{"product_id":"soccernomics-why-england-has-started-to-win-why-clubs-sign-the-wrong-players-and-why-billionaires-still-lose-money-in-football-9780008811754","title":"Soccernomics: Why England Has Started to Win, Why Clubs Sign the Wrong Players and Why Billionaires Still Lose Money in Football","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe classic bestseller that changed how the world thinks about football\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'Quite magnificent – a sort of \u003cem\u003eFreakanomics \u003c\/em\u003eof football.' \u003cstrong\u003eJonathan Wilson\u003cem\u003e, Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'If you're a football fan, I'll save you some time: read this book' \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eDaily Telegraph\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003e__________\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003eFootball truly is the world’s favourite game, followed in over 200 countries by hundreds of millions of people pouring their hearts and souls into supporting their chosen team every week.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBut behind the passion are questions that all true football fans want answered: has football spending spun out of control? How much do managers matter? Is hosting a World Cup a poisoned chalice?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eSoccernomics \u003c\/em\u003echallenges the conventional wisdom to reveal the surprising truths that actually determine success and failure on the pitch. From an acclaimed economist and leading sports journalist, this modern classic uses data and economic principles to explore the myths that dominate the game.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFully revised and updated ahead of the 2026 World Cup, \u003cem\u003eSoccernomics\u003c\/em\u003e takes you behind the passion and into the patterns – revealing why your team wins, why it loses, and why the game you love doesn't always work the way you think it does.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e__________\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eSoccernomics \u003c\/em\u003eis essential reading for anyone in search of a more strategic, systematic perspective on the game, answering the questions that most consume football fans.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch4\u003eDetails\u003c\/h4\u003e\u003cp\u003eISBN13: 9780008811754\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFormat: Paperback \/ softback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eNumber of Pages: 576\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eEdition: 2026 World Cup edition\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublication Date: 29 Sep 2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublisher: HarperCollins Publishers\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublication City, Country: London, United Kingdom\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDimensions (cm): 19.8(H)x12.9(L)x3.4(W)340\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWeight (gm): 340\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch4\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h4\u003eSimon Kuper''s first book, Football Against the Enemy, won the 1994 William Hill Sports Book of the Year prize and is widely acknowledged as one of football''s seminal books. Simon writes a weekly sports column in the Financial Times and has previously written football columns for The Times and The Observer.Stefan Szymanski is Professor of Economics and MBA Dean at Cass Business School in London. Stefan has a global reputation and has acted as a consultant to government and to major sports organisations such as the FIA (motor sport), UEFA (football) and the ICC (cricket). Stefan Szymanski is Professor of Economics and MBA Dean at Cass Business School in London. Stefan has a global reputation and has acted as a consultant to government and to major sports organisations such as the FIA (motor sport), UEFA (football) and the ICC (cricket).\u003ch4\u003eReviews\u003c\/h4\u003e'[Kuper and Szymanski] do for soccer what \u003cem\u003eMoneyball \u003c\/em\u003edid for baseball—put the game under an analytical microscope using statistics, economics, psychology, and intuition to try to transform a dogmatic sport.' \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'It's a really good book. If more people read it, they'd understand some of the reasons why England doesn't win. Everyone can have an opinion, but they back it up with stats.' \u003cstrong\u003eJamie Carragher\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'[Kuper and Szymanski] basically trash every cliché about football you ever held to be true. It's bravura stuff… the study of managers buying players and building a club is one you’ll feel like photocopying and sending to your team's chairman.' \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eMetro\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e'More thoughtful than most of its rivals and, by football standards, positively intellectual\u003c\/strong\u003e….Kuper, a brilliantly contrary columnist, and Szymanski, an economics professor…find plenty of fertile territory in their commendable determination to overturn the lazy preconceptions rife in football.' \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Times\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Szymanksi has recently published the best introduction to sports economics… while Kuper is probably the smartest of the new generation of super-smart sportswriters… fascinating stories.' \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eObserver\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Since the publication of the first edition of \u003cem\u003eSoccernomics\u003c\/em\u003e there have been several attempts to copy its content. Yet few authors in the world of soccer writing can tell a human story like Simon Kuper, and even fewer academics can write an understandable narrative with numbers like Stefan Szymanski. Together the two men raise the bar again, bringing new insights to an already great body of work that is accessible and interesting to the quant and casual reader alike… .\u003cstrong\u003e I highly recommend you pick it up for yourself, even if you have already read the first edition. You will not be disappointed.\u003c\/strong\u003e' \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eForbes\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Fascinating.' \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eVanity Fair\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'With \u003cem\u003eSoccernomics\u003c\/em\u003e, the \u003cem\u003eFT\u003c\/em\u003e’s indispensable Simon Kuper and top‑flight sports economist Stefan Szymanski bring scrupulous economic analysis and statistical rigor to a sport long dependent on hoary—and, it seems, unfounded—assumptions… . Gripping and essential.' \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eSlate, Best Books of the Year\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'[Szymanski and Kuper] entertainingly demolish soccer shibboleths… . Well argued and clear‑headed.' \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eFinancial Times, Best Books of the Year\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Entertaining.' \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eEconomist\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“[Kuper and Szymanski] have created a blend of \u003cem\u003eFreakonomics\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eFever Pitch\u003c\/em\u003e, bringing surprising economic analysis to bear on the world's most popular sport…This mix of economic analysis and anecdote makes for a thought-provoking, often amusing read. Here, at last, is a British answer to Michael Lewis's baseball-meets-cash bestseller \u003cem\u003eMoneyball\u003c\/em\u003e.” \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eBloomberg News\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'\u003cem\u003eSoccernomics\u003c\/em\u003e is a sporting tale in the \u003cem\u003eFreakonomics\u003c\/em\u003e mode of inquiry, using statistics to come up with fascinating conclusions.' \u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eIndependent, Best Books of the Year\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e","brand":"Simon Kuper","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48852124631257,"sku":"9780008811754","price":27.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0502\/9530\/8441\/files\/9780008811754.jpg?v=1782390710","url":"https:\/\/www.arielbooks.com.au\/products\/soccernomics-why-england-has-started-to-win-why-clubs-sign-the-wrong-players-and-why-billionaires-still-lose-money-in-football-9780008811754","provider":"Ariel","version":"1.0","type":"link"}