts and Glory, an enthralling history of the way in which sport is ever present in the wars fought by, or involving, our Australian Defence Force.The spirit of Australia can be seen so clearly in how we play and how we fight. From the famous cricket match played on the beach at Gallipoli as a decoy for the evacuation of Australian troops; to the hero of Tobruk, Changi and the Thai Burma railway, Colonel Sir Ernest Edward 'Weary' Dunlop AC, who so respected his hard-won Wallaby jersey, he insisted on being buried in it; to legendary Test cricketer Keith Miller, fighter pilot in WWII, who famously said 'Pressure is a Messerschmitt up your arse, playing cricket is not' — sport has always been part of our wars.A collection of vivid, moving, funny, powerful and poignant sporting stories from the wars fought by the Australian Defence Force ranging from WWI right through to the present day, Guts and Glory is a book about the way that sport is so often an intrinsic part of war; how sport provides a means for the diggers to cope with the pressures of the battlefield; how the lessons that we learn playing sport can be applied to the art of leadership and warfare; and how mateship and the Australian character and spirit can be seen in the way we fight and the way we play.Endorsements'This is ultimately an uplifting book, which celebrates the bonding and healing power of sport, in times of war and after it. For history buffs who can't miss Friday night footy or the Boxing Day Test, this is a book they'll devour.' — Readings

Hardest Geezer author Russ Cook is the first person to ever run the entire length of Africa. From his starting point in Cape Agulhas, South Africa, through sandstorms in the Sahara Desert, rainforests, mountain ranges and long empty roads stretched out for miles in front of him, Russ ran the equivalent of 386 marathons before finally crossing the finish line in Tunisia 50 weeks later.Through attempted kidnaps, an armed robbery where he was held at gunpoint, and the gut-wrenching moment when he was denied the right to cross Algeria and the whole challenge was left hanging in the balance, Russ never once contemplated giving up. When he crossed the finish line in Ras Angela, he did so with the world watching him.Africa may have been his most physical challenge yet but it certainly wasn’t his first. For years, Russ hid from the realities of life by drinking too much and losing himself in the world of online gambling, and it wasn’t until he discovered running and sought out endurance challenges that life took a different turn. He soon learned that you don’t get to avoid the struggle, but you do get to choose it.

Net Gains: Inside the Beautiful Game’s Analytics Revolution takes readers on a tour across the world and throughout soccer history, introducing the many people who have attempted to shine a light on and innovate a sport that, in many ways, is still stuck in the Dark Ages. This deep dive into the rise of analytics in soccer—a sport where tradition reigns supreme—shows how revolutionary tactics and underexplored metrics are breaking the beautiful game wide open.By exploring how massive institutions built on billions of dollars can function for so long without any kind of introspection—and what happens when people from the outside attempt to question the status quo—author Ryan O’Hanlon shows how time and again experts, managers, coaches, players, and fans feel they know the best approach for any given team or player, and yet get undermined by the complexity of the game—and human behavior.To tell this globe-trekking story, O’Hanlon takes readers inside the front offices and analytics departments of the top professional leagues’ most cutting-edge clubs and profiles a misfit cast of number-crunchers, behavioral economists, tech insiders, and managers all working to move beyond the philosophical side of soccer and uncover the hard truths behind possession, goals, and developing talent.An in-depth examination of the rise of analytics in soccer and the wild experiments unfolding around the world in the beautiful game from ESPN staff writer and Infinite Football podcast host Ryan O’Hanlon.Endorsements“Ryan O’Hanlon pulls off a remarkable trick in Net Gains: he writes about the evolution of soccer in a way that somehow feels both romantic without being blind and analytical without being cold.” — #1 New York Times bestselling author Shea Serrano

The concept of Expected Goals — or xG — has changed how we understand football. Every fan will have heard of xG, many will understand what it is, but few will know exactly how it's being used by football teams to improve their chances of winning matches.xGenius explores the interplay between analysis, tactics, and decision-making. It seeks to put the sport of football under the microscope with the aim of getting closer to the ultimate truth of what makes players, managers and teams successful. What, ultimately, wins football matches.Packed with examples from the Premier League and beyond, xGenius shows how xG and other performance analysis tools are helping answer previously unanswerable questions. Were Brighton the unluckiest team in recent history? What is 'The Timo Werner Paradox'? How many titles did Liverpool deserve to win under Jürgen Klopp? Is Son Heung-Min the greatest finisher in the modern era?xGenius demonstrates how clubs and coaches are using data as a major tool to improve performances on the pitch. It reveals how xG helped Brighton and Brentford transform themselves into established Premier League clubs, and how such analysis was integral to Liverpool and Arsenal's renaissance in recent years.As teams have realised the importance of amassing high xG numbers, the average shot distances in Europe's major leagues have plummeted, dead ball situations have become ever more important, and players who are able to accumulate large xG volumes have become increasingly valuable. Clubs have developed new systems, formations and strategies as they strive for 'big chance creation'.xGenius shows how top-level football analysis is being carried out by the very best in the business.The insights explored in this book will change the way you watch football.Endorsements'Eye-opening. An essential read for any football fan' — Jamie Carragher

