Football Murals

SHORTLISTED FOR THE SUNDAY TIMES SPORTS BOOK AWARDS 2023 - ILLUSTRATED BOOK OF THE YEAR WATERSTONES BEST BOOKS OF 2022 - SPORT 'A beautiful showcase of such a distinctive part of the game's culture... impossible not to get lost in the book' - Miguel Delaney, The Independent 'Gorgeous to behold... Unmissable' - Danny Kelly, TalkSPORT radio presenter On high-rise buildings, street corners and stadium walls around the world, eye-catching murals pay tribute to footballing greats. Offering a fresh, visual perspective on the game, Football Murals is the first book to celebrate these towering works of art. This richly illustrated book showcases the most impressive examples, explores their inspirational qualities and examines what they say about these icons and their sport. Written and curated by respected football writer Andy Brassell, this ground-breaking book features more than 100 murals from around the world, capturing the scale, grandeur and wit of this powerful and popular art form. Through a series of short essays and extended captions, Andy shares the players' stories, discusses the cultural politics and explains just why these men and women have been immortalised in mural form. Covering such diverse topics as Home Town Glory, Football Fame and The Cult of the Coach, Football Murals addresses the issues important to fans worldwide. It spans Marcus Rashford's inspirational mural in a Manchester suburb, the George Best tribute on the East Belfast estate where he was born, the 15-foot depiction of Megan Rapinoe in St Paul, Minnesota, and the Naples 'shrine' to Diego Maradona.

Andy Brassell is a highly respected freelance football writer (the Guardian, the Mirror, Blizzard) and a familiar voice on TalkSport, BBC Radio's Monday Night Club, the Football Ramble podcast and the Totally Football Show. @andybrassell

Foreword Introduction Chapter 1: Hometown Glory Chapter 2: Johan Cruyff Chapter 3: Wayne Rooney Chapter 4: The Good Fight Chapter 5: Pelé Chapter 6: Big Moment Players Chapter 7: Cristiano Ronaldo Chapter 8: Back to Life Chapter 9: Zlatan Ibrahimovic Chapter 10: Ada Hegerberg Chapter 11: Football Fame Chapter 12: Paul Gascoigne Chapter 13: Francesco Totti Chapter 14: Fifty Years of Hurt Chapter 15: Lionel Messi Chapter 16: This Is My House Chapter 17: Ronaldinho Chapter 18: Soul of the Game Chapter 19: Megan Rapinoe Chapter 20: The Cult of the Coach Chapter 21: Diego Maradona Chapter 22: Mohamed Salah Chapter 23: When Love Breaks Down Chapter 24: Franz Beckenbauer Chapter 25: Murals Memorial Chapter 26: Lucy Bronze Chapter 27: Cult Heroes Chapter 26: Zinedine Zidane