The first history of Italian football to be written in English Calcio is a mix of serious analysis & comic storytelling with vivid descriptions of games goals dives missed penalties riots & scandals in the richest & toughest league in the world. Calcio tells the story of Italian football from its origins in the 1890s to the present day. It takes us through a history of great players & teams of style passion & success but also of violence cynicism catenaccio tactics & corruption. We meet the personalities that have shaped this history
- from the Italian heroes to the foreigners that failed the model professionals to the mavericks. Calcio evokes the triumphs (the 1982 World Cup victory) & the tragedies (Meroni the Italian George Best killed by his number one fan) set against a backdrop of paranoia & intrigue in a country where the referee is seen as corrupt until proven otherwise. Calcio is no longer a game. It is sometimes difficult to define it as a sport. It is certainly big business & a fanatical civic religion. There is no moral code here. Winners are always right losers always wrong. This history of Italian football reveals all about the richest & toughest league in the world.