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As the 1970s began, Shirley Crabtree (Big Daddy) was a semi-retired wrestler, aged 40; the younger Martin Ruane (Giant Haystacks), a down-on-his-luck father of three. Both were living in poverty, scratching out a living in the murky underworld of northern England as nightclub doormen. A decade later, they were two of the most famous faces in Britain, with record-breaking millions tuning in to watch them clash at Wembley. But the glory wouldn’t last forever. Big Daddy vs Giant Haystacks tells a rags-to-riches tale of unlikely fame, family loyalty, tragic death, and a uniquely British pop culture phenomenon. This gripping roller-coaster story features exclusive contributions from the likes of Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart, former British heavyweight champion Tony St. Clair and ‘Superstar’ Mal Sanders.

Tears for England is the story of the last 50 years of England’s football team observed through the eyes of a journalist and obsessive fan. It interweaves the team’s fortunes with the author’s life story, starting with his first memories of football in the mid-1970s. From Keegan’s miss in 1982 and Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ in 1986, to the 2018 penalty shoot-out triumph and Ollie Watkins’s semi-final winner in Euro 2024, it chronicles England’s occasional triumphs and frequent woes, showing why football is so important and the imprint it has on our national psyche. The author has a journalist’s eye for a story, yet is at heart a fan who never stops dreaming, and who, through life’s up and downs, successes and disasters, finds his mind constantly tracking back to that miss by Paul Gascoigne in 1996, Kane’s ballooned penalty against France in 2022, and many other ‘if only’ moments. Tears for England is a glorious page-turner for football fans, young and old, and a fascinating read for those keen to understand why England football matters so much.

The History Boys Part Two celebrates more iconic goals in the illustrious history of Nottingham Forest. Starting in 1880 with Sam Widdowson and ending with the remarkable 2024/25 season, it tells the stories behind the famous goals and some of the more unusual and overlooked efforts. All types of goals are here. Those remarkable strikes from distance that blew our minds. The ones shrouded in controversy. Some secured titles or promotions, others ensured survival. The late ones, the stunning solo efforts and the end products of carefully crafted team moves. Some scored by heroes, others by villains. Goals make us feel delight, despair and everything in between. This is the story of the goals that shaped the trajectory of Nottingham Forest across Victorian beginnings, between the wars, the glorious late 1970s, the giddy days of Frank Clark, the doldrums of the 2000s, right through to the meteoric resurrection of the last four years. Goals are the reason the game is played. Relive those memories.

No Show: The World Cup Teams That Never Were is a fascinating collection of 24 stories of the greatest teams that failed to qualify for the World Cup finals. Ranging from continental giants that became inexplicable absentees to heartbreaking stories of underdogs coming oh-so-close to a place on the world stage, these are stories that stand alone as remarkable accounts of misfortune, whether through refereeing decisions, late goals or even global politics. Discover how some of the greatest players in history never played at the world’s biggest tournament, including Alfredo di Stéfano, George Best, Eric Cantona and George Weah. Learn how Johan Cruyff could easily have joined this list, but for a moment of controversy in a deciding qualifier. And relive classic tales of woe for the home nations, including Scotland in 1970, England in 1978 and Wales in 1986. Together, these captivating stories create a patchwork that tells the tale of the trials and tribulations of World Cup qualifying, one of the greatest challenges in world football.

June 1926: the 20th Tour de France. A brutal 5,745km race from Evian to Paris, a Tour that will test the limits of human endurance. Thunder and rain are lashing the Pyrenees. Riders – muddied, bloodied and beaten – start to drop out of the race. Men are found shivering in cabins as night falls, and race organiser Henri Desgrange has to make a call. Does he leave them to their fate, turn a blind eye or mount a rescue operation? We Rode All Night is the story of those who took part in that fateful Tour – told in their own voices. We ride with Lucien Buysse, grieving father and erstwhile domestique as well as with two-time champion Ottavio Bottecchia. Andre Drobecq, the lanterne rouge of the Tour, riding to save his bike shop while his pregnant wife wires him funds to survive. Tactician and future national team manager Marcel Bidot, riding his first Tour. And Desgrange himself, losing control over the Tour he created. This is a story of fathers and daughters, of sacrifice and salvation – of riding through the darkness until you find the light.