In 1978, when Alex Duff first went to watch Brentford, players would go on midweek pub crawls near the Griffin Park stadium. Sometimes, in no fit state to go home, they would crash out in a terraced home where one of them lived opposite the stadium gates. The next morning, they clambered into a white van which one of them would drive to training, stopping on the way for a bacon sandwich and cup of tea at a greasy spoon café. Brentford had once played in the top-flight but now, idling in the third division, were a second home for players and supporters, but there was neither the ambition nor money to revive their best days. They bumbled along until in 2005, fed up with trying to make a profit from a club with an ageing stadium in an unfashionable west London suburb, owner Ron Noades agreed to hand over the business to supporters on the condition they take over responsibility for their £5.5 million overdraft. One of the fans, an Oxford University physics graduate called Matthew Benham, was making millions of pounds from professional gambling and threw in a £500,000 lifeline to help keep the club afloat. Initially, as a sort of academic challenge, he began figuring out if he could employ the mathematics which he used in beating the bookmakers to improve the club's performance on the pitch. Smart Money is the story of how a scientist with an inquiring mind was set loose in a backwater of professional football, and how he turned a modest, little-known team into a competitor in one of the world's most-watched sports leagues.

Join the team behind The Price of Football podcast as they start a (fictional) football club and discover what's really going on behind the scenes of the beautiful game.Buying a football club will set you back a few quid, but you've also got to pass the Premier League and EFL's 'fit and proper persons test'. That all seems like a bit of a faff to the team behind the award-winning podcast The Price of Football, so acclaimed comedy writer Kevin Day, football finance expert Kieran Maguire and producer Guy Kilty start an imaginary club instead.In Unfit and Improper Persons they take West Park Rovers on a hilarious journey from the lowest level of the FA pyramid right up to the English Football League, the Premier League and, if fortune favours the fictional, into the heart of Europe.At least that's the plan, but inevitably they face a few challenges along the way. Where to find a shirt sponsor? What should the mascot be — is a dog called Rover too obvious? Can they pay the women's team the same as the men's team? (Spoiler: hardly anyone else does.) And how can they get Messi to the Kleanwell Stadium next season, like they promised the fans?Roofing over the toilets, paying the electric on the floodlights, salary caps, parachute payments and avoiding bankruptcy, never mind relegation — owning a football club isn't all about stuffing prawn sarnies and quaffing champagne in the directors' box.Unfit and Improper Persons is informed and funny, and thanks to exclusive interviews with those who've been there, done that, it lays bare the labyrinthine world of football finance.Ever dreamed of setting up your own football club?Endorsements"A very funny book that tackles some serious football issues." — Gary Lineker"Witty and wise." — Clare Balding"Brilliant. Blows the lid off football. Hilarious, detailed and insightful." — Alan Davies

Rule #1: Don't watch the ball.Yes, football is about stars, goals and glory. But it's also about the intense calculations and movements being made by the twenty-one other players on the pitch. It's about the ticking clock, and the bellowing fans, and their impact on player psychology. It's about the coach, the club owner, and the director of football, who are watching, scouting and scheming from the sidelines. It's about money and data, about geopolitics and architecture, and even about climate change.Football is the most popular sport in the world, and Tifo Football is one of the world's most popular football channels.Covering the key concepts, tactics and philosophies that are shaping the sport today, How to Watch Football reveals surprising new perspectives on familiar elements of gameplay, while highlighting lesser-known aspects of the industry and its history.In this short, illustrated guide, its creators share fifty-two simple 'rules' for understanding and enjoying the beautiful game — both on and off the pitch.Endorsements'I love Tifo' — Ian Wright'Tifo are great' — Alan Shearer'Tifo have changed the game when it comes to football analysis' — Elis James

