Soccernomics by Stephen Szymanski

Soccernomics is a book that applies economic and data analysis to explore the way soccer is played, watched, and run. The book covers everything from whether World Cups make us happier to why Western Europe continues to dominate the sport globally.

The authors, a sports journalist with an anthropological view and a statistician with a particular inclination towards sports and their confluence with society, come together to research and write about the footballing ecosystem in a way that nobody else has before.

The book tackles various themes, including the cause and effect relationship between football and economic prosperity and well-being of the people. It also examines the actions of English and Spanish clubs between 1993 to 2005 to determine if they were pursuing income or win. Additionally, the book questions the number of Nick Hornby-esque fans today in the world and what sort of impact they have on the sport.

What I Liked

Hilarious, fun, and fascinating book. I like soccer, world politics, and economics. This book has all three.

What I Did Not Like

Nothing – great read.