Football
Is Uefa just useless – or is it worse than that?
It’s not clear how many readers of this journal will be affected, but anyone planning a stag weekend in Prague…
TV dramas like Welcome to Wrexham are spoiling sport
The blurred lines between sport and entertainment
Was it murder?
In a beautifully told novel, O’Callaghan focuses on the mysterious death of the footballer Matthias Sindelar in 1939 – possibly as a result of defying Hitler
Rest in peace, Pelé, the undisputed King of football
When Lionel Messi won the World Cup for Argentina earlier this month, it not only filled the last hole in…
In defence of the One Love armband
Wales’ football manager Rob Page was clear about why his team’s captain Gareth Bale would wear the ‘One Love’ armband…
Football’s problems run far beyond the Qatar World Cup
Are there any redeeming features of the Qatar World Cup? Perhaps one: the tournament has a sane and logical format.…
The joy of morphine sulphate
Two football friends, brothers, Mick and Pete, came to visit last week. We’ve been going to matches together since 1969,…
Why football needs a regulator
Plans by the government to introduce a regulator to the football industry – endorsed by all Westminster parties just a…
In defence of Rangers’ royal tribute
Ibrox stadium, home of Rangers football club, saw a powerful tribute to the late Queen last night before the team’s…
The (occasional) joy of being a QPR fan
I made my way to Loftus Road on Saturday for QPR’s first home fixture of the season. We’ve got a…
When did ‘best before’ dates begin?
An idea past its sell-by date Waitrose has announced the removal of ‘best before’ dates from many food products. –…
How Kyrgios saved Wimbledon
What separates this year’s ‘empty seats on centre court’ scandal from every other year’s ‘empty seats on centre court’ scandal?…
When did footballers’ wives become ‘WAGs’?
Wagtime Footballers’ wives Rebekah Vardy and Coleen Rooney are locked in a libel trial dubbed ‘Wagatha Christie’. The term WAGs,…
Idrissa Gueye and the problem with Pride
Is waving the Pride flag compulsory now? The Idrissa Gueye scandal suggests it might be. Footballer Gueye did not play…
The tragedy of being a QPR fan
Normal families spend the Easter holidays by the seaside or in the Mediterranean. But not the Youngs. My three boys…
What English cricket needs now
You couldn’t ask for a more amiable man than Rob Key to run English cricket: affable, shrewd and universally liked,…
Pep and Klopp, kings of England
It’s a game for the ages all right, City againstLiverpool on Sunday as the Premier League moves to its most…
Let’s scrap the Six Nations
If you were one of the sharp-suited head honchos at CVC Capital Partners, the private equity megalith that has ploughed…
Is football hooliganism on its way back?
Forty-odd years ago a friend, a Liverpool supporter, somewhat unwisely took his girlfriend to Elland Road for a Leeds match…
Mason Greenwood and football’s obsession with prodigies
Well, there’s a surprise: Nike have cancelled their sponsorship of the Manchester United and England footballer Mason Greenwood, who is…
The year sport and politics became inseparable
Sport and politics have always been intertwined, but this was the year they became joined at the hip. Yorkshire racism;…
A tale of bitter brotherly rivalry
For early humans there was no distinction between spirit and matter. There was no idea of self; no barrier between…
Sky Sports is ruining my football season
When I promised my 13-year-old son, Charlie, that we would go to as many QPR games as possible in 2021-22…