The first major biography of legendary Baltimore Orioles manager Earl Weaver—who has been described as “the Copernicus of baseball” and “the grandfather of the modern game”—The Last Manager is a wild, thrilling, and hilarious ride with baseball’s most underappreciated genius, and one of its greatest characters.Long before the Moneyball era, the Earl of Baltimore reigned over baseball. History’s feistiest and most colorful manager, Earl Weaver transformed the sport by collecting and analyzing data in visionary ways, ultimately winning more games than anybody else during his time running the Orioles from 1968–1982.When Weaver was hired by the Orioles, managers were still seen as coaches and inspirational leaders, more teachers of the game than strategists. Weaver invented new ways of building baseball teams, prioritizing on-base average, elite defense, and strike throwing. Weaver was the first manager to use a modern radar gun, and he pioneered the use of analytical data. By moving 6’4” Cal Ripken, Jr. to shortstop, Weaver paved the way for a generation of plus-sized superstar shortstops, including Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter. He foreshadowed almost everything that Bill James, Billy Beane, Theo Epstein, and hundreds of other big brain baseball types would later present as innovation.Beyond being a great baseball mind, Weaver was a rare baseball character. Major League Baseball is show business, and Weaver understood how much of his job was entertainment. Weaver’s outbursts offered players cathartic relief from their own frustration, signaled his concern for the team, and fired up fans. In his frequent arguments with umpires, he hammed it up for the crowds, faked heart attacks, ripped bases out of the ground, and pretended to toss umpires out of the game. Weaver also fought with his players, especially Jim Palmer, but that creative tension contributed to a stunning success, and a hilarious clubhouse. During his tenure as major league manager, the Orioles won the American League pennant in 1969, 1970, 1971, and 1979, each time winning over 100 games.The Last Manager uncovers the story of Weaver’s St. Louis childhood with a mobster uncle, his years of minor league heartbreak, and his unlikely road to becoming a big league manager, while tracing the evolution of the game from the old-time baseball of cross-country trains and “desk contracts” to the modern era of free agency, video analysis, and powerful player agents. Weaver’s career is a critical juncture in baseball history. He was the only manager to hold a job during the five years leading up to, and five years after, free agency upended baseball in 1976.Weaver was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1996. In his retirement, he even admitted that “if he had been an umpire, he would have thrown himself out of more games than he actually was.” Belligerent, genius, infamous—The Last Manager tells the story of one man who left his mark on the game for generations.

From veteran New York Times business and NFL reporter Ken Belson comes a deeply reported account of how the NFL’s Commissioner, Roger Goodell, and its two most powerful owners, Jerry Jones and Robert Kraft, turned the league into a cultural phenomenon.On February 11, 2024, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and the league’s two most powerful owners, Jerry Jones and Robert Kraft, looked down at the spectacle before them. What they saw was the sport’s championship game, the Super Bowl—now a de facto national holiday—being played in a shiny new $2B stadium, home to the first franchise based in Las Vegas after the league’s embrace of nationwide gambling. The moment was over 30 years in the making. As one of Goodell’s colleagues said: “Roger doesn’t view the other leagues as competition. He wants to be mentioned with Disney and the Vatican, these massive institutions.”In Every Day Is Sunday, Ken Belson traces the evolution of the league from “one of the four US professional sports” to the superpower it is today. Belson illustrates how the league’s rise coincided with the arrival of Jones and Kraft in the early 1990s. He provides an inside look at how these two men reshaped the league, taking readers into secretive owners’ meetings, how they decided Goodell was the right man to appoint as commissioner, and how the three built, wielded, and held on to their collective power.Perfect for fans of The Dynasty and Big Game, Belson provides a unique peek behind the curtain of how America’s favorite sport achieved its status—and how these three men let nothing stand in their way.

For Nicholas Thompson, running has always been about something more than putting one foot in front of another. He ran his first mile at age five, using it as a way to connect with his father as his family fell apart. As a young man, it was a sport that transformed, and then shook, his sense of self-worth. In his 30s, it was a way of coping with a profound medical scare.By his early 40s, Thompson had many accomplishments. He was the Editor in Chief of a major magazine; a devoted husband and father; and a passionate runner. But he was haunted by the recent death of his brilliant, complicated father and the crack-up that derailed his father’s life. Had the intensity and ambition he’d inherited made a personal crisis inevitable for him as well?Then a chance offer gave him the opportunity to train for the Chicago Marathon with elite coaches. Giving himself over to the sport more fully than ever before, he discovered that aging didn’t necessarily put you on an unbroken trajectory of decline. For seven years after his father died, Thompson transforms his body to perform at its highest capacity, and the profound discipline and awareness he builds along the way changes every aspect of his life. Throughout the narrative, he weaves in stories of remarkable men and women who have used the sport to transcend some of the hardest moments in life.The Running Ground is a story about fathers, sons, and the most basic and most beautiful of sports.A profound meditation on what running can teach us about our limits and our lives by a record-setting distance runner who is now the CEO of The Atlantic.Endorsements“This is not just an engaging memoir about running. It’s a meditation on what it takes to marshal and maintain motivation.” — Adam Grant“Endlessly surprising, revelatory, and heart-rending.” — Anna Wintour

