When Friday Comes: Football Revolution in the Middle East and the Road to Qatar

(Paperback)

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A fully revised and updated edition of James Montague's cult account of football in the Middle East, from the Arab Spring to the Qatar World Cup, described by the New York Times as one of the top ten football books of all time. 'Passionate and moving and provides further evidence of the universality of football' Jonathan Wilson, FourFourTwo The definitive story of the Middle East's unstoppable rise to football superpower, and the road to the Qatar World Cup When James Montague first began covering football in the Middle East two decades ago, people asked him what future there could possibly be for the beautiful game in one of the most volatile regions in the world. In the years that followed, it would become one of the biggest stories in global sport, from the from revolutionary ultras of the Arab Spring and the takeover of some of the world's biggest clubs by the Emirati super rich, to Qatar's controversial journey towards hosting the 2022 World Cup finals. The only Western journalist covering the story on the ground from the very beginning, James Montague tells the definitive tale of the region's rise to ultimate power player in the global game in a fully revised and updated edition. Travelling to every country in the Middle East and meeting fans, players, workers and campaigners, he paints an unforgettable picture of football in a controversial, vibrant and surprising new world.

Reviews

A vibrant account of sport in the world's most volatile region * GQ *
Passionate and moving and provides further evidence of the universality of football. -- Jonathan Wilson * Four Four Two *
An excellent book, which is so, so much more than a book about sport or football; it is also a travelogue and a treatise on the politics of the Middle East. * Independent *
A courageous, amusing and informative work * Telegraph *

Author Bio

James Montague is an award-winning author and journalist from Chelmsford, Essex. He writes for the New York Times, the Bleacher Report, World Soccer, and Delayed Gratification and has reported from over 80 different countries and unrecognised territories. He is the author of three highly-praised football books- When Friday Comes- Football, War and Revolution in the Middle East, Thirty One Nil- On the Road With Football's Outsiders andThe Billionaires Club- The Unstoppable Rise of Football's Super-Rich Owners. @JamesPiotr