HexagonalBlog

Book Review: Chasing the Game

Filip Bondy, Chasing the Game: America and the Quest for the World Cup, Da Capo Books, 2010.

Soccernomics review posted

I had mentioned in a previous tweet that I was in the process of writing a review of Soccernomics, the best-selling book by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski.  I wanted to write the best review possible without giving away too many of the details, so it took a little longer to write than I would have liked.  But I've completed the review and posted it on my Soccermetrics website.  I'm interested in your comments, especially if you've read the book.  (I'm shutting off comments here and leaving them open in my post at Soccermetrics.)

In the mail: Soccernomics

From a friend, I just received Soccernomics by Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski, and I plan on reading it over the holidays.  From what I've heard about it, it appears to be a soccer-specific analogue of Michael Lewis' Moneyball.  The difference is that Kuper and Szymanski are looking at multiple issues in the soccer world at large, while Lewis is focusing on a single team and using it to examine broader issues.  When I finish it, I'll post my thoughts on it at this site and at my Soccermetrics site.

I receive offers to review products and books from time to time, and I'm still working out a policy with respect to that.  I'm not too keen on accepting advertising on my site (the ad revenues are so tiny that I'm not giving up much), and if I do agree to accept books or products to evaluate I would have to buy a post office box, which I haven't done yet.  Obviously one condition is that it has to be soccer-related, and CONCACAF-related is a plus.