African Soccerscapes. How a Continent Changed the World's Game

Alegi, Peter

ISBN 10: 1849040389 / ISBN 13: 9781849040389

Published by (London: Hurst & Company, 2010) 9781849040389, 2010

About this Item

215 x 140 mm; laminated pictorial wrappers; pp. xviii + 179, incl. index; maps; some photographs. Fine condition. "From Accra and Algiers to Zanzibar and Zululand, African football today reflects the history and culture of those who play the game and how they have shaped it in a distinctly African manner. Football may obey global rules, but the influence of magicians and healers, the nurturing of different tactics and styles of play, and local forms of spectatorship give football in the continent a cultural and sporting imprint all of its own. In African Soccerscapes Peter Alegi explores how football was influenced by colonialism, the growth of cities, independence, and globalisation. Regional differences and the links between sport, culture and politics feature prominently in his book.".

Seller Inventory # 13465

Bibliographic Details

• Title: African Soccerscapes. How a Continent Changed the World's Game
• Publisher: (London: Hurst & Company, 2010) 9781849040389
• Publication Date: 2010
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1849040389
• ISBN 13: 9781849040389
• Binding: Soft cover

About this title

Synopsis

From Accra and Algiers to Zanzibar and Zululand, Africans have wrested control of soccer from the hands of Europeans, and through the rise of different playing styles, the rich rituals of spectatorship, and the presence of magicians and healers, have turned soccer into a distinctively African activity. "African Soccerscapes" explores how Africans adopted soccer for their own reasons and on their own terms. Soccer was a rare form of "national culture" in postcolonial Africa, where stadiums and clubhouses became arenas in which Africans challenged colonial power and expressed a commitment to racial equality and self-determination. New nations staged matches as part of their independence celebrations and joined the world body, FIFA. The Confederation Africaine de Football democratized the global game through antiapartheid sanctions and increased the number of African teams in the World Cup finals.The unfortunate results of this success are the departure of huge numbers of players to overseas clubs and the influence of private commercial interests on the African game. But the growth of the women's game and South Africa's hosting of the 2010 World Cup also challenge the one-dimensional notion of Africa as a backward, "tribal" continent populated by victims of war, corruption, famine, and disease.

About the Author

Peter Alegi is Associate Professor of African History at Michigan State University. He is the author of Laduma! Soccer, Politics, and Society in South Africa. Alegi co-hosts the "Africa Past and Present" podcast -- the most widely accessed academic podcast about African affairs (http://afripod.aodl.org).