Soccer in Mind

Abstract

With Soccer in Mind: A Thinking Fan’s Guide to the Global Game, Andrew Guest has written an excellent, highly relevant book that examines topics including soccer’s extraordinary popularity and untapped potential for nation-building (more about this aspirational potential later). The unanswered question is, ‘‘can soccer, as a globally shared cultural form, actually do good in the world?’’ Here, the author’s obvious affection for the game somewhat clouds his judgment. The gatekeepers of soccer—and their American counterparts responsible for football, basketball, and baseball—share one absolute objective: to grow their respective sport by promoting elite youth programs to produce the next generation of superstars. The author provides an important service to readers by accurately capturing the sexist history of FIFA. One of many examples is Canada conducting the Women’s World Cup tournament on artificial turf fields, ‘‘a surface expressly prohibited for the men’s tournament.’’ I do have several issues with Guest. One revolves around his well-intended aspiration that soccer can actually do good in the world. Another involves applying social science to prioritize people and neglected regions over profit and winning. In reality, irrespective of geography, the more important the game becomes—from soccer in Europe and South America to American football and basketball—the more the objective is winning and the intense emotional and psychological joy derived from being a fan and supporting winning teams. Guest engages in a bit of wishful thinking by suggesting that we utilize social science to develop ‘‘a more enjoyable, enriching, and effectual experience of the game.’’ Fanhood ‘‘transports the individual into a special world . . . filled with exceptionally intense forces that take hold of the fan.’’ Jerseys, scarves, and flags are used to signify fandom and publicly solidify one’s unquestioned loyalty and identity. The inclusive acronym BIRG—‘‘Basking in Reflected Glory’’—describes the satisfaction of supporting a successful team. This mindset is consistent with the pronoun ‘‘WE’’ after defeating an archrival. Guest also does an admirable job in describing FIFA’s opposition to the Women’s World Cup, muting its criticism after the 2015 World Cup when the women’s games garnered the largest TV audiences of any soccer games ever televised in the United States. I disagree with Guest when he writes, ‘‘more than any nation, the U.S. has politicized its Olympic participation.’’ Russia conveniently waited until after the Chinese Winter Olympics was concluded before invading Ukraine. Another example is blatant doping among medal winners, which has become a familiar narrative involving specific Russian athletes. An important critique involves the author’s utopian perspective that ‘‘soccer can be fashioned as a social good’’ and the hope that the game will ‘‘prioritize people and places over profit and performance.’’ This idealistic aspiration is overcome by the absolute importance attached to the outcome and the ecstasy of winning. Throughout the book, Guest connects relevant sociological and psychological concepts developed by Durkheim, Weber, Simmel, and James to aid in describing the intense emotional experiences produced by being a devoted sports fan. The author correctly describes how ‘‘fandom’’ frequently brings out the worst in us while producing Soccer in Mind: A Thinking Fan’s Guide to the Global Game, by Andrew M. Guest. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2021. 211 pp. $26.95 paper. ISBN: 9781978817319. 302 Review Essays