Category Archives: Fans

If You Give a Kid a Contract

They’re names that go from obscure to household staples in the course of a few matches: Erling Haaland. Jadon Sancho. Vinicius Jr. Alphonso Davies. Phil Foden. João Félix. Ansu Fati. These (and other) rising stars are offered hefty salaries, prestige, and the chance to become legends for some of the biggest clubs in the world.… Read More »

Fever Pitch

Nick Hornby’s novel Fever Pitch is a memoir about being an Arsenal fan, a particular kind of malady within the broader world of football obsession. Students in the English language section of Soccer Politics are reading it this week. To accompany your reading, you might enjoy the 1997 film version of the book starring Colin… Read More »

Where is Gerrard When You Need Him?

There are only two reasons in this world where a night owl like me might decide to voluntarily be awake at 6:30 in the morning on a weekend. The first is if I simply haven’t gone to bed yet from the night before. The second, and undoubtedly more justified reason, is to experience the mesmerizing… Read More »

RB Leipzig

This year’s Bundesliga title race is unusually contested, with fourth placed Borussia Mochengladbach only six points behind league leaders Bayern Munich with a game in hand. In third place is Borussia Dortmund, and in second… RB Leipzig? For fans unfamiliar with the Bundesliga, this may come as a shock. For a club that didn’t exist… Read More »

Understanding the need for more defense-minded fans

While phrases such as ‘defense wins championships’ are constantly thrown around sports, many spectators would much prefer to attend a high-scoring battle than a neck and neck 0-0 affair. Strong defense, unfortunately, often goes unappreciated. Games such as Duke men’s basketball’s 52-50 low-scoring battle with Virginia Saturday get classified by the teams’ ‘sloppy offense’ and… Read More »

Rethinking How We Treat Referees

It’s a fixture of headlines that appear with disturbing regularity: violence against and abuse of sports officials at all levels. And soccer isn’t exempt from the pattern. A well-documented phenomenon at both amateur and professional matches, instances of referee abuse are scattered across headlines from many professional leagues. Diego Costa, a striker for Atletico Madrid,… Read More »

Reflecting on Fever Pitch as a Blue Devil

Maybe because it’s currently March Madness, or maybe because I’m a senior reminiscing on my time here at Duke, but I can’t help but reflect on my own fandom when reading Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby. I can’t quite relate to what Hornby is writing, as I never grew up watching soccer or experiencing soccer… Read More »

Le hockey comme foot

Le hockey a toujours été mon premier amour. J’ai grandi en Minnesota ou le hockey est dans votre sang. Bien sûr, j’aime le sport et le sentiment du patin de hockey creusant à travers la glace. Mais plus important, j’aime la culture et le chahut des spectateurs aux jeux. J’avais toujours eu l’impression que les… Read More »

Deshorn Brown is my guy.

People talk about their favorite players all the time. “Oh sure, Messi, he’s my guy, love him.” “Yeah, I like Ronaldo. I know. Sorry.” “Zlatan’s my favorite. The man’s crazy.” Sure that’s all great. Whatever. My favorite player? Well, that’s Deshorn Brown. He’s my guy. This is Deshorn Brown, incase you didn’t know who he… Read More »