501 World Cup Moments is an astonishing journey through the rich history of the most important tournament in football. For almost a century, the World Cup has offered diverse stages on which artists, madmen and criminals – as the brilliant Argentine writer Osvaldo Soriano once said – have performed. Within its pages, you'll find a compelling selection of gems from across World Cup history, brimming with heroes and villains and unforgettable moments. They include the striker who stayed on the pitch despite suffering a heart attack; the pitch-invading dog that urinated on a player; the triumphant team that took a lap of honour without the cup (which was accidentally left in a bank vault); the team that qualified by winning a match against no one; and the manager who, despite winning the championship, was sad because his team conceded two goals in the final. This enthralling book is chock-full of incredible matches, amazing goals, astounding anecdotes, trivia, quotes, records and much more – from the inaugural tournament at Uruguay 1930 to Qatar 2022.

As the 1970s began, Shirley Crabtree (Big Daddy) was a semi-retired wrestler, aged 40; the younger Martin Ruane (Giant Haystacks), a down-on-his-luck father of three. Both were living in poverty, scratching out a living in the murky underworld of northern England as nightclub doormen. A decade later, they were two of the most famous faces in Britain, with record-breaking millions tuning in to watch them clash at Wembley. But the glory wouldn’t last forever. Big Daddy vs Giant Haystacks tells a rags-to-riches tale of unlikely fame, family loyalty, tragic death, and a uniquely British pop culture phenomenon. This gripping roller-coaster story features exclusive contributions from the likes of Bret ‘The Hitman’ Hart, former British heavyweight champion Tony St. Clair and ‘Superstar’ Mal Sanders.

Sunshine After the Rain is the story of Aston Villa FC from 2009 to 2023 – a turbulent time when the mighty Villa lion fell from the top flight before clawing its way back to the Premier League and Champions League. After the untimely departure of Martin O’Neill just days before the start of the 2010/11 season, the club entered the doldrums before relegation in 2016. At the heart of this book are those three surreal seasons when Villa played in the Championship. It was a time when the club’s owners and manager changed several times; a period of mid-table finishes, play-off heartbreak and coming close to folding. But the Villans re-entered the top flight under Dean Smith, and Unai Emery brought European football back to Villa Park. From the misery of Moscow in 2009 to beating Brighton on the final day of the 2022/23 season, the book recounts all the matches that mattered. Contributions from the players, managers and supporters bring the story to life.

Danny Blanchflower: A Glorious Life is the authorised biography of a football icon, told with the help of those who knew him best. Admired for his eloquence, humour and talent for innovation and inspiration, the cultured midfielder blazed a trail from Glentoran to Barnsley, Aston Villa, Northern Ireland and, ultimately, to Tottenham Hotspur, where he became the most successful captain in the club’s 140-plus-year history. As skipper of the Lilywhites, alongside manager Bill Nicholson, he helped create a team lauded as one of the greatest club sides of all time. It was a team that epitomised what he stood for as a football figure: the pursuit of glory. With inside insight from close family members, media colleagues and fellow footballers, this book is the perfect celebration of the centenary of his birth.

Mundiales is a sweeping history of the World Cup told exclusively from a South American perspective. From Uruguay’s Olympic triumphs in 1924 and 1928 to the canonisation of Lionel Messi in Qatar, Tim Vickery and Mark Biram reframe football’s greatest spectacle around the continent that gave it myth, tragedy and glory. This book blends footballing drama with political context and cultural identity, showing how South America not only hosted and won the World Cup but also went a long way (perhaps more than any other continent) towards shaping it into the epic it is today. Drawing on decades of immersion and lived experience, together with research using Spanish and Portuguese sources, Mundiales offers fresh perspectives previously unseen in the English language. It is a story of artistry and grit, of style and symbolism, of nations finding themselves through the game. With vivid storytelling and sharp analysis, this is the definitive account of South America’s enduring love affair with the World Cup.