'Back in 2012, everyone knew who Bradley Wiggins was. Everyone, that is, but me. Thirteen years after the summer that defined me, I have finally defined myself. The disguises have gone. I've made peace with myself.'Bradley Wiggins is the greatest British cyclist of his generation. A national hero on both track and road, he won five Olympic gold medals, eight world titles and the Tour de France.But his is a story mired in contradiction, controversy, and confusion. Sat on a throne after winning gold at London 2012, just ten days after becoming the first Briton to win the Tour de France, here was a man with the world at his feet. Sporting hero. People’s champion. Legend. Everyone knew who ‘Wiggo’ was. Everyone, that is, but him.Bradley’s own truth was one of a chaotic and disturbing upbringing characterised by abandonment and abuse. The bike had been his escape but he knew that the second he got out of the saddle he was a shadow-man with no self-belief and even less self-worth.With zero confidence in his value as a human being, attention was his worst nightmare. Bradley’s answer was to wear a mask. He became ‘Sir Wiggo’, the loveable rogue, the disguise slowly suffocating the real him, crushing the last few remnants of self-esteem.Bradley descended into a deep personal despair marked by drug addiction. It was his lowest point, and one which, he freely admits, could have resulted in his death.Bradley’s saviour has been himself. Incredibly he found the strength to embark on a remarkable journey of self-discovery during which he faced his greatest ever opponent – the demons inside his head. In so doing he reached an understanding of what and who he is.The result is this powerful memoir, The Chain.It is a journey he now wants to share. He wants others to understand they are not alone in their mental battles; that embracing honesty and openness is the key to personal happiness.Bradley Wiggins has cast aside his fragile shell. Now, as the person he always wanted to be, he has become an inspiration to us all. Forget the jerseys, the medals. Finally, Bradley Wiggins is who he is, in his own skin. He has broken the chain.Think you know Bradley Wiggins? Think again. Join Bradley Wiggins on a remarkable journey of self-discovery during which he faced his greatest ever opponent – the demons inside his head. He has cast aside his fragile shell and is the person he always wanted to be. Finally, he is happy in his own skin. He has broken the chain.EndorsementsWaterstones Sports Book of the Year 2025.Guardian Best Sports Book of 2025.Daily Telegraph Best Book of 2025.It's not a light read, but blimey, it is brilliant. — Polly Vernon, The TimesDisarmingly honest and roguishly humorous. — Jonathan Liew, The GuardianSuch a brave, super-open, super-honest. It's going to help a lot of people. — Chris Evans, Virgin RadioSearing and insightful ... Harrowing ... Compelling ... Definitely worth reading. — David Walsh, The Sunday TimesRaw and graphic. — Daily Telegraph

A unique memoir from British cycling’s most fascinating competitorIn the summer of 2020 sportswriter David Walsh asked Pippa York if she’d be interested in being his travelling companion for the Tour de France. The deal was that he would sort out the logistics beforehand — the hotels and transport details — and she would handle the day-to-day tasks of getting them around and add her insight occasionally. It also meant she would return to the race she had ridden eleven times as Robert Millar.The result is a unique and entertaining sporting odyssey. The Escape uses the minutiae of Pippa and David’s trip, and the iconic landmarks of the Tour de France, to explore her early life growing up in working-class Glasgow; her entry into racing; the psychological aspects of the sport and how they manifested in her personality; her ups and downs as a competitor; her post-career life; and her eventual transition in her 40s.Touching on doping, gender in sport, and the unique wonders and day-to-day challenges of the Tour, The Escape is both an unforgettable travelogue through the world’s greatest cycling event and a one-of-a-kind memoir from arguably the sport’s most enigmatic and fascinating competitors.

In 2012, English football was rocked by the biggest match-fixing operation to hit these shores in the modern era. An Asian syndicate had infiltrated the Conference South with players being offered vast sums of money to help rig games and net millions of pounds for the fixers. Loyal fans attending matches were oblivious to the fact that outcomes had been predetermined. The remarkable story of how this syndicate was able to take hold of the national sport is told to us by a man who not only played in many of these games, but went to jail for helping to fix them — Moses Swaibu.Fixed breaks new ground as Moses Swaibu becomes the first player ever to write openly about how he helped to fix games, revealing exactly what happens on the pitch when a match is being manipulated. He also exposes how the criminal gangs operate, how young professional players are targeted and groomed and the threats of violence that are used to keep them in check.From fixer to rehabilitation, Swaibu's story of redemption offers a fascinating insight into the ugly side of the beautiful game. This is a sporting account like none ever written before.Endorsements'Exposes a dark and corrupt underworld in British football' — Joao Castelo-Branco, ESPN'Gritty, dark and inspiring — you won't have read a story like this before' — Daniel Taylor, The Athletic and New York Times'The descent from talented footballer to convicted criminal is shocking. The journey thereafter is nothing short of inspirational' — Rob Dorsett, Sky Sports'A compelling and necessary story' — Nicolas Sayde, Council of Europe