The Ball is Round: Football in the US
Welcome to soccer!
The US is the only country in the world that doesn’t call football football, but soccer. Even though there are apparently still some Americans who think the ball is oval, the game actually has a colourful and surprisingly long tradition in the US. Kuhn traces this history, from its early beginnings on the East Coast in the 1920s, to the amateurs who defeated the favourites, England, in Brazil in 1950, to today’s record-beating women’s world champions and the 2026 World Cup. In fifteen short essays, Kuhn demonstrates that if there was anything standing in the way of football in the US, it was hostile businessmen and chaotically structured leagues – the passion has always been there! And while the men’s team no doubt have international potential, the women are already there.
- Surprising facts, intriguing anecdotes, exclusive interviews
- Featuring Saskia Webber, Marilyn Monroe, Henry Kissinger, Franz Beckenbauer, Pelé, Jürgen Klinsmann and more
- A treasure trove for soccer/football fans
Helmut Kuhn, born in Munich in 1962, studied History and Journalism at the Free University of Berlin and the Sorbonne in Paris. He has worked as a reporter, editor and freelance writer in New York and Berlin, including for Aufbau, mare, Stern, Focus, DIE ZEIT, NZZ and the Jüdische Allgemeine.
.jpg "Helmut Kuhn")