Blood on the Crossbar: The Dictatorship's World Cup is the story of the most controversial football World Cup of all time. When Argentina both hosted and won the World Cup in 1978, just two years after the coup d'etat that ousted Isabel Perón, it was against the backdrop of a brutal military dictatorship in the country. Under the leadership of General Jorge Videla, up to 30,000 citizens, categorised as subversives, 'disappeared'. Dogged by allegations of bribery, coercion and an historic failed drugs test, this is the story of Argentina's maiden World Cup triumph and the controversy that simmered behind it. This isn't exclusively a tale of footballers and generals, and the risks they took to succeed. It's a story of the people: Argentinean exiles, Parisian students, brave journalists, the marching mothers of Plaza de Mayo and their missing children - and Dutch stand-up comedians who led international boycotts from thousands of miles away.

Super Shoes is the inside story of the sport-shattering impact made by advanced technology and footwear manufacturing within athletics. Liam Tharme speaks to elite athletes, coaches, researchers, shoe designers and engineers to explain the avalanche of world records and fast times in track races and road running in recent years. Tharme uncovers how and why records and assumptions about human performance limits have been smashed ever since Nike launched their first Vaporfly in 2017, when ‘super shoes’ first hit the market. He charts the history of technological advancements and shoe development, reveals why it was not Adidas but Nike that staged the first sub-two-hour marathon, speaks to those who made Breaking2 a reality, and delves into the role that universities in Colorado and Calgary played in revolutionising running.

England’s Nadir? is a revealing reassessment of a highly controversial period in the history of the England football team – the three seasons from 1974 to 1977 when Don Revie was at the helm. This has long been considered the worst period in 160 years of the national team. England’s Nadir? places these three years in a broader social context and a longer historical framework, exploring many factors that have previously been overlooked. These include the dominating voices of a small number of the 52 men who played for England under Revie and the endless criticism of Revie’s match preparation through his infamous dossiers. In addition, there was the control of Revie’s work by powerful individuals at the FA and FL, the effect of stress on football managers in the 1970s and the impact of serious injuries to key players. The book examines all 29 matches for which Revie was in charge and all 52 players who appeared for England in that time. There are sections on Revie’s early life, playing career, his successful and controversial period as Leeds United manager and his dramatic resignation from the England post in summer 1977. England’s Nadir? is a must-read for all England fans and anyone interested in 1970s football.

When Asia Welcomed the World tells the story of the 2002 World Cup, a tournament that will be remembered for many reasons, from heart-warming stories to dark accusations. The book resurrects the great characters that lit up 2002's biggest footballing stage, including Ronaldo, Oliver Kahn, David Beckham and Rü?tü Reçber, as well as humbling defeats for the game's giants at the hands of comparative minnows. It also explores the tournament's controversies and issues that arose before it had even begun. This was Asia's first ever World Cup, with South Korea and Japan also acting as the continent's first ever co-hosts. The tournament's legacy has proved to be a divisive one, but it has remained ingrained in football's collective memory for 20 years and will continue to do so.

The Making of the FIFA World Cup takes us on a fast-paced trip through the history of football's biggest tournament, with a comprehensive collection of the World Cup's defining moments. Filled with unforgettable episodes such as England's 1966 triumph and Maradona's 'Hand of God', the book transports us to the World Cup's most important flashpoints, recounting each moment and the story behind it. It also puts some of the World Cup's quirkiest events under the microscope: whether it's Zaire's bizarre defence of a free kick against Brazil in 1974 or a scruffy collie dog locating the stolen World Cup trophy under a car in London. From the greatest goals to the biggest controversies, from the funniest moments to the most memorable matches, The Making of the FIFA World Cup gives you an in-depth look at why the competition is sport's most-watched event - through the moments that make it so dramatic, popular and irresistibly exciting.

Sir Geoff Hurst is the sole surviving player from England’s 1966 World Cup-winning side, but the importance of the victory still has a hold on the national mood, for matters both on and off the pitch. With the 2026 World Cup on its way, where is the nation now? This book ties the performance of the England men’s football team with its people and politics, from 1966 to 2026, through undulating fortunes, including triumphs and disasters. It offers a novel take on one of the nation’s most culturally important and enduring stories – the attempt to regain the FIFA World Cup – by placing it in the context of the way the country was governed. It is a story as much about Callaghan and Cameron as Beckham and Kane. How similar or different have the status and performance of the men’s team been to that of the incumbent government? Is there ever a direct crossover between dressing room and cabinet room? Are the footballers, wearing a red or white shirt in the summer months, reflecting the nation or opposing it? Sixty Years of Hurt is a story of football and politics, and how the two worlds intersect.