Book

When Friday Comes: Football, War and Revolution in the Middle East

Name: When Friday Comes: Football, War and Revolution in the Middle East
Author: James Montague

James Montague

2013

James Montague · 2013 · UK

Reports from Middle Eastern football during the Arab Spring, tracing the sport's political entanglement.

One of the few deeply reported English books connecting football to the region's revolutions.

The Historian

When Friday Comes" is a crucial addition to the archives of football history, shedding light on the 2011 Arab Spring through its lens on Middle Eastern football. Montague's work builds upon the tradition of football historians like Stefan Szymanski and Timothy Chandler, contextualizing the sport within the complex politics of revolution and counter-revolution in the region.

The Psychologist

The Beautiful Archive is a treasure trove for those studying fan desire and belonging. James Montague's "When Friday Comes" offers a nuanced exploration of how football serves as a conduit for collective identity, politics, and revolution in the Middle East. Through his reporting, we see fans' emotional investment in their teams as a reflection of their deeper desires for freedom.

The Sceptic

The author's enthusiasm for football as a barometer of social change may lead him to overlook its inherent complexities and contradictions. By focusing on the Arab Spring, Montague risks simplifying a multifaceted phenomenon into a single narrative thread, glossing over the messy realities of regional politics.

These are interpretations written in three voices, not quotations from any individual.

Language: English
Length: 352 pp
Subject: Football amid Arab Spring upheaval
Region: Middle East
Tone: Investigative
Difficulty: Familiar

Penguin; paperback

In print

Sourcewsc.co.uk

Entries are compiled and edited by hand. If something here is wrong, tell us and we will correct it.

Missed something?

Tell us what belongs here. A title, who made it, and where you found it.

Email the archive

When Friday Comes: Football, War and Revolution in the Middle East

Missed something?

The Turbulent World of Middle East Soccer

Football in the Middle East: State, Society, and the Beautiful Game

My Beautiful Sisters

Missed something?

Related

The Turbulent World of Middle East Soccer

Football in the Middle East: State, Society, and the Beautiful Game

My Beautiful Sisters