The World Cup as World History

A flexible, valuable tool for the classroom. It uses a famous event—the World Cup—as an entering wedge into the study of world history. It situates the evolution of the World Cup in the context of political, economic, and cultural globalization in ways that are accessible to students and useful to teachers. -- Eric Reed, Western Kentucky University
Football has formed part of the fabric of our society for more than one hundred years. William Bowman offers a fresh and accessible approach to tackling world history?through the lens of ‘The Beautiful Game’ and its World Cup. His book clearly and concisely shows the dynamism of football as a cultural phenomenon that has become a vehicle through which many different aspects of society are influenced, from politics, economics, and globalization to questions on cultural, racial, and gender identities. The World Cup as World History offers a new approach to understanding world history and how we can look at and make sense of the past. -- Timothy J. Ashton, University of South Carolina, Aiken
Bowman cleverly combines world history and the history of football’s largest event to produce a cohesive and interesting introduction to global issues. He effectively uses a specific sporting event to enliven interest and offer a core narrative, something approaches to world history often struggle with; yet the author also organizes the book along issues of class, race, gender, culture, politics, and economics, ensuring rigor and more traditional analysis. The combination introduces readers to core historical issues in an entertaining and welcoming way. -- Andrew McFarland, Indiana University Kokomo