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Beyond the Final Whistle

Beyond the Final Whistle

Football for a Better World

Can football become a force for liberation or is it just another 'opium of the masses'?

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Beyond the Final Whistle explores a new philosophy of football, showing how sport could lead to social change instead of propping up a hyper-consumerist and collapsing society.

With a light touch, Vasilis Kostakis tackles the meaning of the beautiful game, exploring how it is produced and played, from the dribbles of a young Zapatista, to the many goals of Messi. Speaking to activists, philosophers, comedians and footballers themselves, he imagines what football would look like in a new, post-capitalist world.

How does football affect global inequality and the climate crisis? How does it teach our children empathy? What makes the game so captivating to billions of people, and how can this passion be used for liberation? With humour and insight, Beyond the Final Whistle is a love letter to football and revolution.

'This book is a politically-committed love letter to all football fans out there who still care about the sport; and to anyone who cares about our life in common'

- Giorgos Kallis, ICREA professor, ICTA-UAB

'A delightful exploration of football, capitalism, and the difference between the incessant pursuit of more for its own sake and the possibility of making a meaningful life with others in common'

- Yochai Benkler, author of The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedom

'Beyond the Final Whistle resonates deeply with my own journey in using football to spark meaningful change. This book is a profound reminder that football is far more than a sport; it’s a canvas for building a fairer and more compassionate world. Vasilis weaves these truths into a compelling call to action, showing how each of us can play a role in creating a better future'

- Kelly Davies, Retired International Wales Football Player and Co-Leader 'Sport for Changemaking' Global Team

'You might think that a football pitch might not be the obvious place to begin to change the world, but Vasilis Kostakis encourages us to think otherwise. Using both mundane and wonderful examples, this tremendous book encourages readers to see the politics in the cooperation that makes a match possible, even if it is often shadowed by the spectres of big business. This is an incitement to take back the game, and begin to make it beautiful again'

- Martin Parker, Professor of Organisation Studies, Bristol University

'If you love football and sharing, Vasilis Kostakis takes you on a deeply personal tour, explaining how the two can be a pair rather than opposites, brilliantly arguing for football less as symbol than as symptom of what has gone wrong in our structured living-together – and how it could be (made) better'

- Wolfgang Drechsler, Honorary Professor at the UCL Institute for Innovation for Public Purpose

'Beyond the Final Whistle shows us how football can be not only an instrument, but also an essential part of social transformations for a more just society. By bringing stories of hope and fantasy that this sport evokes, showing the magical and artistic aspects of football from all corners of the world, Kostakis provokes in the reader a feeling of immersion rarely seen in other books about the sport'

- Jorge Knijnik, author of Tales of South American Football and Jane Hunter, University of Technology Sydney

'In a world where culture faces serious manipulation by populist and authoritarian leaders, Vasilis Kostakis presents an inspiring narrative on how culture and sports can become levers to promote democracy. A compelling read for all; football fans or otherwise.'

- Maria Kaika, Professor of Urban Regional and Environmental Planning, University of Amsterdam

How this book was written
Funding acknowledgement


Introduction


Part I: What is football?
1. Football is art
2. The football gods are dead
3. We always dance together
4. We always sing together
5. It came home
6. So what is football anyway?


Part II: What world do we want?
7. We all kicked a ball once
8. The one who always kicked the can
9. The Hallowed Lost Penalty
10. Messi stretches to infinity
11. The tragedy of our times
12. When you're down 4-0 in the 89th minute, can you turn the tide?
13. The poor are poor because they make poor choices
14. The tunnel to the other side of earth
15. The Cruyff turn
16. So can the world change through football?


Part III: How to change the world through football
17. The turn of the century
18. Drivers should drive and footballers should kick the ball
19. Democracy in football, democracy in society
20. Perhaps the greatest match of all time
21. Another world is here
22. The football of change
23. So how do we change the world through football?


Sources and further reading
Index


 

Published by Pluto Press in Apr 2025
Paperback ISBN: 9780745350738
eBook ISBN: 9780745350745

129mm x 198mm