John Doyle's The World is a Ball

The World is a Ball: The Joy, Madness, and Meaning of Soccer

By John Doyle

            Recently, I read John Doyle’s book The World is a Ball: The Joy, Madness and Meaning of Soccer. John Doyle, a television critic for the Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail, traveled throughout countless destinations throughout the world to cover different international soccer tournaments. The book is written as a travelogue, recapping his encounters throughout the world with supporters and players of various teams. Doyle intriguingly describes how the fans, the hosts, and the culture of the game changes the sport of soccer itself and its many outcomes. In The World is a Ball, John Doyle expertly transcribes his experiences with culture, travel, and competition within the sport of soccer.

            John Doyle visited numerous countries in his travels following soccer. He witnessed many interesting events and met countless intriguing figures. A common encounter throughout his book was with the “Oranje Army”. The Oranje Army is the supporters’ group for the Dutch National Team. Throughout World Cups and European Championships, the Oranje Army would engulf city streets and stadium grandstands in orange. One memorable instance was when the Netherlands won an important game in the 2008 European Championship in Bern, Switzerland. After the game, the Oranje Army stole police tape (the kind that’s commonly associated with crime scenes) from the streets. Even though we know this tape to be yellow, the Swiss police happened to have orange tape. The tape quickly became party streamers and the train station in particular was covered in the orange tape. Many other nations and their fan organizations were associated with specific personalities. England was and is most commonly made out as hooligans; Ireland is associated with green, lederhosen, and leprechauns, while France was known for its bigotry, more commonly with its players rather than its supporters.

            Doyle, while creating a book focusing on worldwide soccer, also succeeded in making a very descriptive travel guide. In Germany for the 2006 World Cup, Doyle described his encounters with drunken passengers on trains, particularly ones with restaurant cars. In adventures to South America and Italy he described his conversations with cab drivers, some much more friendly then others. Finally, Doyle also succeeded in describing the atmosphere in sports bars and city streets. He was able to vividly display local people and how they went about their life in local coffee houses and diners.

            Lastly, Doyle was able to make intuitive connections between culture and psychology and the sport itself. One good example of this was John Doyle’s observation of cockiness among the members of the French team, exhibited during an open training session between the team and the press. He also related to the repetitive woes of the English team to the overrating and overpaying of their players. One of his most impressive conclusions was how Toronto developed into a very soccer-centered city because of its different European immigrant ethnic populations.

            John Doyle concluded his book by stating the game of soccer closely reflects the world and life, in the sense that both have a soul, and both have the potential to have heartbreak, even though you carry on after heart break in both cases. John Doyle’s book can satisfy both soccer fans and those interested in the world and its culture. Especially to anyone with an interest in learning about life in foreign countries, this book would make a great read.