England… The Road to Doha Opens For England 8 Dec 2020 With little pomp or circumstance, the draw for the qualifying round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup took place on Monday night. It was a relatively low-key affair when compared…
England… Whatever happened to the likely to be very good lads? 30 Dec 201726 Dec 2017 July 2014 and Germany have just demolished Brazil on home turf in the World Cup Semi-Final. The vast majority of their squad have come through their Under21s yet we still…
England… 1966 and Not All That 30 Jul 2016 In celebration of the 50th anniversay of our greatest ever footballing day as a nation, below is an extract of the chapter I wrote for Mark Perryman's excellent book '1966…
European Football… The Seven Year Itch and how England can’t scratch it 1 Jul 2016 After the short hop across the Channel to Lens on Tuesday I was heading back again a few days later to visit Lille for the fifth Second Round game of…
England… Teargas and tantrums in the South of France 15 Jun 2016 There's nothing unusual about stories of strikes affecting public services and transportation in France. As far back as I care to remember there's been stories of blockades at ports or…
England… For sale – one England goal keeper’s kit – as new 28 Mar 2015 Whilst the biggest cheer in the second half came at Wembley in the 70th minute when Harry Kane scored with his second touch in international football just eighty seconds after…
Non league football Economic Theory explained by Football – Part 8 – The Theory of Value 20 Jan 201531 Jan 2015 In the eighth of the Football-themed Economic articles, one of the world’s greatest mysteries is unravelled – The Theory of Value. Former Morecambe, Stockport County and Grimsby Town striker Phil…
England… The Golden Generation of German football 13 Jul 2014 There has been millions of words written about the most remarkable game in the history of the World Cup Finals. The six or so first half minutes when Germany scored…
England… Five things from….England 1 Uruguay 2 19 Jun 201419 Jun 2014 "Give me joy in my heart...." Knobhead was on the table already. It was midnight, two hours before kick off and it appears that some people have already had enough.…
England… Five things from….England 1 Italy 2 14 Jun 201414 Jun 2014 It was all going so well. The ridiculous FA rule changes mean that this is the last major football tournament I can place bets on. Because of my role at…
England… Just the (fake) ticket 7 Jun 20144 Jun 2014 2014 promises to be another great year of global sport. This summer we have the FIFA World Cup in Brazil to look forward to as well as the Commonwealth Games…
England… Show your true colours 3 Jun 201431 May 2014 In May 2013, the Football Association unveiled a new five year kit deal for the England national team with US sports giant Nike. As part of the announcement they launched…
England… England Fans to go tee-total in the Summer 13 May 201414 May 2014 While Roy Hodgson recently announced the 23-man squad that will be on the plane to Brazil for this summer’s World Cup hoping to upset the World Cup odds, a large…
England… What are the odds on that? 30 Apr 2014 England World Cup Betting Usually, before a World Cup, the England hype machine goes into overdrive, with pundits claiming that this could finally be the year where they repeat their…
England Games… Another pointless game or an opportunity for innovation 9 Dec 201319 Dec 2013 I cannot think of many football fans who really cared much about England's friendly last month against Chile. Ticket sales, as is the case for home games at Wembley were…
