My son loved this book. He is football mad and its great to have something to get them off their computer games.

Everything you need to know about the beautiful game from the history to the future. Aimed at eight to twelve year-olds, this book is fun to read and explains just about every feature that will appeal to the fact loving geek (who scored from the longest kick) and the player (what is a sweeper). Part of the Stupendous Sports series.

The history points are accurate and are illustrated with comic skill by Matt Cherry. The section on positions is like a game of Top Trumps, with scores for the skills needed. A few of the most famous players are listed, like Pele and Johan Cruyff, rules, types of kicks and how to learn them. It really does cover everything.

Best of all is how the book explains why football is so popular. With no set roles for players other than the goalkeeper and no rigid pitch dimensions, the game is very accessible. Just as this book is.

​Recommended for all football fans, including adults who want to know more about national styles and the latest buzzwords in the game. Brilliant stuff.

A fun read that me and Riley both enjoyed. He is a huge football fan and especially enjoyed the player bios. I thought it was great that the author included both female and disabled players within these, as well as some of the greats from the men's game.

He also loved the stats on cup winners etc., although I would recommend that you purchase the physical copy which would make these easier to read. We read this as a bedtime book, but I would definitely recommend this more for independent readers. It would be a great option for reluctant readers who are football fans, to encourage them to read a bit more too.