It’s 1966. Fifty years ago. And England are celebrating … on top of the footballing world … This is the story of a bunch of working-class lads, their unlikely boss, and a spirit that conquered the world. World Cup 1966 – Alfie’s Boys, BBC 2016
Speculation was rife about who did or who did not deserve to be part of this great venture. ibid.
‘Poor old Jimmy [Greaves] – he was such a fantastic player.’ ibid. Bobby Charlton
‘So you live through it.’ ibid. Jimmy
‘It was paradise.’ ibid. Bobby
‘Our wives were not invited to the banquet.’ ibid. Jeff
Alf’s men were left to fend for themselves. ibid.
In 1979 a football match was played at the Hawthorns, home of West Bromwich Albion. On one side eleven white players, on the other, eleven black players. Whites vs Blacks? Yes really. Stranger still, back then it all felt rather progressive. Now the very thought of it makes you wince. Adrian Chiles, White vs Blacks: How Football Changed a Nation, BBC 2016
So how does this tell us about how things were back then for black people? ibid.
My black heroes were subjected to the vilest abuse. ibid.
There was fear and ignorance in equal measure. ibid.
Black players – we had three of them. ibid. West Brom
He [Laurie Cunningham] was the first player of colour to play for Real Madrid. ibid.
July 16th 1950: The World’s largest football stadium, the Maracana … Uruguay v Brazil … A stunned silence greets Uruguay’s 2-1 victory. Storyville: Gods of Brazil: Pele & Garrincha, BBC 2002
But two impoverished kids are to pull Brazil back from the brink … Garrincha and Pele. ibid.
By 1957 Garrincha’s wizardry had brought the Maracana back to life. ibid.
29th June 1958 the big day: Brazil meet the hosts Sweden in the final. ibid.
He [Pele] has everything. He is the perfect footballer. ibid.
Brazilians love the Garrincha simplicity: he is one of them. ibid.
Established in 1936, Beitar Jerusalem FC is the most controversial team in the Israeli football league. The club’s avid fan base believe Beitar Jerusalem is about far more than football: in the season of 2012-13 these beliefs would send this major club spiralling out of control. Storyville: Forever Pure: Football and Racism in Jerusalem, BBC 2016
Arcardi Gaydamak lost his bid to become Mayor of Jerusalem. He received 3.6 per cent of the vote, despite having spent millions on Beitar Jerusalem and other causes. ibid.
‘What the hell, we have Arabs in our team?’ ibid. protesting fan
‘… Someone should explain we’re not Arabs …’ ibid. signee
‘Everybody knows an Arab player is a terrorist.’ ibid. protester
‘Fuck you, fuck you, Kadayev! … Here were are, the most racist team in the country!’ ibid. crowd chant
‘Death to the Arabs! Death to the Arabs!’ ibid.
The singing, the yelling, the dressing up in red. The Opposition, fan, ESPN 2014
It’s very difficult to get a player to talk politics. They don’t talk. They’re afraid. They’re scared. We were the black sheep. We were dissidents. ibid. Carlos Caszely, Chile national team 1969-1985
The team represented a great generation of Chilean soccer players. ibid. Julio Salviat, journalist
Behind the scenes, the US funded propaganda campaigns and starved aid to Chile in an effort to undercut Allende’s leftist agenda. ibid. caption
By eliminating Peru, the team set up a two-game playoff versus the Soviet Union for a spot in the World Cup. But Chile was crumbling. ibid.
The lust for power killed those dreams. ibid. journalist
On the way to training I saw dead bodies. ibid. dissident player
I was arrested. The accusation was that I was a dangerous activist. I was brought to the National Stadium. I never imagined that a place such as this could be made into a concentration camp. ibid.
The Soviet Union sent a letter to FIFA protesting its upcoming game versus Chile on moral grounds. ibid. caption
Russia isn’t coming … You’ll still have to take the field tomorrow and score a goal … It was a FIFA stipulation. ibid. dissident player
From September to November 1973 an estimated 40,000 people were imprisoned at Chile’s National Stadium. ibid.
The story of Osvaldo Ardiles of the Argentina national team which won the World Cup in 1978. And in 1981 he was a champion in the most important league of the world at the time, the English league. White Blue and White, ESPN 2016
And in 1982, a year later, war breaks out and his life changes for ever. ibid.
‘25 years old and playing the World Cup: the pressure we had on our shoulders was overwhelming.’ ibid. Ossie
Argentina was under a military dictatorship from 1976 to 1983. ibid.
‘We were the first South Americans to play in England.’ ibid. Ossie
‘That was his [Ricky’s] day.’ ibid. FA Cup replay
Argentina and the United Kingdom have disputed sovereignty over the Falkland Islands since 1833. ibid.
Argentina Can Keep The Falklands. We’ll Keep Ossie. ibid. Spurs protest banner
‘He [Ossie] suffered a lot of harassment from the fringes of our society.’ ibid. Patrick Barclay
‘I felt every death acutely. From both sides.’ ibid. Ossie
It was a close-run thing but Bristol City are still in business after a week in which the club came within two minutes of extinction. World in Action: A Bankrupt Game, ITV 1982
Professional football has never had it so bad. The game is £60 million in the red. This week soccer chairmen meet for crisis talks … They are nearly all in debt … Football is fast becoming a bankrupt game. ibid.
He had put almost two thousand tickets on to the black market; he put his own fans at risk … Brian Clough’s secret deals and the club that let him get away with it. World in Action: A Life of Brian, ITV 1993
Forest became known as the team who play for cash … Forest developed a taste for backdoor payments. ibid.
Internal injuries only. I want to see Scottish football here. Rab C Nesbitt s1e7: Fitba, Jamsie, BBC 1991
In 2018 Russia will host the Fifa World Cup. One of the biggest sporting events on the planet. President Putin has promised peace, love and harmony. But at the European championships in France we saw a different side of Russian football. So what can fans expect? This World: Russia’s Hooligan Army, BBC 2017
A football culture where violence is celebrated. ibid.
More than one hundred England fans were injured, thirty ended up in hospital, the lives of five were in the balance for several days. ibid.
I am a child of the premier league era. Football: A Brief History by Alfie Allen, History 2017
An intense passion that lifts us and occasionally breaks our hearts. ibid.
A nineteenth century invention … Only two teams compete in the annual Shrovetide matches. ibid.
Workers were finally granted leisure time by law and given Saturday afternoon off. ibid.
Shiny new stadiums across the country signalled the new century would be an exciting commercial era. ibid.
It was born out of a monumental power struggle. Football: A Brief History by Alfie Allen II
One hundred years ago English football was under the control of the clubs, leagues and the FA. ibid.
A phenomena took place in the factories where women manufactured ammunition for the men on the front line. They formed football leagues that kept the game alive. ibid.
The FA decided to flex their muscles and reclaim the game for the men … There was effectively a fifty year ban on women’s football. ibid.
The players’ union was formed in 1907, but it took another fifty years for players to wield enough influence to challenge their Victorian status as wage-slaves. ibid.
Football would go on strike for the first time. ibid.
Football basked in the glory of the World Cup win. ibid.
The rise of the agent was inevitable. ibid.
But never had three black been fielded at once. ibid.